The multi tie proposition, known as Sesame Select, has been designed to appeal to a new generation of consumers by offering a broad range of competitively priced products from five of the UK’s leading financial services brands. Each provider has been assessed based on its financial strength, brand reputation, ability to deliver a full suite of products and willingness to create a differentiated service offering.
The new advice service will offer intermediaries improved service levels and e-enabled products to reduce the administration headache and help advisers spend more time building productive relationships with their clients. Approval from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) is currently being sought and financial advisers will be able to join Sesame Select subject to receiving all necessary regulatory consents.
Sesame commercial director Charles Bryant says Sesame Select will complement the services that Sesame already offers advisers and serve as a further option for those looking to strengthen the efficiency and profitability of their business following depolarisation.
“As the market fragments and new advice styles emerge, Sesame’s breadth of offerings provides advisers with the best range of choices to help structure their business in the depolarised world. This will become increasingly important in differentiating Sesame, particularly as more advisers seek to take advantage of the new regime by reviewing their client base and offering a mix of advice solutions for their clients,” he said.
Bryant said that new advice models such as Sesame Select provided an opportunity to address the 32 million UK adults who have shied away from taking professional advice due to reasons such as cost, confidence issues and a lack of understanding of the advice process.
“Sesame Select could be the ideal solution for many of these people as it provides a simpler choice of competitive products from well known brand names. The service is designed to appeal to elements of advisers’ existing client bank, along with a new generation who have never sought financial advice.
“Creating more options and greater access to financial advice represents a genuine attempt to open up the advice community and drive greater consumer confidence. However, it will only be successful if people understand the choices available and trust the advice they receive. We believe the combination of better provider service and leading commission rates from five of the UK’s most established brands will enable advisers within Sesame Select to run more profitable businesses.”
Key features of Sesame Select include:
Bryant continued: “Sesame Select represents an opportunity for advisers to increase the efficiency of their business by working closely with some of the UK’s leading providers and harnessing the potential of technology.”
“Our research found quality of service from providers to be the single biggest concern among advisers, so Sesame has used its scale and influence to establish service standards. Only providers that are prepared to commit to setting and improving standards in the future were considered.
“Working with a handful of providers allows significant scope for us to simplify processes and reduce the administration headache for advisers. It also presents the opportunity for us to raise the bar in terms of the future design of e-enabled products.”
Additional services for Sesame Select advisers
Advisers who sign-up will also have a wide range of additional services to choose from including mortgage and general insurance propositions, compliance support, fast-track authorisation process, low-cost professional indemnity cover, research service, integrated desktop application to help advisers through the whole sales process and access to Sesame Learning with its comprehensive programme of product, technical and business skills training.
