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Two thirds of consumers search for IFAs by product areas

·         Unbiased.co.uk’s latest Advice Drivers report highlights almost 25,000 consumer requests for details of local independent financial advisers in November

·         Retirement planning and investment and savings were the top triggers for seeking advice

New figures from Unbiased.co.uk, the professional advice website, reveal that nearly 25,000 consumers sought guidance from an independent financial adviser in November.

Consumers valued advice in specialist areas more than ever in November with two thirds (66%) searching for advice on a specific product area (rather than searching by just postcode). This figure has increased from 60% in November 2008.

Over a third (37%) of searches through the ‘find an IFA’ service was for advice on personal retirement planning, up from 28% in the same period last year.  The second most popular search was for advice on investments and savings with 28% of searches being made in this area, this has increased from 22% in November 2008.

These areas have increased dramatically when compared to the same period in 2008 as consumers re-examine their investments and financial planning following a turbulent investment year.   

Unbiased.co.uk’s Advice Drivers report demonstrates once again consumers’ need for independent financial advice, with Unbiased.co.uk receiving over 300,000 requests for details of local IFAs so far this year.

Karen Barrett, Chief Executive of Unbiased.co.uk, commented: “Our latest report demonstrates that consumers are continuing to seek independent financial advice to help them plan their finances in uncertain economic times. Consumers are also increasingly seeing the value of specialist advice as growing numbers are searching for IFAs who specialise in a certain product area, especially for those specialising in pensions or investments.

“Only an independent financial adviser can take a holistic view of your finances and recommend solutions from across the whole of market, rather than just a selection of providers, giving you a choice of how you pay for this valuable advice. In order to find an independent financial adviser, you can go to Unbiased.co.uk to find an IFA close to where you live or who specialises in the area of advice you are looking for.”

The top ten Advice Drivers in November 2009 were as follows:

ENDS

For further information on Unbiased.co.uk, the professional advice website pleases contact:

Sign up to Unbiased.co.uk’s unique Professional Connections service, allowing IFAs, mortgage brokers and solicitors to find and link up with other professional advisers across the UK to expand their current business network.

For expert commentary or case studies from over 200 media-friendly IFAs, journalists should visit www.unbiased.co.uk/bluebook to search the Blue Book Media IFA database.

Top tips for journalists when using Blue Book online:

1.         List and store all your IFA contacts in one place.  As well as having access to the whole Media IFA database on the Blue Book, you can also separately list your favourite Media IFAs.  You can add confidential, personalised post-it notes with extra details to Media IFA profiles.  These will be saved and always appear every time you log back into your account.

2.         Email broadcast Media IFAs.  The Blue Book allows you to email individual favourite Media IFAs for personal commentary or alternatively email a group of your favourite Media IFAs for a collection of opinions on a topic.  You can use the Blue Book online to conduct a straw poll on a specific topic for instance. 

3.         Online coverage generated by Media IFAs.  Each Media IFA profile contains links to their most recent online coverage.  This allows you to see what topic Media IFAs have been commenting on recently, allowing you to make a more informed decision as to which Media IFA you wish to speak to.

4.         Each Media IFA has a star rating.  This is calculated by how many journalist’s favourites lists each Media IFA appears on.  The more journalist’s favourites lists they appear on, the higher their star rating.  Look at the ‘top rated’ list to find out which Media IFA has the highest star rating.  

5.         Journalist recommendations.  The Blue Book gives helpful suggestions as to which Media IFAs other journalists have on their list of favourites.  Each Media IFA profile has suggestions as to other Media IFAs you may find useful. 

6.         Broaden out your contact list of Media IFAs.  Overall, the Blue Book online is designed to help you widen the pool of Media IFAs you can contact for commentary or help with articles you are writing.  Sign up to the Blue Book now in order to take advantage of all these features. 

Notes to Editors

Unbiased.co.uk, the professional advice website

Unbiased.co.uk is the free and confidential UK-wide search service matching consumers with the most appropriate local professional advisers for their needs.  In 2008, Unbiased.co.uk fulfilled over half a million searches for local, professional advice. 

The portal currently houses three professional advice searches: ‘find an IFA’, ‘find a mortgage adviser’, and ‘find a solicitor’, and is inviting accountants to sign up for its ‘find an accountant’ service.  These searches enable consumers to find relevant professional advisers by postcode, area of specialism and payment method, amongst other options. 

IFA Promotion, the organisation behind Unbiased.co.uk, is now in its 20th year, and was set up to promote the benefits of independent financial advice to the consumer. 

Unbiased.co.uk’s product provider sponsors

Registered Office: Unbiased.co.uk is the consumer brand of IFA Promotion Ltd, 90 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow G2 5UB. Registered in Scotland: No. 114606