AI Agent Services That Can Revolutionize Client Operations

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a game-changer for financial advisors who want to run their businesses more efficiently, and without neglecting the client experience. One of the latest innovations involves the use of AI agents to handle client-facing tasks that aren’t necessarily reliant on human interaction. Luckily, there are several platforms that can help financial advisors build AI agent services to streamline operations.

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What Are AI Agents?

AI agents are software tools that understand and respond to client inquiries without the need for human input or guidance. Agents are equipped to handle a variety of tasks, including:

• Workflow development for marketing or other tasks
• Client inquiry response
• Problem-solving

Unlike traditional AI technologies, AI agents don’t require a human touch to operate. Instead, agent builders use machine learning and natural language processing (NLP) to power these tools.

This may make it sound like AI agents are similar to chatbots, they’re very different. Chatbots are typically programmed to answer specific questions. For example, a client might use a chatbot to ask for help logging in to their secure portal or dashboard. The chatbot is AI-trained to produce the same structured response to this question and its variations of it every time.

AI agents, on the other hand, are autonomous in nature. They can analyze data in real time, retain the information they absorb, and apply it to answer questions, solve problems, or complete other tasks. They’re adept at recognizing what a user (i.e., the client) needs and responding to it in a way that feels human.

Agentic AI Use-Cases for Financial Advisors

Introducing AI agents into client operations begins with understanding what they might be able to do for you. Advisors can put them to work in a number of ways, such as:

• Client onboarding. A smooth onboarding experience builds trust, and AI agents can help you bring new clients into the fold with minimal hiccups. Some of the tasks agents can perform include gathering client information, collecting digital signatures for key documents and answering any questions clients might have about the process.
• Client communications and support. AI agents can help you stay connected to clients without tying up hours of your time answering phone calls or replying to emails. For example, you can use an AI agent to analyze client records and send a personalized reminder to book a portfolio review. AI agents are also adept at fielding client queries, so you can stay focused on your most important tasks.
• Portfolio management. Optimizing client portfolios is a necessary, but often time-consuming, part of your work as an advisor. AI agents can shift some of the burden off your shoulders by analyzing financial data and market news to make personalized investment recommendations for your clients.

The obvious benefit to you is time saved, but AI agents can also help you maintain an engaged, satisfied client base. Beyond client operations, AI agents can assist with streamlining certain back-office tasks, such as client billing, invoice reconciliation and financial reporting. 

Compliance monitoring is another area of opportunity in which you might consider deploying AI agents. For example, agents can complete Know Your Client (KYC) checks when onboarding new clients, or monitor client account activity for potentially suspicious transactions. On a broader scale, AI agents can monitor financial industry regulatory trends and alert you to possible weak spots in your compliance plan before they become an issue.

3 Platforms That Build AI Agent Services to Revolutionize Client Operations

AI agent builders can offer a range of services, some of which may prove more useful to you than others. Below are examples of AI agent builders you might use to improve client operations for your business. It’s advisable to conduct your own research to find the right agent-builder platform for your needs.

1. Agentforce

Agentforce is owned by Salesforce, a leader in the customer relationship management (CRM) space. Agents are equipped to retrieve data on demand, build action plans and execute them, all without needing any intervention from you or a member of your team¹. All of this is powered by the Atlas Reasoning Engine, which is designed to allow agents to provide precise answers or solutions to problems.

Advisors can use Agentforce to:

• Automate routine tasks and processes
• Provide personalized client support
• Develop in-depth analytics for use in portfolio decision-making
• Plan for smoother client meetings

Agentforce also assists with compliance monitoring to help keep your firm on track.

2. Uptiq

Uptiq offers AI agent solutions for wealth managers and RIAs who are ready to scale. Two of the most significant client operations tasks you can assign to AI agents through the platform are new client onboarding and book transition².  

For onboarding, Uptiq offers digital intake, e-agreements and document collection. Book transition services can assist with:

• Repapering
• Document filing
• CRM syncing

Uptiq is designed to integrate with many of the tech solutions advisors already use, including Redtail, Wealthbox, Orion and Envestnet. It’s scalable and can evolve as your business grows, with agents that are built around your existing workflows.

3. Unique

Unique offers agentic AI for financial services professionals that are designed to meet specific needs. Options include:

• Investment insight agents
• KYC agents
• Due diligence agents
• Client proposal agents
• Service center agents
• Knowledge search agents
• CRM automation agents

The list is actually much longer, which you may find appealing if you’re interested in a multi-agent approach. Unique helps advisors automate routine tasks and customize AI experiences for clients. This tool integrates with Salesforce, Outlook, S&P Global and other tech tools advisors often use³.

Tips for Choosing an AI Agent Service

Regardless of which tool you decide to use, it’s important to have clear expectations going in. Before you can build AI agent services for your client operations, you need to know what purpose you want the AI agent to serve. For example, do you want an AI agent to:

• Answer client questions
• Troubleshoot technical problems that affect how your client interacts with your firm’s website or mobile app
• Analyze client portfolios
• Monitor for compliance
• Develop workflows or systems to manage operations

You’ll also need to decide how many agents you want to use. You could build one AI agent to do all of these things, or assign an individual agent to each task.

An effective way to narrow down what an AI agent should do for you is to talk to your clients. Ask them to complete a satisfaction survey and share feedback on things they feel could use improvement.

You can then have the same discussion with your staff. Ask them to share which tasks they find tedious, time-consuming or frustrating. Then compare the results from both sides to look for overlapping areas that could be improved through the use of an AI agent.

Review the features and benefits an AI agent builder offers to see how they align with your needs. Consider how the software handles compliance monitoring and what level of support is available should you have questions or need help integrating it into your tech stack. Finally, weigh the tool’s overall compatibility with your current systems and the cost.

Bottom Line

AI agent services are yet another example of how artificial intelligence tools are reshaping the wealth management industry. These tools offer advantages, but there may be downsides, as well. Looking at both sides can help you decide if an AI agent might be appropriate for your firm.

Tips for Growing Your Advisory Business

• Building a successful brand takes time, and a comprehensive marketing strategy can help elevate your firm. Partnering with an advisor marketing platform can take some of the guesswork out of connecting with leads. SmartAsset AMP (Advisor Marketing Platform) is a holistic marketing service financial advisors can use for client lead generation and automated marketing. Sign up for a free demo to explore how SmartAsset AMP can help you expand your practice’s marketing operation. Get started today.
• If you’re interested in AI tools, consider where else you could put them to work in your business. For example, AI note-takers can help you stay focused on your client during meetings, without missing a word of what was said. ChatGPT, meanwhile, can shorten the time you need to spend creating content for email newsletters, blog posts and other client communications.

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