Community ties fuel growth for regional advisers

Across regional Australia, however, bank branch closures are leaving many communities without the financial institutions they have long relied on for advice and other essential services.

“In the old days you’d walk into a bank and you’d meet the bank manager, tell them your problem, and they would try and sort it out for you,” Daniel Brown, CEO of Coastal Advice Group, told ifa.

While the loss of local bank branches has created challenges for many living in regional Australia, it has also opened opportunities for practices such as Brown’s Coastal Advice to fill the gap left behind.

Brown noted that for the average regional client, values such as face-to-face interaction and trust are central, with the presence of a local office fostering the personal, “down to earth” relationships that many clients desire.

“If we weren’t there, they are either having to travel to a city or contact a call centre. With us, they get a personalised touch,” Brown said.

The demand for this kind of personalised service, in Brown’s view, means that many regional clients are less price sensitive and happy to pay for quality, personalised advice.

“The fees are never really questioned as much. They just want us to be local.”

As the only advisers in many of the towns and regional centres where they operate, firms such as Coastal Advice Group and Invest Blue often find themselves with a captive market, facing little to no competition.

This has allowed Coastal Advice to grow as a business, thanks to a steady stream of income.

“Honestly, being regional is fuelling our rapid growth,” Brown said, referencing the growth spurt Coastal Advice has experienced over the last 12 months.

“We try and take what’s happening in the best practices around the world and invest it in the local community, which is giving us great outcomes.”

Brown highlighted Coastal now has 60 to 90 new enquiries a month, does not spend any money on advertising, and can comfortably rely on local networks to help grow their regional footprint.

Speaking with ifa’s sister brand, Money Management, Tammy Strong, founder and senior financial planner at Strong Planning in Queensland’s Ipswich, echoed this sentiment, highlighting that much of her business is built on referrals.

“Since opening my own business, I’ve just had referral after referral after referral,” she said.

“I haven’t really advertised. I haven’t pushed for referrals at all, and I don’t think I’m ever going to need to.”

The localised, personalised nature of regional advice is what helps it thrive and, according to Brown, locals are more likely to welcome a face they are familiar with.

“Hire some local staff, because they [residents] are going to want to go in and like touch bases and say hello to those people that are there if they know them,” she said.

“You have to have some local feel and touch to be successful. You can’t just fly in and fly out. That will not work as effectively.”