6 Software Tools For A Financial Advisor (With Tips)

Updated 30 September 2022

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Financial advisors provide guidance to clients on investments, insurance policies, tax saving schemes and retirement plans. They can use financial planning tools to assist them in preparing financial plans for their clients and managing their portfolios. If you work as a financial advisor, you can benefit from knowing the various tools available in the market. In this article, we discuss six software tools for a financial advisor, along with their key features and benefits and share additional tips on choosing one.

What Are Software Tools For A Financial Advisor?

Software tools for a financial advisor are applications used for a variety of activities, such as financial planning, portfolio management, investment analytics, record keeping, trading and risk management. The benefits of using financial planning software include:

Effective cash flow management: These tools can accurately track the inflow and outflow of money from a client's account, which helps professionals prepare financial plans, maintain their portfolio and make modifications as needed.
Reduced risks: These tools provide accurate and timely information about market conditions that financial advisors can analyse to make better decisions and reduce the risks associated with a strategy.
Effective forecasting: Financial planning software can accurately forecast future growth based on trends and patterns in historical data. These tools use machine learning and deep learning to make accurate predictions.
Improved accuracy: In case of any mismatch during data entry, the software alerts the user about potential errors. This is helpful when there is a large amount of financial data collected from multiple sources.
Real-time forecasting: Financial planning software provides interactive dashboards and allows clients to monitor their investment portfolio in real time. This helps clients track their financial progress and portfolio.
Reduced paperwork: Using paperwork for financial planning and data entry can be time-consuming and expensive. Many financial planning applications provide digitised tools that can fetch data from multiple databases quickly.
Simplified tax compliance: Some advanced software tools have in-built tax compliance, which allows advisors to focus on other essential activities. The tool applies taxes to invoices and other documents based on the up-to-date tax rules in the country.
Improved security: These tools provide data backup, enforce strong encryption and provide secure communication between devices to ensure data security. By doing this, they ensure integrity, confidentiality and availability of data at all times.

6 Tools For Financial Advisors

The following are six software tools you may find useful:

1. Quicken

Quicken is a widely used financial planning software that you can use for financial planning, budgeting and investment. It allows advisors to design customised dashboards for clients, which can help them try different investment strategies and learn the risk associated with each of them. It also helps clients track their daily expenses and provides budget recommendations customised to their lifestyles and priorities. This software is available both for web platforms and mobile devices, with seamless integration across platforms.

This tool can track account balances, investments and personal loans and provide a detailed overview of a user's finances. Users can also monitor their investment portfolios in real time and introduce changes if necessary.

2. MoneyGuide

MoneyGuide by Envestnet is a web-based financial planning software that provides solutions for financial planning, budgeting, investment strategies, risk management and portfolio management. By viewing their portfolio performance data, such as past transactions, holdings and asset allocation, clients can better track their financial progress. The tool allows advisors to design custom dashboards for clients, making it easier for them to learn about different investment strategies and risks. MoneyGuide provides the following versions:

MoneyGuideOne: The basic version makes financial planning easier for advisors beginning their practice.
MoneyGuidePro: This version provides advanced features, such as estate planning, net worth statements and risk management tools.
MoneyGuideElite: The premium version offers advanced services such as dynamic income forecasting, tax planning and retirement planning.

3. GnuCash

The GnuCash program provides users with a simple, easy-to-use method of tracking their income, expenses, stocks and bank accounts. With GnuCash, users can create a broad range of customised financial reports that cover personal and business finance. They can also generate reports for cash flow, income and expenses, equity, taxes, net worth and registers.

Detailed documentation for GnuCash provides an overview of its features and a concept guide that includes in-depth explanations. Professionals who are starting their careers in financial advising can consider opting for this software.

4. YNAB

You Need A Budget (YNAB) provides solutions ranging from simple financial goal assessments to advanced cash flow planning analysis. Financial advisors can use this software for various scenarios, such as business planning, stock options, comprehensive tax analysis and retirement planning strategies.

Advisors can create customised dashboards for their clients to help them understand the risks of different investment strategies. It offers digitised tools that expedite data entry, reducing manual efforts and preventing human errors caused by incorrect data entry. It can also facilitate data collection from a wide range of institutions, which makes it easier for clients to fetch their account details and financial records.

5. Unified Wealth Platform

The Unified Wealth Platform (UWP) from Fiserv offers a comprehensive financial planning technology suite, including plans for education, retirement and performance measurement. With this tool, financial advisors can improve workflow efficiency, increase productivity and improve client relationships.

It provides a detailed analysis of risks associated with various business channels, which can help clients minimise their losses and maximise their profits. Users can also monitor their investment portfolios in real time and make adjustments as necessary. It also provides additional features such as portfolio management and trading, portfolio accounting and asset management.

6. Wealthsecure

Wealthsecure is a financial management software that provides solutions for financial planning, estate planning, retirement planning, travel and education. With a seamless onboarding experience for a client, this software allows financial advisors to design various investment strategies customised to a client's risk capacity and long-term financial goals. Clients can choose from a set of strategies and monitor them in real time with the software's unique reporting and analytics tools.

A WealthSecure Tactical Asset Allocation framework alerts users to market conditions and the likelihood of making a profit or loss if they make an investment or trade. The company also provides a knowledge base to educate users on a variety of financial concepts and to increase financial awareness amongst new users. It contains explanatory notes, presentations and videos.

Tips On Choosing A Financial Software

Follow these tips when selecting financial software:

Identify your needs

Prepare a list of features that you are looking for in a software tool. If you manage multiple portfolios, you may need a tool that offers additional features compared to the ones that are meant for individual use. You can evaluate the software with the trial version before purchasing it.

Assess your skills

Many products have sophisticated features that require technical skills. Assess your skill level and level of comfort with the product before purchasing it. If you are a beginner, you can select basic tools that provide standard features. You can start using free applications and open-source software before opting for paid versions. Choosing a product with advanced features is a good idea if you are experienced.

Consider your budget

When selecting a software tool, it is important to consider the budget. Many tools give you a free trial period before you commit to a monthly or annual subscription fee. You can test the software's functionality using the trial pack and then sign up for a subscription if the application meets your needs.

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations mentioned in this article are associated with Indeed.