Technology Archives - Page 8 of 19

Live chat for advisers: chat your way to business growth

Posted on June 13, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Compliance, Social Media, Technology

Financial advisers can use live chat tools provided they first address compliance and productivity issues

Financial adviser websites can offer live chat tools for client and prospect communication.

As you visit more business websites online, you’ve likely noticed those pop-up windows in the bottom corner inviting you to a live chat. You can use live chat features for all sorts of things, including asking questions about a product, getting help from customer service, or simply submitting general feedback about a recent service experience.

Financial advisers can also leverage this trend in live chat communication with website visitors of all kinds, including clients and prospects.

This month’s column at Morningstar Advisor covers this trend that few advisers are taking advantage of today, but has the potential to be used by a much larger audience in the near future.

Read Live Chat for New Clients now to learn about out the compliance concerns of live chat as well as the issues of maintaining personal productivity in the face of potential distractions.

Ask the Tech Experts: Register for this free InvestmentNews webinar

Posted on June 4, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Technology

06/12/2013 UPDATE: A replay of the webinar is available. Register for free to view the archive using the link below. NOTE: The replay is not compatible with mobile devices.

I have the privilege of presenting alongside Joel Bruckenstein, co-founder of Technology Tools for Today, and Davis Janowski, technology reporter for InvestmentNews in an upcoming free webinar. Watch the promo video above.

Ask the Tech Experts: Trends in Advisory Technology will be hosted Tuesday, June 11 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern.

View the archive for free at InvestmentNews.com.

Click the image to view the free archive.

How to secure mobile devices against “WiFi honeypots”

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Practice Management, Software, Technology

WiFi "honeypots" impersonate trusted WiFi networks remembered by your mobile devices

“WiFi honeypots” impersonate WiFi networks remembered and trusted by your mobile devices

Financial advisers should use a VPN to protect mobile devices from “WiFi honeypots.”

WiFi is almost everywhere today. But when you connect to WiFi in your local coffeeshop or hotel for the evening, do you really know who is managing the connection?

Eavesdropping on Public WiFi

You place a lot of trust in unknown providers when you connect your mobile devices to public WiFi.

Most of the time, you’re likely not at risk of having data you send over WiFi intercepted by someone else. But a number of software programs and hardware devices for sale on the Internet allow users to do just that; sit on public WiFi and eavesdrop on unencrypted data being passed back and forth.

WiFi Honeypot

According to one hardware manufacturer, launching man-in-the-middle attacks is “as simple as setting up your typical home wireless router.”

Other devices are even more nefarious. Did you know that most of your mobile devices passively seek trusted WiFi networks to which they have connected in the past?

Your mobile devices remember trusted WiFi networks so you don’t have to repeatedly enter your password and/or approve the connection over and over again. Convenient, right?

Well, these nefarious devices called “honeypots” are built to respond to your mobile devices’ inquiry for a trusted WiFi network.

For example, when your phone broadcasts “is the ‘ApexWealthSecureWiFi’ SSID available?” the WiFi honeypot responds, “Yes, I’m the ApexWealthSecureWiFi access point, you can connect with me!”

And that connection now exposes your phone, tablet, or laptop to a potential man-in-the-middle attack (MitM).

Elude WiFi Honeypots

How do you protect yourself against WiFi honeypots?

First, ensure that you use https:// and SSL connections online as much as possible. Download and install browser plugins like HTTPS Anywhere for Firefox and Chrome (sorry Internet Explorer users, consider this one more reason to stop using that browser).

Implement VPN

Second, set up your own VPN, or virtual private network, connection that provides a secure, encrypted “tunnel” through which your Internet traffic is routed.

If you don’t have your own VPN connection available from your IT department, you can subscribe to one of several private VPN services, most of which cost roughly $50 per year.

For a more detailed review of VPN, read my latest column for Morningstar Advisor titled Secure Your Mobile Connections and increase your safety and security when using WiFi away from your authentic networks.

Avoid WiFi Altogether

When in doubt, avoid using WiFi altogether when you’re away from your trusted networks.

Instead, use your mobile device’s cellular connection (3G or 4G LTE), and if your device doesn’t have its own cellular modem, buy a mobile 4G LTE hotspot for $100 and use that (may I recommend an Overdrive Pro 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot from Virgin Mobile?)

Remember that there are people out there who will exploit vulnerabilities for a variety of reasons. Follow the recommendations above to reduce your odds of becoming a victim of a man-in-the-middle attack when using WiFi networks.

Fidelity selects External IT for a cloud-based virtual desktop solution for financial advisers

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Technology

Fidelity selects External IT to deliver a “first-of-its-kind solution” to advisers

In a press release today, Fidelity announced it has selected External IT as the exclusive provider of a cloud-based virtual desktop solution to financial advisers.

The Cloud Virtual Desktop

Advisers who custody client assets with Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services® (IWS) will soon leverage External IT’s technology known as the OS33 Portal Desktop.

According to Ed O’Brien, head of technology for Fidelity IWS, pricing for the virtual desktop will be approximately $150 per user per month.

Native, Not Watered-Down

In the virtual desktop solution, advisors will find familiar programs including Adobe Acrobat, the Microsoft Office 2010 suite, Quickbooks and more.

External IT users get access to full versions of the office productivity software through Citrix Receiver, not scaled down web-based counterparts with limited functionality.

The External IT dashboard with office productivity programs included (click to view full size image)

File Access

The virtual desktop also supports traditional file management, accessed in two ways.

First, a file manager interface can be accessed directly within the web browser, allowing users to browse a file directory structure similar to those found in most computer operating systems.

The alternate file access method actually launches a separate file manager window that looks just like the Windows 7 file explorer. Users can browse files and folders in both the hosted file system as well as their local hard drive using the External IT file manager window. Worth noting is that the search field works in this separate file manager window just as it does in the native Windows 7 operating system, so users may find this method a bit faster to find documents and files.

Mobile

The External IT solution is also accessible from mobile devices using the standard mobile web browser. Users have a few options when working with office files like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents.

The mobile optimized External IT dashboard, viewed on an iPad (click to view full size image)

First, the full versions of Office programs can be streamed to the mobile device using the Citrix Receiver app. However, most will find that attempting to touch menu bars and manipulating the cursor is challenging on non-touch optimized software.

Therefore, if users have appropriate permissions, Office documents can be downloaded and opened in third party apps such as QuickOffice Pro HD or Office² HD. Changes can then be uploaded back into the External IT solution.

Security

Advisers will also benefit from a wide array of security features available in the External IT solution. Users can easily add and delete (aka provision) employee accounts, prohibit file downloads onto personal devices, and enforce multi-factor authentication when users log in.

Reactions

For reaction on the solution announcement, I reached out to several providers of virtual desktop solutions for those in financial services.

Wes Stilman, CEO of Right Size Solutions. “If the custodian desires, it provides an opportunity to integrate their technology with a cloud provider.”

“If the custodian desires, it provides an opportunity to integrate their technology with a cloud provider. For example, it could simplify single sign on,” said Wes Stillman, president of Right Size Solutions.

“The potential negative for the custodian is that the cloud provider has to earn consistent high marks,” added Stillman. “Should the quality of service falter, it could reflect badly on the custodian.”

For this reason, Fidelity arranged dedicated support for advisers from External IT and also aligned support times with the equity and bond market schedule, according to O’Brien.

O’Brien added that advisers always have access to the online External IT help desk and can also call in for support during both peak and non-peak hours.

Ryan Terwedo, founder and CEO of CloudRIA: “Depending on how they are providing the [virtual desktop] window, the user experience is not great.”

Ryan Terwedo, founder and CEO of cloudRIA, agrees with Stillman’s sentiment of the provider’s service quality, including the user experience.

“Depending on how they are providing the [virtual desktop] window, the user experience is not great,” said Terwedo. “Microsoft Word was never designed for anything but being installed on a local windows machine.”

ShareFile adds SEC and FINRA compliance capabilities with Archiving for Financial Services

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Compliance, Technology

The popular online file sharing service meets regulatory record-keeping requirements with latest archiving functionality

ShareFile Archiving for Financial Services

In a press release today, ShareFile, the online file sharing service owned by Citrix, announced the availability of its Archiving for Financial Services compliance feature.

ShareFile, my 2012 Morningstar Advisor Best Back-Office Technology award winner, has been popular among financial advisers for its online file storage functionality much like Dropbox, Box, SugarSync, Google Drive, Microsoft SkyDrive, and many more.

But ShareFile’s focus on the specific needs and regulatory requirements of professionals in financial services has helped the company gain a sizable following relative to the generic competition.

According to the press release, ShareFile Archiving for Financial Services helps financial advisers satisfy SEC and FINRA record-keeping requirements “by offering retained, indexed, auditable and searchable records of client communications for the period required or longer.”

Below is a video from ShareFile with an overview of Archiving for Financial Services.

(Click to watch on YouTube)

Consolidating Two Systems

Typically, advisers who use online file sharing services to exchange documents with clients and prospects maintain two separate systems in their back office.

One system is the online file sharing service that does just that; facilitates file sharing with individuals outside the adviser’s network infrastructure.

But most advisers then maintain a second system that satisfies the record-keeping requirements imposed by the SEC and FINRA. Two systems are necessary, because consumer file sharing services (i.e. Dropbox) just aren’t built with the regulatory record-keeping requirements in mind.

For advisers using ShareFile Archiving for Financial Services, two systems should no longer be necessary to satisfy the record-keeping requirements.

A Document Management Solution?

With the addition of Archiving for Financial Services, is ShareFile now a contender among document management providers?

I believe the answer is no.

Archiving for Financial Services is a very useful addition, and it will eliminate the need to run two separate systems to facilitate file sharing and to maintain adequate record-keeping systems. But document management requires more than just indexed, auditable, and searchable records of client communications.

Document management systems offer metadata tagging and document profiling for every record stored in the system, and automated workflow is also frequently supported.

So for advisers who lack a true document management system (and surveys consistently show that there are a large number of such firms), ShareFile combined with Archiving for Financial Services is a convenient way to get two features from the same product.

But for firms already using document management systems with native record-keeping compliance, Archiving for Financial Services is unnecessary.

Nevertheless, ShareFile’s ease of use and mobile device compatibility still makes it a strong contender for online file sharing with clients, prospects, and colleagues.

For more details about Archiving for Financial Services, visit the ShareFile Blog and read New feature allows ShareFile to help financial firms achieve compliance

Lead generation for advisers: how to grow a prospect list and increase website ROI

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Technology

Lead generation means rolling out the welcome mat for website visitors

Mention lead generation at a financial adviser conference, and you’ll likely be greeted with blank stares.

Since the inception of the financial planning profession, adviser growth has been dominated by referral-based practices.

The problem is that today more and more consumers (and future clients) are visiting websites and social media sites first to learn what they can about financial advisers.

These website visitors may or may not receive specific referrals from friends and colleagues, but they’re still going online to learn as much as possible about advisers and services before they reach out to schedule an initial appointment.

Lead Generation 101

Advisers can spend considerable time and money building an attractive and informative site, but if visitors only read information and never return, the investment fails to pay off.

Lead generation is the mechanism advisers can implement to cultivate a stronger relationship with website visitors by capturing names and email addresses to use for future correspondence.

This month’s column for Morningstar Advisor discusses lead generation techniques financial advisers can follow to realize a higher ROI on their website development.

Follow this link to read Increase Your Website ROI at Morningstar.com.

Financial adviser workflow: How Deborah Fox is networking advisers with a one-stop shop for workflow

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Efficiency, Technology, Video Spotlight

While attending the TD Ameritrade Institutional 2013 National Conference last month, I connected with Deborah Fox, founder of the Fox Financial Planning Network.

In our conversation, Fox provided insight on the need for systematized workflow solutions in the financial services industry.

“We wanted to provide tools in a way advisers could get quick results to fully systematize their practice and think through their business model,” said Fox.

I reviewed the Fox Financial Planning Network resources in January for Morningstar Advisor (see: How to add pre-configured workflows to popular adviser CRM software).

You’ll see how the network resources are not just a list of PDF files listing the steps advisers should follow to prepare for a client meeting, but includes CRM plugins (Redtail and Grendel are the first ones to support this integration) and live training webinars and discussions with Fox and other experts.

For more information about the Fox Financial Planning Network, visit them online at http://foxfinancialplanningnetwork.com/

(click to watch on YouTube)

Are you a road warrior adviser? Here are five tech tips to ease your journey

Posted on February 14, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Technology

airplane

Road warrior advisers can use these tech tips to ease the frustrations of frequent travel

If you’re like me, you spend a good portion of your time on the road attending conferences, visiting clients in other states, and taking a few vacations for rest and relaxation.

But life on the road is riddled with hangups, from small hassles like not being able to find a taxi, to big disruptions of a cancelled flight with no affordable overnight hotel options.

Thankfully, technology is becoming a road warrior adviser’s best friend, drastically reducing the inconvenience of changes to your travel itinerary.

In this month’s Morningstar Advisor column, go check out five tech tips to reduce the stress in your next journey.

Go read Tech for the Road Warrior Advisor at MorningstarAdvisor.com.

My 10 Questions interview with the Journal of Financial Planning

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Technology

Bill Winterberg 10 Questions

Ten questions highlights Dropbox, Google+ Hangouts, Windows 8 and more

Each month the Journal of Financial Planning interviews “noteworthy people” for its 10 Questions feature.

I had the honor and privilege of being the featured guest in February’s issue.

Carly Schulaka, Managing Editor for the Journal of Financial Planning, lined up a great list of questions, including conversations around file sharing services like Dropbox, whether financial planners should upgrade to Windows 8, broadcasting content over the Internet, and how inStream Solutions is poised to change the way financial plans are created.

Be sure to head on over to the Journal of Financial Planning and read 10 Questions with Bill Winterberg (PDF).

Also, I supplemented the 10 Questions feature with a video interview covering Pinterest and QR codes. See that video at How financial advisers can use Pinterest and QR codes

How financial advisers can use Pinterest and QR codes

Posted on February 5, 2013 by Bill Winterberg in Technology

Here are two easy ways financial advisers can use Pinterest and QR codes to connect with clients and prospects

Last week, I connected with Lance Ritchlin, Publications Director for the Financial Planning Association, to highlight some quick takeaways on emerging technology for financial planners.

Specifically, Ritchlin wanted to know, is there any value in financial planners’ use of Pinterest (the “pinboard-style photo sharing website”), and what is one useful way financial planners can use QR codes?

Here are my best ideas all in under three minutes!