They will not rule the world. The world will be populated by whole new species of critters who deliver financial products to customers. Now, with more choices than ever and enough to create great confusion, the customer wants straight, unbiased advice. Oh, yes, competent too. Frankly, I think captive agent distribution systems will have to serve the lower rungs of the consumer hierarchy and make their profits by processing large numbers of thin margin cases through very efficient systems.
Marketers sometimes understand, and advisors can learn how to market.
The finely honed hunting skills and intuition of salespeople cannot seem to tune in on this wavelength. What HNW investors want from their financial advisors surprises most people in retail financial services. The following are significantly less important in ranking than the first three. The first three are most significant. So, your role in a distribution system if you are in one, or competing with some if you are completely independent, will change when the distribution systems of today are killed off.