In August we launched our annual survey. We want to make sure that we keep up to date with what matters the most to our clients. So, together Julian and Marian drafted a 10 question survey covering two topics – the Climate Crisis and Artificial Intelligence. We sent this out to 259 across all three advisers’ client banks.
By drafting a range of questions across multiple aspects of the topics, we feel that we gave our clients ample opportunity to fully explore the issues raised and gave them the freedom to answer openly.
We are overjoyed with the responses we received and feel incredibly grateful for the participation of our clients. We never take for granted how engaged our clients are and we feel this engagement is shown by the insightful answers we have received.
Our key takeaways from the survey:
Climate Crisis
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The data showed us that concern for the climate crisis is high among our clients, particularly those aged 61 and over.
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Our clients are most likely to make environmentally conscious purchases which reflects a preference for individual, consumer driven action.
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The most concerning climate issue is biodiversity loss and rising sea levels followed by extreme weather events, government inaction, climate related inequality.
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There is a desire for investments with clear environmental impact. Renewable energy was ranked the highest of the options given.
Artificial Intelligence
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The majority of our clients have some level of concern regarding AI.
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Daily use of AI is limited with navigation software being used the most and virtual assistants the least.
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Ethical concerns are significant with misinformation being rated as the biggest risk followed by military and autonomous weapons.
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Our clients are generally receptive to the use of AI in our practices. In particular, meeting transcriptions, generating letters and reports, and researching for our newsletters.
When asked if they had additional concerns, the most pressing issue to our clients was inequality.
Once again, we would like to thank our clients for engaging with us on this project and we hope that you have found their responses as interesting as we do. If you would like to learn more, you can find our full report here.
It is important to take professional advice before making any decision relating to your personal finances. Information within this article does not provide individual tailored investment advice and is for guidance only. We cannot assume legal liability for any errors or omissions it might contain. Ethical Futures llp is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.