Raymond James tapped a pent-up demand for texting when it added an adviser texting feature to its adviser mobile app in November 2019. A year later — and nine months into the COVID-19 pandemic that heightened the need for remote communications — the number of texts between clients and advisers was up 33%, while texts from clients increased by 65%.

“Text has more immediacy, say, if you want to confirm an appointment or find out if you need more documents,” said Kimberly Tays, vice president, advisor technology at Raymond James. “It allows a feeling of more accessibility.”

Advisers access the texting feature from Advisor Mobile, where they can view and write texts within the boundaries of the business app. Business texts are not co-mingled with their personal texts.

Adviser-client texts are compliant with communication and review requirements because they are integrated with the company’s electronic communications archival tool — similar to how email is treated— as well as with its enterprise CRM system, Tays said.

— Deborah Nason