IOOF’s Renato Mota said clients would become less loyal to their advisers over the coming decades.

It would be replaced by endorsements as the main driver for client engagement.

“With the average person spending 1.72 hours each day on social media, likes and social networks will become the new advertising," he said.

Advisers might have to change their business models if they wanted to keep up with the new ways of doing business, he suggested.

“The future may also see clients expecting financial advisers to compete for their business. We have seen this model with airfares and hotels. Now recently-launched Australian company flongle.com.au which gets mortgage providers to bid, through reverse auction, for mortgages, represents the first steps into financial services.”

But he said consumer trust would remain vital as concerns about privacy and data security clashed with increasing amounts of personal information being held online.

There is scepticism about how soon such a change could be expected in this country.

Adviser Mark Sheehan, of the Institute of Financial Advisers, said he was not aware of anyone in New Zealand doing online advice well. “If in fact advice itself is something that can be done well online.”

Other changes Mota is predicting include growth in investment platforms as investors seek to aggregate their investments, assets and liabilities.

“At the same time as wrapping products become more sophisticated, simplicity and the user experience is key to success. Clients are also likely to have target oriented outcomes, rather than focus on investment performance alone.'"

He said that would mean advisers were left to focus on their core competencies, such as retirement planning, rather than get caught up in asset allocation questions. 

What is in the investment portfolios that advisers manage is likely to change too, Mota said,  as companies that distribute rather than manufacture become more valuable.

Asset-poor companies such as Uber and Airbnb represented a new business model, he said.