Want to know how to invest your money? Read MNers feedback on the Netwealth service

[EllieMumsnet]

This is the feedback thread for the Mumsnet users who tested out the Netwealth service by either attending a session at Netwealth’s offices or by attending a Webinar from home. The service test was open and of interest to the following users:

• individuals with ISA and pension holdings
• individuals with current or future financial commitments such as school fees or care home fees
• individuals who want to make sure they have a plan in place for generating retirement income
• widows or divorcees with potentially significant capital sums who would like guidance on their finances
• individuals who have recently sold a company or inherited wealth

Here’s some more information on Netwealth and what they have to say: “Netwealth is a modern wealth manager, combining long term expertise with cutting edge technology. This leads to much lower costs as well as exceptional transparency and flexibility when it comes to savings and investments. The service provides a deeply experienced investment team, who manage investments on clients’ behalf and qualified advisers for those times when advice is needed. The modern technology creates a client experience which is both user-friendly and accessible, including the ability to set up investment goals to line up with individual savings needs, as well as giving insight into daily portfolio performance. All of this is provided at a cost which is typically a half or even a third that of traditional wealth managers. Netwealth aims to make investments a family affair by allowing investors to invite their spouse, children, siblings and friends to their Netwealth Network – with each individual retaining their own portfolio.Fees are then calculated based on the whole Network, helping reduce costs even further.”

Testers please answer the questions below:
- Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?
- Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?
- What do you like most about the website and the process?
- What do you feel could be improved?
- In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?
- Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Selected testers will be required to leave feedback on a thread and also fill in a short survey, all testers who do so will be entered into a prize draw where 3 MNers will win a £100 voucher each of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

Yes

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Interesting and informative. It seemed to make sense and the tools were easy to use.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

I liked being able to change fields and see the immediate impact. It was good to be able to play around like this so you could get a feel for how far you needed to go in terms of risk, time and investment.

• What do you feel could be improved?

It could be clearer how much money you need to invest in order to qualify. I tried looking but couldn't find this so I kept getting a notification at the end of the tool saying that I hadn't meet their minimum investment requirement.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Very wealthy individuals, probably those focused on very long term investments like pensions.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why

Possibly, if they met the criteria above. I thought the tool was great and would be keen to sign up but sadly I don't think my investment would reach their minimum level.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

The Webinar.

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Pretty straightforward. I got a bit bored with the Webinar.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

It was easy to complete details and start the process of investing.

• What do you feel could be improved?

More obvious information about minimum investment amounts and minimum regular contributions.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Those who have some knowledge and confidence of managing their own investments and with money available to invest.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Not at the moment, I don't feel I experienced their service enough to recommend it to others.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

Webinar

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

It was easy to understand the process and set up an account. A well presented website.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

I liked the online tools and being able to adjust the parameters and immediately see the effects of doing so.

• What do you feel could be improved?

Some of the parameters could do with having an option for 'unsure', for example if investing for rainy day funds, you may be uncertain as to when you would want to use the funds.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

People with a fair amount of disposable income or a significant windfall. You wouldn't need to have a great deal of investment knowledge or experience, so would also appeal to people who are attracted to lower fees as a result of it being on online platform.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Possibly. I couldn't recommend it from personal experience but I would discuss it as one of several online investment platforms with a comprehensive website.

Great idea! I think pensions and investments are a bit of a black hole to most people, and this makes it all easy to understand and less of a mystery.

I was a bit confused about your name. I have a pension in another country with a company of the same name, but they appear to be unrelated to you. Nevertheless!

Your intro video was excellent, you are both great presenters and explained things clearly.

I actually logged onto the portal prior to the webinar and had a play around and found it intuitive even without your webinar. But after the webinar I had more time to try out the tools and found it very useful to have a play around with how different risk appetites and different contributions could affect our investments so massively. I previously had way too low a risk appetite for a relatively young person and I have missed out on massive growth :( lucky I have 20 years left to rectify that!

I liked how transparent your fees and charges are. My previous financial adviser took massive amounts of fees on an annual basis and I had no idea. It makes me feel ill to see what he took from me.

In terms of usability, i found the floating “burger” icon a bit hit and miss and couldn’t work out how to save or retrieve a test account, so perhaps that’s something to to consider.

On the whole, great intro and very easy to use system! I’m very impressed.p

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

The webinar

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

It thought the level of detail and options and editability were excellent. It was however a little glitchy on my phone (a moto G7 play)

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

The level of detail. You can really play around with different scenarios and learn a lot about how risk levels affect investment s

• What do you feel could be improved?

Technology glitches (it didn't always update when I changed the amount)

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Medium -wealthy individuals who would like to make informed decisions

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why

Yes, because I thought I knew a fair bit about finance and making decisions but the level of detail in this made me feel like I could really make an informed decision that, crucially, was right for me.

The webinar was really good save for the introduction where the camera angle and lighting etc was really not very good. It would be worth tweaking that in the future as the remainder of the webinar was excelkent!

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

Yes

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Very good. It’s clear and informative. Easy to use.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

The ease of use, the clarity, the tools available.

• What do you feel could be improved?

Outlining the minimum investment requirement before you start the process or options for lower amounts.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

People with very significant amounts of money to invest.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Yes, if they had a lot of money to invest, as it is very informative and thorough.

Sorry just realised there were set questions
Testers please answer the questions below:
- Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?
Webinar
- Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Great idea! I think pensions and investments are a bit of a black hole to most people, and this makes it all easy to understand and less of a mystery.

I was a bit confused about your name. I have a pension in another country with a company of the same name, but they appear to be unrelated to you. Nevertheless!

Your intro video was excellent, you are both great presenters and explained things clearly.

I actually logged onto the portal prior to the webinar and had a play around and found it intuitive even without your webinar. But after the webinar I had more time to try out the tools and found it very useful to have a play around with how different risk appetites and different contributions could affect our investments so massively. I previously had way too low a risk appetite for a relatively young person and I have missed out on massive growth :( lucky I have 20 years left to rectify that!

I liked how transparent your fees and charges are. My previous financial adviser took massive amounts of fees on an annual basis and I had no idea. It makes me feel ill to see what he took from me.

On the whole, great intro and very easy to use system! I’m very impressed.p

- What do you like most about the website and the process?

The great usability of it, and how clear it made projections for each particular investment.
- What do you feel could be improved?

In terms of usability, i found the floating “burger” icon a bit hit and miss and couldn’t work out how to save or retrieve a test account, so perhaps that’s something to to consider.

- In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Given your minimum investment amounts, I'd say professionals or those with some solid savings already.

- Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?
Yes, because it's very transparent about fees, risks and explains all the terminology clearly.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

I attended the Webinar on Wednesday evening and I'm really glad that I did.

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

I was impressed by the lady and gentleman that hosted the event and the level of information given. I always deemed myself relatively financial savvy but pensions is quite a phenomena. It made me realise that I need to up my game and get things in hand. My situation is different to most, as I don't work, and I'm a carer. I think this particular company and its offering is very much aimed at the wealthier members of the population.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

It was easy to use and a great tool to work out the best strategy going forwards to make the most of your finances.

• What do you feel could be improved?

I understood relatively well, though I think 'dumbing down' to encompass a greater understanding would be good. I think those not so financially savvy might not comprehend as well.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Wealthy people.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

I would recommend it as a service ... though there's only a small portion of my family/friends that this service would be relevant too - and I'd like to think that they would already have matters in hand.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

The Netwealth office

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

It’s quite good if you compare to other services, and I do think the amount of information they share is impressive - maybe too much if they want to keep their USP! It’s quite easy to use and easy to play around with investment amounts. It’s a shame that you can’t use it to set an amount as your end goal and be given an investment amount you’d need to put in to reach the goal. Currently you have to put in what you’re investing and see what you can make by tweaking the options such as risk factors or monthly payment amounts et cetera.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

The website is fairly well presented and clear, it’s informative and has loads of information within the various sections should youbwish to know more. I think the process feels quite open on the website and that you have quite a lot of control around the investment risk and timescales for return.

• What do you feel could be improved?

Aside from adding an option to set the end goal and work backwards to an investment, I would say that more could be included about the CEO and management team. The business will be relying on building trust initially. Charlotte is very personable, approachable and relatable and I think her vision for the company (and reason for setting up the company) is a big draw for potential investors, especially female investors. I also think that showing that the company is actually made up of people who really believe in the service they are offering is a powerful selling tool that isn’t being used right now. For example knowing that every employee has a Netwealth account and they all choose to invest with the company (but crucially it’s not mandatory) is something that could build a lot of trust. Also knowing that the people who have come on board with Charlotte to run the company have given up high paying city careers with huge bonuses but they are not being paid huge bonuses with this company is also a powerful message to show the commitment that they have to the success of the company.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

This is a tough one as the minimum is around £50,000 and I don’t think that your average person has that spare to invest. This could be aimed at fairly wealthy individuals (but not massively so) who have some knowledge of investment but no time but it could also be aimed at people who inherit money from parents or people who inherit property and sell this. It could also be aimed at the generation who are about to retire and are downsizing to realise large housing profits? Maybe people who have sold London property or businesses for early retirement?

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

I would recommend them and I already have. I really feel that they were very committed to the business model and in particular Charlotte was very relatable. She told a story about how, when she finished working in banking, she wanted somewhere to invest her money but couldn’t find the right service so set up this! She talked about things like school fees and pensions and it certainly struck a chord with me. Although currently all our cash is managed in a fund that my husband runs (!) I could look at this in the future. Obviously it’s clear that my husband does know a fair bit about the finance world and investing but I’m by no means an expert so having a service that is run by people who do know how to invest successfully and a realistic about the returns is quite appealing.

Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar? I attended the webinar.

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience? It was interesting how easy it was to look at investments and their returns.
• What do you like most about the website and the process? The visuals used were clear and you could see all the possible outcomes whether markets were strong or weak.
• What do you feel could be improved? The limit of £50000 is quite a large sum as a starting point.
• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for? The Netwealth service is aimed at people who have a lot of money to invest and want a low fee and simple process to invest.
• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why? I don't know many people that would have that much money. It is one thing to look at but I think people need to look at all their options, this certainly is one.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar? yes

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

I found the Webinar a little dry but I suspect I already have a knowledge of finance and trusts but suspect for a beginner it would have been useful. I did pick up some good tips though for working the plan.

• What do you like most about the website and the process? I liked very much that you could easily adjust the figures to make your choices work to their best for you. I felt that gave you more understanding about each product that you were choosing. I liked the fact that it gave you a percentage of how likely you were to achieve your chosen goal etc. It definitely woke me up to how I should be investing for my future. I liked that you could see how and where your investments were made up so you can take an interest in the relevant companies.
• What do you feel could be improved? It was clear what you needed to start a fund. I only realised the amount from my Mumsnets info. I dont think information was readily available to a new viewer. I also couldnt find how easy it would be to alter or change your plan once it had started if you either wished to change your amount or risk level or if this was a fixed plan.
• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for? Wealthy people whose familys have left home or have an inheritance to invest- I dont know many my age who have 50k to invest and a minimum of £750 a month spare to "risk" for future savings on a long term plan.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why? Yes but obviously would advise them to also look around. I felt that it very interesting to play with the model as it allowed you to focus on different outcomes etc It would be a list for people to look at.

Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

Webinar

Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Interesting and easy to use. I think if you have a little bit of understanding of investing first it helps though!

What do you like most about the website and the process?

I thought the colour scheme was very good as I sometimes have difficulty reading sites with too much colour so this was great for me - very accessible. It was clear and easy to understand and I like the risk forecasts you can look at before investing.

What do you feel could be improved?

As some have mentioned, make it clear what the min. investment is before a person starts the process. It's quite annoying even when doing a test process, to get to the end only to find you have not met the min. amount required.

In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

I would say it's for people that have money and want to invest it with some/more control. I would also say it's for someone that already has an understanding of investments already. People that want a choice of risks and investments for different reasons.

Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

I would. As someone that is wanting to invest for future plans this is a great tool for me and I will be looking at it closely over the next few weeks and months as I make investment decision with my partner. I would ask friends and family to look at it but would never recommend a service I have not fully tried out myself yet!

Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?
I attended the office.

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

It is a very easy experience. Instructions were clear. It was very simple to model different scenarios. Everything worked smoothly. It did not take long to work out how to do things. I never felt nervous that I might accidentally sign up to something I did not want. Dealing with pensions was useful.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

I like the ability to easily model different scenarios and to alter the parameters effortlessly. I liked the mount of information given in the little videos - quite liked the animation. It was a very usable interface.

• What do you feel could be improved?

There were a couple of points where I felt confused, as I am a financial noob. Perhaps a few more pop up bubbles explaining certain elements - around tax rates for one. I was also confused about minimum investment needed - that seemed somewhat obscure and after my various modellings I would find that I had not entered the minimum. Could have been clearer at beginning.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

The Netwealth service is aimed at people with a fair amount of space cash who have neither time nor desire to really seek out options for investment. It offers a service that speaks to questions of caution - allowing low risk for little return, but at least better than doing nothing - but is also a place where someone happy to take more risk can dabble in investing. I don't see it as a get rich quick scheme, more a steady stream of low to higher income. There was a lot of emphasis on how it might be for set goals - the trappings of a middle class lifestyles - school fees, for example - rather than massive returns. Also useful for those who really need to do something about pensions and retirement planning.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

I would recommend it - if my relatives had around 50000 sitting doing nothing. It is a friendly interface, inspires confidence that the decisions being made are made in the investor's interest. Is approachable - with on and offline contact possibilities.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

I attended the Netwealth office

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Very straightforward and easy to navigate/understand. Very flexible and adaptable/

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

It allowed me to "play" with scenarios and look at various different options.

• What do you feel could be improved?

More contextual data - ie giving an insight into some of the variables, like what life expectancy is/forecasting for school and university fees etc

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Anyone who wants to plan for their future and has some assets to do that with.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Absolutely. The reduced fees are very compelling and the usability of the tools make it very appealing.

Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

I attended the offices at Charlotte Street.

Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

I liked the tools. They could have been laid out better but I gave thorough feedback on the day. It was good to be able to play with the investment plans and get a feel for how your money could perform. The simple scale for investing was informative.

What do you like most about the website and the process?

It was quick, simple, and could be accessed at any time from anywhere. I like that you can check in on your investments. The comparison for money not being invested against inflation rises really demonstrated why you should actively invest rather than passively save.

What do you feel could be improved?

When accessing the website from a smartphone or iPad many of the text boxes were overlaying each other. It would be great to have an app that clearly showed and informed you. With something as important as investing you need to ensure the customer can see the actual text.

I gave detailed feedback on the day about several steps on the site that could be tweaked for improvement.

In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Investors who have already maximised their ISA allowance.
Investors who are utilising their pension allowance.

Those who are saving for school fees and need growth but easy access.
Middle class investors who may not have an IFA but who do have a sum of money that needs monitoring/managing.

Those who are interested in finance and/or those who have a sum of money they do not necessarily need access to but would like to see it grow.

Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Yes. We are looking to change a couple of our investments in the future and Netwealth is a definite avenue we will take. Despite the layout issues smartphones the underlying information is relevant. I will be using them in the future.

Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?
I attended the webinar.

Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?
It was quite complex for a newcomer to the process, but very informative

What do you like most about the website and the process?
It's very clear and concise - the steps are simple and the screen is not cluttered with too much info.

What do you feel could be improved?
The starting sum is quite high. £20,000 would be better, especially for those who choose the higher risk option.

In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?
It would be a good starting point for someone looking at their pension options or someone who had received an inheritance and wanted to know how best to deal with it. Basically anyone who found themselves with a large sum of money but needed help to manage it.

Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Yes, I would recommend it to those who have substantial incomes as I appreciate the transparency of the process and the low fees.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

Webinar

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

I found it interesting to hear about the options but would be unsure about investing such a large amount of money online. I experienced technical errors with the online form as I used my phone (which I usually use for online banking) and it wouldn't accept the amount I entered, I had to adjust it to fit which wasn't ideal. I did have support over the phone from Netwealth

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

Technical issues aside, it felt like a speedy way to invest money

• What do you feel could be improved?

Technical issues mentioned previously, availability of online chat to resolve issues

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

People with a lot of spare cash to invest

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

I would recommend if they were supporting clients face to face/over the phone also

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

I watched the Webinar late having completely forgotten at the time (note for any future ones, tea time was always likely to be a challenge!)

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

I was impressed with the Webinar - it gave clear information without being patronising

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

I like the way you can play around with goals, investment levels and so on to see what impact changing the different variables has. As someone who has her head relatively in the sand about pension planning, it gave me more understanding and tools to engage in conversations with my husband who is the one who does this kind of thing (largely because he earns far more than I do and so has a company pension where things like overpaying are possibilities).

• What do you feel could be improved?

I think if I hadn't had the webinar first I'd have been a bit lost. I don't know if that information is easily available to everyone in some form - I found things like the explanations about how risks level out over longer periods and the reminder that you need to plan for a potentially long retirement. I've also realised I have no idea how the pot of money turns into a pension income at the other end, whether there are options for lump withdrawals etc, what happens to the pot when you die, how having a partner impacts on it and so on. That information may well be there and I've not found it because I've not looked!

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

It looks like something where you've got to have a fair bit of spare cash to play with, and in terms of pensions I'm not sure how many people are investing that much outside of company pension schemes (where you get the company's contribution too). I guess if you're self employed it could be an excellent tool.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

If someone was looking at ways to invest for the future I'd certainly point them in its direction to investigate. I'm not an expert on what the alternatives are, but I was impressed with what I saw so would say it's worth looking at.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

I tried to attend the webinar but could not access

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Good, resonably simple and logical although there seemed to be a lot of steps and on the review page there were edit buttons for each field rather than being able to edit anything in one place.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

Made big decisions seem easy.

• What do you feel could be improved?

Less screens to work through to set up an investment

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Those with at least some investment knowledge. Would be easy to tick OK to things that you don't fully understand.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Yes, but it would have to be the right friend, someone with enough knowledge that I would trust them to make their own decisions.

Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

I attended the webinar.

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

Really good - very clear, simple to use, and easy to understand.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

It's straightforward; the user interface is easy to navigate and I found things very intuitive. Even though everything is made easy, the design is still very pleasing and I think it fits the brand/sector well.

• What do you feel could be improved?

I had a couple of issues of overlaying text when accessing on my mobile, but no issues on a laptop.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Suitable for a variety of people with long-term financial planning needs, eg parents saving for private school, people planning for retirement at various stages, and those with money to invest.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

Yes. It looks like a really good service. I would still encourage friends/family to do due diligence and research all the possible options, but in terms of ease of use and making things clear to understand, it's a great option.

Webinar - though did play with it first so did not learn anything new from webinar.

Overall experience: good. Clear info, like being able to run different scenarios to assess outcomes.

Website works okay except for missing error text when stupider users (me) attempt to register with a password which does not meet requirements!

Ideal customer: me just post divorce. I am really pig sick of Lloyd’s private banking charging me thousands for what seems like nothing!

What I do need (and couldn’t find) was info on transfer of assets and doing it to minimise CGT when moving to net wealth or similar.

Recommend? Questionable! I don’t actually know your track record. Is replacing one bank investor with another worth the risk? Still mulling that one over.

However if someone wanted to get a clear view on how to manage investment goals after divorce, it’s great.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

Webinar

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

I thought it was good. The webinar, although I got a little bored at times, was overall very helpful to see prior to testing out the online platform. Overall the website was clear, simple to use and informative.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

I really liked how easy it was to play around with the numbers and see immediately what the impact changing different parameters would have. I liked how clear it was around the risks I would be taking. This is something I've worried about when thinking about investment before, so having that really clear outline about potential loss and gain was helpful. I also like how the fees were broken down clearly and made explicit.

• What do you feel could be improved?

Make it so that you can't play with numbers if you haven't put in the minimum required investment. It let me look into how things would work if I invested various amounts, but didn't tell me until I got near the end that it did not meet the minimum.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

People who are wealthier than me! I do have what I considered to be a large sum of money to invest but it didn't meet their minimum. It's a shame as I think I would actually have used the service if they had a lower minimum.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

I might recommend they have a look into it, but I couldn't really recommend having not used the service to actually invest money and see what happens over time, and I don't have enough savings to begin using using it.

I had already written my feedback on a word doc as I would never remember it all days afterwards (I think these threads should really be available immediately after the testing - I have memory issues and can't hold onto this information for days!) so I will post it below and then answer the questions!:

I generally liked the website – it was reasonably easy to follow and everything was written in plain English and easy to understand. I really liked the way the fees were clearly displayed and broken down, and that simulated past performance was easy to find. It was easy to set up.

Personally, I found the branding of the site a bit dull/bland and it didn’t engage me or draw me in. It doesn’t stand out. I am aware that navy blue is associated with trust I believe, but lots of financial services companies use similar branding so it just makes you look like yet another one of the same. Not interesting, new and exciting, which I think is doing your company a disservice, as you are offering something new and useful!

I generally had a look around your website, and came across your Network option which was a bit hidden away– I would make more of this as couples could share the minimum investment and make it more accessible to more people. I think it’s odd that your minimum investment is £50,000 when the ISA allowance is £20,000.

I liked the calculators/tools, especially for the purpose of calculating pension income needed, taking into account inflation - that was very useful. It is very difficult to know if you are saving enough for retirement and to be able to adjust lump sum and contributions, along with risk and goals was great – I’ve not seen anyone doing anything similar. One major flaw though is that the tools do not seem to take into account reducing the risk of your portfolio as you near retirement – if it does, I couldn’t see anywhere where it explained this. I would want to reduce the risk as I neared retirement so for the tools to be of any use, they need to take this into account.

I would also have liked to see a calculator where you could put in all of your pensions (eg including your current employer’s pension and any final salary schemes) to give you a better idea of what income you will need from the NetWealth pension, and thereby make more sense of the main calculator. This would also enable a Lifetime Allowance Calculator to be included and perhaps a prompt for an investor to seek financial advice if it looks like the LTA will be breached.

I used the contributions calculator and I like the principle of this but I got some odd results so am not sure this is working correctly. It also should default to the lump sum that you have already input on the first screen (it’s annoying to keep keying it in), and allow for net or gross contributions. I ignored it in the end and just used the main calculator.

I liked the way that you get an idea of how close you will be to meeting your goals depending on how your portfolio performs. This is very helpful.

I am a details person and like the way you can really drill down into the detail of you want to such as with the asset allocation. I often find with products/websites that there is not enough information and I am forced to call, or contact the company in question – I did not feel the need to do this at all. Having said this, and it may appear later in the process, but I would have liked some idea of transfer and investment timescales if I had actually been investing.

A few minor issues:

• the very first page I came to did not display correctly on my Macbook (using Chrome) and some text was overlapping some of the option boxes
• Your three pots strategy – you refer to pot 1 as your current account – but what about an emergency fund? – people should be keeping 3-6 months outgoings in a cash/instant access pot – this shouldn’t all be put into equities.
• I set up an ISA pot and on the your portfolio page some text referred to the start of the next tax year being 06/04/2019 which is obviously not correct
• I would like to have known what rate you are getting on your current cash investments – about £3000 of my portfolio is going into cash, and I would want to know that you are offering a good market rate on this.

• Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?

Webinar

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

I found the website very easy to use - please see my feedback in full above.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

It was easy to use - I liked being able to drill down into the detail, and I liked the calculators although please see my feedback in full above - there are a couple of major flaws, I believe, with the calcualtors.

• What do you feel could be improved?

Please see feedback above.

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

Higher netwealth investors given the minimum £50K investment and the branding. Feels like it's aimed at rich white conservative men! You could make more of your network option which would open it up to more people, and make your branding more engaging so that it appealed to wider range of people.

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

No because I haven't invested with you. I wouldn't recommend an organisation such as this based on a product test. I would want to see what your performance and customer service were like over a reasonable period of time before I would consider a recommendation.

Did you attend the Netwealth office or the Netwealth Webinar?
I attended the Webinar on Wednesday evening.

• Overall how did you find the Netwealth online experience?

It’s good but I have other online investments at a better level and they have a mobile app, which is not the case here.

• What do you like most about the website and the process?

It is simple,clear and didn’t take long.

• What do you feel could be improved?

It’s not very transparent about what they are investing in

• In your opinion, who is the Netwealth service aimed at/most suitable for?

It goes without saying that if the minimum is £50,000 then it’s not for everybody!

• Would you recommend Netwealth as a wealth manager to a friend or family member, and why?

The people I know who have the min amount probably wouldn’t use them.