Imagine a scenario where a client has sent you important financial information in a PDF. You need to download the data, convert it into a spreadsheet and upload it into both your planning software and CRM.
You’re painfully aware that a single mistyped number or formatting mistake could throw your entire team off-track and damage your reputation. Still, the download-convert-format-upload cycle never seems to end.
Now imagine a world where your team – and your clients – have instant access to a real-time picture of their portfolios. No more juggling spreadsheets, digging through separate software systems or struggling with inconsistent data. Your data is available instantly, translated and formatted for each of your systems.
Open APIs bring that possibility to the table, acting as a bridge between systems for quick, secure data exchange. Today, we’re exploring how open APIs are changing the way financial advisors work by breaking down data walls and ushering in a new era of unified data.
The End of “Siloed Data” – One of the Biggest Problems Holding Financial Services Professionals Back
If you’re like the typical advisory firm, it takes a combination of different software solutions to get your tasks checked off each day. In fact, a recent report found that firms use about five different tech vendors!
But problems can arise when those systems don’t integrate well with one another – a challenge often referred to as “siloed” tech that prevents the easy exchange of data. It’s estimated that 33% of financial services teams are running into that exact problem, risking:
- Incomplete, inconsistent or duplicate data
- Barriers to collaboration as you wait for data to become available
- Cybersecurity problems due to frequent downloads/uploads
The solution seems clear: Your team needs access to a single source of truth through unified, secure data sets – but how?
How Open APIs Create Unified Data
Open APIs can connect internal data (like account balances, transaction histories and customer profiles) and external data (such as market data, credit scores, social media insights and third-party financial services). In the simplest of terms, an open API allows separate systems to “speak” to one another.
When your systems are connected via an open API, you’re cutting out middle steps where data needs to be manually altered. Instead, there’s a direct line from point A to point B.
Some of the key benefits of open APIs include:
- Accuracy and Consistency: See real-time and reliable data across your systems.
- Efficiency and Standardization: Open APIs can specify and automate your formatting needs, so you can enjoy reduced development time and effort by eliminating the need for manual data collection and cleaning.
- Better User Experiences: Give your clients accurate and relevant data, boosting their engagement.
Perhaps the most revolutionary point listed above is the standardization of data. With an open API, you can set parameters for your systems to send and receive data. If anything is incorrect or incomplete, the API can auto-reject the data set and immediately notify your staff.
You may even have a few open APIs in your tech stack already! Mobile Assistant uses open APIs to power our CRM integrations, alongside several trading platforms and even Nitrogen’s famous Risk Number®.
Related: Welcome to the Mobile Assistant and Wealthbox Integration
The Future of Finance: Open API Innovation
Open APIs are bringing unprecedented efficiency to service industries like finance and even insurance. The ability to consolidate data from a variety of sources and then present that information to your clients puts you ahead of the curve – but that “edge” factor won’t last forever.
As open APIs grow in popularity, firms that still operate with siloed data risk standing out for the wrong reasons. If your firm has “growth” tacked on to your new year’s resolutions for 2024, it’s a great time to invest in unified data that can streamline processes and reduce opportunities for error.
Another fun fact that could motivate you to make the switch? A recent Forbes article reported that “over a four-year period, firms using APIs saw 12.7% more growth in market capitalization compared to those that did not adopt APIs.” When the study was extended, that gap in growth grew even wider.
*Note that the above statistic accounts for both closed APIs and open APIs. While an open API can connect to systems outside of your firm, a closed API is generally for your internal network’s use only.
How to Get Started with Open APIs
If you’re ready to get started with open APIs to unify your data sets, we recommend you first think about where your data is siloed. Where is data being held that isn’t easily accessible or transferable to your other applications? Knowing your firm’s specific needs will help you narrow down potential solutions.
Then, you can begin your search for open APIs that bridge those gaps – or even consider building a proprietary open API!
Related: Demystifying APIs: A Comprehensive (But Simple) Guide for Financial Advisory Firms
Open APIs empower your advisors to deliver personalized, efficient and value-driven experiences for their clients. Don’t be left behind in the data revolution – embrace unified data and pave the way for a brighter financial future.
Explore Our ConnectIt+ Open API
Mobile Assistant brings efficiency to your firm’s documentation with our ConnectIt+ Open API. Learn more about our authentication process, Developer Portal and available Plugins in our ConnectIt+ Quick Start guide.
Ready to get started? Schedule a free trial with Mobile Assistant today.
