Whether they are SMSF Trustees, stock traders or simply investors that prefer to make their own decisions, 42% of Australians (according to a recent Investment Trends report), identify as self-directed investors. This is a market that independent research firm Wise Owl is successfully tapping in to with its specialised and beautifully-presented research.
CANSTAR caught up with Senior Equity Analyst Simon Herrmann and Head of Research Tim Morris to answer a few questions.
Q: What is the benefit for self-directed investors in using Wise-owl? Why Wise-owl rather than one of your competitors?
Simon: Wise-owl offers high-quality and independent investment advice primarily designed for the ‘DIY’ investor. Our approach is based on a proven strategy that was designed in 2001 and consistently improved to date. Wise-owl is specialised in small and mid-capitalisation companies but also offers advice on ASX200 blue-chip companies, Initial Public Offerings (‘IPOs’) and International Equities. Our stock recommendations are easy-to-read and actionable. Subscribers have access to a variety of model portfolios, each based on different strategies, while all reports are optionally distributed via SMS & Email.
Q: You are competing in an increasingly crowded marketplace. What are your competitive advantages?
Simon: They include:
- Specialised in small mid equities: Wise-owl’s expertise is small and mid-capitalisation companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).
- Dedicated advisor: Each subscriber gets assigned a dedicated advisor who can be contacted Monday to Friday via phone, email or live chat during office hours (8:30am-5pm). The advisor can provide general advice on stocks as well as technical, subscription and product related advice.
- Quality rather than quantity: Each recommendation is based on thorough research and we focus on quality rather than quantity. We only release recommendations if we consider it to be beneficial to our subscribers
- Fully responsive and beautifully designed website: Our website, emails and SMS work on all common devices and are adopted to the latest technologies. All designs are full responsive.
- Validation: Our research is featured on major media outlets and partner websites
- Price: Two years for Wise-owl PRO is available at $599 (~$300 per year).
- No unsolicited sales calls
Q: Wise-owl has longevity; do you have any advice for would-be fintech start ups?
Tim: Our business operates in a specialised part of the market which conventional sources of investment intelligence – being the larger brokers, investment banks and online brokers – find difficult to service profitably and efficiently. As a result, these larger market participants often partner with us to compliment their core area’s of expertise.
Successful businesses have created enduring products and established symbiotic relationships.
Q: What has the journey been like for you personally?
Tim: In this industry, we are exposed to a lot of corporate executives and fledging entrepeneurs. As a result -“the opportunity of a life time” seems to beckon every week. The surprising challenge is having the business processes in place to objectively prioritise and execute those most likely to have a material impact for our company and its audience.
You can find out more about wiseowl.com here.
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