John Hancock Trust Survey™ Finds Investors Trust Their Financial Advisor More Than Their Primary Doctor or Accountant

BOSTON, June 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The John Hancock Trust Survey™ has found that investors have a higher level of trust in their financial advisors than in their primary doctor or accountant. The recent survey showed that – out of a list including financial advisor, primary doctor, accountant, contractor/handyman, boss, and real estate agent – investors said they "trust strongly" their advisor (84 percent), followed by primary doctor (79 percent) and accountant (74 percent).  Contractors had a 52 percent "trust strongly" ranking, with bosses coming in at 49 percent and real estate agents at 43 percent.

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When asked about the most important factors inspiring trust in financial advisors, respondents said clear explanations of investment recommendations and being knowledgeable and timely about products and trends were the most important (both 54 percent), followed by disclosure on how the advisor is compensated (51 percent) and quickly answering questions (49 percent). Less important, investors said, were factors such as an advisor who is recommended by friends or family (21 percent), who offers user-friendly tools and calculators (16 percent), who has an informative website (11 percent), and who is involved in the local community (five percent).

Being difficult to contact or unresponsive was the reason most often cited for lack of trust in a financial advisor (25 percent). Bad investment advice (13 percent) and lacking a personalized approach (12 percent) were also cited as major factors in investors losing trust in an advisor.

The findings were drawn from the John Hancock Trust Survey™, which polled mass affluent investors (household income of at least $100,000, investable assets of at least $200,000) in mid-April 2012.

"The first time we surveyed investors on the subject of trust, at the end of 2011, we were pleasantly surprised to learn that investors consistently gave very high trust ratings to their advisors, much more in fact than to other individuals and institutions," said David Longfritz, Chief Marketing Officer for John Hancock.  "So we decided to ask about trust in advisors compared with other important figures. The results show that the bond of trust between investors and financial advisors is as strong, or stronger, than with most other professionals in an individual's life.  That is quite a statement given the difficult economic times we have all been through."

Longfritz added:  "Clearly, investors value excellent communication skills and product knowledge, and depend on these factors in assessing their level of trust in their advisors."

About the John Hancock Trust Survey™

The John Hancock Trust Survey™ is an online survey conducted by independent research firm Mathew Greenwald & Associates.  A total of 1,005 investors were surveyed between April 16 and April 24, 2012. Respondents were selected from among members of Research Now's online research panel.  To qualify for the survey, respondents were required to be age 25 or older, participate at least to some extent in their household's financial decision-making process, and have a household income of at least $100,000 and assets of $200,000 or more.

The data were weighted by age and education to reflect the population of Americans matching the survey's qualification requirements. In a similarly-sized random sample survey, the margin of error would be plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.  Due to rounding and missing categories, numbers presented may not always total to 100 percent.

About John Hancock Financial and Manulife Financial Corporation
John Hancock Financial is a unit of Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada and the United States. In 2012, John Hancock celebrates 150 years of serving clients across the United States, while Manulife celebrates its 125^th anniversary. Operating as Manulife Financial in Canada and in most of Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, Manulife Financial Corporation offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were C$512 billion (US$512 billion) as at March 31, 2012. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at manulife.com.

The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies, comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers a broad range of financial products and services, including life insurance, fixed and variable annuities, fixed products, mutual funds, 401(k) plans, long-term care insurance, college savings, and other forms of business insurance. Additional information about John Hancock may be found at johnhancock.com.

SOURCE John Hancock Financial Services