The Affluent Consumer Market in Australia 2008

Published by: Datamonitor

Published: Jul. 28, 2008 - 6 Pages

Table of Contents

Overview

Catalyst

Summary

Methodology

Executive Summary

The majority of affluent people are 45 or older, retired or work in a highly-skilled job and are mostly male

Most affluent consumers in Australia are either retired or work in high-skilled occupations

Men are strongly represented in the Australian affluent market sample

The online financial services market has further room for development

Online product arrangement is a burgeoning market for affluent consumers in Australia

However, providers can do more to serve the online needs of affluent consumers

As expected, affluent individuals are typically better prepared for their retirement

The affluent consumer sample are in greater control of their retirement planning

The affluent population are more likely to turn to financial planners for their investments

The majority of the affluent market is happy with their current HISA provider

ING Direct has the largest HISA market share of affluent individuals in Australia

Affluent consumer typically have multiple credits that they pay off in full each month

Affluent consumers are more prone to having multiple credit cards although most of these respondents pay their full monthly balance off

Many affluent consumers are thinking about switching mortgage providers over the next five years

Affluent respondents are more likely to switch their mortgage provider over the short term as compared with the mass market

Table of Contents

Table of figures

Table of tables

Affluent consumer demographics

The majority of affluent people are 45 or older, retired or work in a highly-skilled job and are male

Two-thirds of affluent respondents Australians are aged above 45

Most affluent consumers surveyed in Australia are either retired or work in high-skilled occupations

Men are strongly represented in the Australian affluent market sample

The majority of the affluent sample are located in the eastern cities of Australia

Surveyed affluent Australians typically are well educated individuals

Online product trends

The online financial services market has further room for development

Online product arrangement is a burgeoning market for affluent consumers in Australia

However, providers can do more to serve the online needs of affluent consumers

Affluent consumers are more likely to have the means of conducting business online however security concerns and a lack of trust are the main factors inhibiting online usage

Investment planning trends

As expected, the affluent market is better prepared for their retirement

A quarter of the affluent population plan on retiring on or before they turn 60

The surveyed affluent consumers is in greater control of its retirement planning

Affluent individuals are seeing their savings track well on the way to retirement

Affluent individuals will also look at avenues outside of superannuation to fund their retirement

The affluent sample surveyed is more likely to turn to financial planners than the mass market sample

Service was the most important factor when deciding on a financial planner for affluent respondents, fees was ranked sixth

The least important factors when selecting a financial planner included advertising and various media endorsements

Affluent consumers want more proactive advice on products and better reporting relative to the mass market

The majority of affluent respondents are happy with their current financial planning arrangement

Consumer satisfaction and switching trends

The majority of affluent market is happy with their current HISA provider and are unlikely to switch providers

ING Direct has the largest HISA market share of affluent respondents

The majority of affluent respondents do not expect to change their HISA provider over the next year

The majority of affluent consumers who switched HISA providers over the last 12 months left CBA

Most affluent clients who switched HISA providers pursued a better interest rate on their account

Affluent consumer typically have multiple credits that they pay off in full each month

Affluent consumers are more prone to having multiple credit cards although most of these respondents pay their full month balance off

The majority of affluent individuals have Visa branded credit cards

CBA has the largest credit card market share of affluent individuals in Australia

Affluent consumers are happy with their main credit card, holding the same card for many years

Affluent clients are more concerned about rewards than fees or interest rates relative to the mass market

Many affluent respondents are thinking about switching mortgage providers over the next five years

Australia's big four banks are the leading mortgage providers to the affluent market

Affluent respondents are more likely to switch their mortgage provider over the short term as compared with the mass market

The interest rate was the most important factor for affluent individuals when picking a lender

APPENDIX

Data

Methodology

Further reading

Ask the analyst

Datamonitor consulting

Disclaimer

List of Tables

Table 1: Age bands of the affluent market

Table 2: Gender of the affluent market

Table 3: Location in Australia of affluent market, by state and city

Table 4: Minimum educational qualification achieved by the affluent market

Table 5: Occupational type held by the affluent market

Table 6: Actual arrangement methods for the affluent market by various product

Table 7: Preferred arrangement methods for the affluent market by various product

Table 8: Reasons why the affluent market have not considered arranging a product online

Table 9: Planned retirement age for both the affluent market and mass market

Table 10: Attitudes towards retirement planning by affluent market and mass market

Table 11: Product methods for funding retirement of the affluent market and mass market

Table 12: Type of financial planner used by the affluent market and mass market

Table 13: Most common reasons for choosing a financial planner by affluent market and mass market

Table 14: Least common reasons for choosing a financial planner by affluent market and mass market

Table 15: Service areas for improvement for financial planners by affluent market and mass market

Table 16: Proportion of the affluent market looking to get a new financial planning in the next 12 months

Table 17: Market share of affluent and mass HISA markets by provider

Table 18: Have you switched your main high interest savings account in the last 12 months?

Table 19: Who was your previous high interest savings account with?

Table 20: Reason for switching HISA providers by the affluent and mass markets

Table 21: Number of credit cards held the affluent and mass markets

Table 22: How much of the outstanding balance do you manage to pay off each month?

Table 23: Credit card brands held by the affluent and mass markets

Table 24: Market share of the affluent and mass credit card markets

Table 25: Length of time affluent and mass market individuals have held their main credit card

Table 26: How satisfied are you with your main credit card?

Table 27: Appealing factors to the affluent and mass markets when considering getting a new credit card

Table 28: Market share of affluent and mass mortgage markets held with providers

Table 29: Length of time the affluent and mass markets expect to keep their mortgage with their current provider

Table 30: Reasons why affluent and mass markets picked their current mortgage providers

List of Figures

Figure 1: A considerable proportion of affluent consumers are using the internet to arrange financial products

Figure 2: ING Direct is the leading provider of HISA products to affluent people in Australia

Figure 3: The majority of affluent respondents are aged 45 and over

Figure 4: The majority of affluent people surveyed are retired or work in highly skilled jobs

Figure 5: The majority of the affluent population living in Australia are male

Figure 6: The proportion of affluent respondents living in NSW, VIC, QLD and WA is higher than the share of the total sample population living in those states

Figure 7: The majority of affluent people in Australia have a formal education

Figure 8: A considerable proportion of affluent consumers are using the internet to arrange financial products

Figure 9: There are substantial opportunities for providers to further develop their online platforms

Figure 10: Security issues are the main deterrent stopping affluent consumers from arranging more products online

Figure 11: Over a third of the affluent population sample in Australia are already retired

Figure 12: Affluent individuals appear to be in greater control of their retirement

Figure 13: The majority of the affluent population is happy with how they are tracking for retirement

Figure 14: Affluent individuals are more likely to use an income stream, HISA or investment property to fund their retirement

Figure 15: Affluent individuals are more likely to use a financial planner than the mass market

Figure 16: Service reputation and professional advice are the top ranking reasons why affluent individuals chose their financial planner

Figure 17: Advertisements and endorsements are the least likely factors considered when affluent individuals are choosing a financial planner

Figure 18: Affluent consumers want more regular updates and face-to-face contact with their planner

Figure 19: Around four out five affluent respondents are happy with their current financial planning arrangement

Figure 20: ING Direct is the leading provider of HISA products to affluent people in Australia

Figure 21: The majority of affluent consumers do not intend on switching their HISA provider in the next year

Figure 22: CBA had the most HISA affluent consumers switch on them over the last 12 months

Figure 23: Getting a better interest rate was the leading reason why affluent people changed HISA providers

Figure 24: Affluent consumers are more likely to have more than one credit card compared to the mass market

Figure 25: Affluent individuals are much more likely to pay off their credit card balance in full each month

Figure 26: Visa is the leading brand of credit card held by affluent individuals in Australia

Figure 27: CBA is the leading financial provider of credit cards to the affluent market

Figure 28: The majority of affluent clients are happy with their main credit card

Figure 29: Affluent respondents have held their credit cards for relatively longer periods of time as compared to mass market

Figure 30: Lower fees are most important to affluent consumers when considering a new credit card

Figure 31: The big four banks in Australia are the leading mortgage providers to affluent people

Figure 32: Affluent respondents are more likely to switch their mortgage provider over the short term

Figure 33: The interest rate was the most important factor for affluent individuals when picking a lender

Abstract

• Details affluent consumer demographics including age, working status, state and city of residence within Australia.
• Analyses the opportunity for online financial product arrangement within the affluent market.
• Analyses how prepared affluent Australians are for retirement and the use of financial planners.
• Reviews affluent market trends across HISA, credit card and mortgage product areas.

• Review competitor market shares of affluent and mass market consumers across HISAs, credit cards and mortgage products.
• Discover the age, location work status and more about the affluent market living in Australia.
• Identify which product areas will develop a strong online presence in the future.

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