Designed and developed reflecting feedback from Stonebridge’s appointed representative firms, the new functionality means AR firms can now submit and manage their financial promotions in one location, while providing a full audit trail for both the network and the individual firm.
Firms continue to interact with Stonebridge’s Business Standards teams but now through new messaging functionality within the system and can track all of the financial promotions they have submitted, including what stage of the approval process they are at, or if there are any required changes to comply with policy or regulations.
Once the promotion is approved by the Stonebridge Business Standards team, the new system notifies the AR firm and provides a certificate of approval. A further alert is also sent when each financial promotion is due to expire, allowing the AR firm to request reapproval, amendment, or withdrawal.
The system also allows firms to upload all new marketing, advertising, website, and social media material, enabling them to review, amend and archive these online, and provides access to existing, or previously withdrawn, promotions.
Rob Clifford, chief executive of Stonebridge, commented: “The ability to be able to act quickly, decisively, and compliantly when it comes to the approval of marketing is hugely important for advisers in the changeable mortgage and protection markets we have, which is why this new technology solution is designed to provide considerable operational efficiencies to our AR firms.
“To submit promotions via Revolution, to be able to track their progress to approval, and have a ‘heads up’ on expiry, while also offering the opportunity to update and seek reapproval will, I’m sure, be greatly beneficial.
“A system developed within the excellent Revolution system, with direct access to the Business Standards team decision-makers, means the expert teams can review and approve financial promotions at pace.
“Revolution sits at the heart of our business and we will continue to develop and enhance the platform with new capabilities such as this, in order to ensure our firms are able to maximise all the opportunities to grow their businesses and trade safely.”
