Forces at Work: The Market for Personal Financial Services Available to Purchase

The market for personal financial services within the UK has undergone significant change over the last decade. Forces for change which have influenced market evolution include the economic climate,rising asset values, increasing wealth, privatisation, deregulation and a range of Government incentives. Appreciation of the organisation′s ability to cope in this new environment may be heightened by undertaking a systematic evaluation of resource strengths and weaknesses and relating these to the opportunities and threats posed by the environment. Financial institutions may be compared by preparing an individual SWOT analysis. The new decade will see winners and losers with the most successful organisations developing a clear business mission and a well articulated strategy which controls costs and provides competitive advantages. Winners will focus on customer needs and clearly differentiate their products through noticeably higher levels of service quality. Marketing will play an important part in their success.