The compliance excuse for skipping reviews is running out

The AI revolution is well underway in the wealth management industry, but many advisors are missing a big boost that the technology can provide, according to Samantha Russell, chief evangelist at digital marketing platform FMG Suite.

“I think what's really interesting right now is there's this huge shift ever since AI became a top way that people search for information,” she told InvestmentNews, adding that a lot of businesses still haven’t wrapped their heads around this aspect of the technology.

“For years and years and years, we were told that you can't have reviews and testimonials because if you do, you're not compliant,” she said, noting that the advent of the SEC marketing rule changed this. “It was like, okay, if you follow these best practices and rules, then yes, you can have reviews and testimonials.”

Earlier this year the SEC gave fresh guidance on its marketing rule, which provided greater clarity on the use of testimonials.

Citing research from multiple sources, including FMG Suite itself, Wealthtender, and Semrush, Russell estimates that less than 15% of all financial advisors in the U.S. have any reviews or testimonials about their business. “Yet, if somebody goes and asks ChatGPT or Claude or just types into Google ‘who's the best advisor near me’ they're not going to get a list of links anymore,” she said. “They're going to just get a couple names - that's the way these AI tools work.”

Not surprisingly, the vast majority of these recommendations are firms that have reviews. “So, we've got a huge gap here where the few firms that have the reviews and testimonials are getting all of that great referral magic from AI,” said Russell.

So, what can advisors do?

“The thing I've been just pushing on people for in 2026 is you've got to get a compliant review and testimonial program in place - and it's very possible to do,” said Russell. “I understand that compliance officers have a lot to manage and home offices have a lot that they have to review, but this is not going anywhere.”

Certainly, AI’s ascendancy in the world of search is just as dramatic as its rise in other parts of people’s lives. AI tools, for example, already account for 36% of all searches, according to a survey released by NP Digital earlier this year. While Google and search engines still make up the largest number of searches, at 40%, they are only a few percentage points ahead of AI. The study of 2,000 people in 16 countries also found that, for the first time, a chunk of the global population is bypassing traditional search in favor of AI.

And there’s no sign that this trend is slowing down. AI search visitors will surpass traditional search visitors by early 2028, according to research from Semrush.

“[Advisors] need to put a testimonial and client review program in place so that it allows them to collect them compliantly, and that will then power their AI visibility,” said Russell. “What people don't realize is these AI tools don't care so much what we have to say about our own business, what we have to say about ourselves, they care what other people say about working with us.”