Outsourced paraplanning platform Parapool has relaunched with new owners Rebecca and Grace Livesey, offering a means for advisers looking for a paraplanning resource to be matched with outsourced paraplanners working on a full or part-time basis.
The platform, which has been recently re-developed to offer a smoother service, works by enabling advisers to offer cases to be worked on and paraplanners selecting and pitching for the cases that best suit their workload or specialism.
There is a minimum bid price for each case, set by the platform, and up to 5 paraplanners only can pitch per case. Advisers then accept the bid that most appeals to them based on price and the profile, qualifications (verified), experience and quality documentation score of the paraplanner, which they can see on the platform. There is also a star rating system which helps advisers find the right paraplanner for them.
Paraplanners receive 100% of their bid price. The advisers are charged a commission for using the platform.
The platform is currently open to paraplanners serving St James’s Place advisers but the plans are to open it up to the general IFA market, says Rebecca Livesey.
“Over the past 10 years Grace and I have built separate paraplanner businesses serving SJP advisers. In 2021 we merged into one business but soon reached capacity. So we were looking at ways to build a platform where we could offer business out to other paraplanners. We were approached by the owners of Parapool who were looking to exit the business and we saw the opportunity to go a step further and help out the freelance paraplanners out there who are looking for work but need an easier way to get it.”
“What is important to us is that the paraplanner are in control of their earnings. They get 100% of their pitch price and the minimum bid system means there isn’t a race to the bottom on price. We didn’t want paraplanners having to bid at ridiculously low levels to get the work. And we find that advisers won’t always go with the cheapest pitch.
“It also means that because the paraplanners are getting 100% of what they charge, they can often provide the service at cheaper level than the adviser would normally get in the market. So, for advisers, and particularly newer advisers who may not have a lot of money for paraplanning resource, not only are they getting value for money because the bids are coming in at a reasonable level, they’re also fully in control of who they work with from the profile that they can see.”
Advisers can set deadlines for each case and know they will receive pitches only from paraplanners who can meet the deadline.
There is no subscription or minimum usage for advisers and in addition to paraplanning, advisers can also offer cases for file checking and cashflow modelling. Larger adviser practices can upload multiple cases in one go, to a maximum of five cases.
Currently there are 140 SJP paraplanners registered and around 1,100 advisers placing cases on the platform.
Livesey says, “We’ve started with SJP paraplanners because that is the market we know and SJP has certain ways of working. But this platform will work well in the wider advice and paraplanning market and we will be developing a parallel hub on the platform which will be offered to the general market. We will let Professional Paraplanner readers know more in due course.”
Further details here: www.parapool.co.uk or contact [email protected]
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