AMP wants to sell its investment products through the independent financial advisory and broker market as well as its tied advisory sales force.
The company has been running a pilot project for most of this year trailing a number of brokers and financial planners as sellers of its products. It is now at the stage where it wants to sign up more of these people as authorised sellers of AMP products.
Kim White, who is heading this project, says AMP hopes to have 50 advisory firms on board as AMP distributors within the next 12 months.
Currently it is doing presentations to selected advisers in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch in an effort to recruit new firms.
White expects AMP to be competitive with its domestic and international passive funds, its property and its diversified funds.
He says later it will look to sell other products, such as mortgages, banking products and risk products through signed up advisory firms.
White says the current recruitment project is aimed at developing new channels rather than replacing old ones.
The firm is looking to increase the size of its tied agency force by 30 per cent over the next 12 months.
He says there is no conflict between the AMP agents and the independent advisors, and they will be remunerated to the same levels, however in different ways.
The key selling features for AMP are that it is a good, competent and consistent investment manager and it is looking to enhance the range of products it offers advisors and ultimately investors.
White says AMP is being selective in the people it signs up to sell AMP products, and it is looking for people who fit in with its agenda.
"We don't want to be all things to all people," he says.
AMP is showing its support of the independent financial planning community by being a platinum sponsor of the Financial Advisors Conference in Christchurch next month.
AMP wants to sell its investment products through the independent financial advisory and broker market as well as its tied advisory sales force.