“Client referrals” has long been the default answer given by private banks and wealth management firms to any question concerning the most efficacious way of recruiting new custom.

And there is a lot of evidence to suggest that client referrals really are the most important source of new business.

According to the most recent “Clients’ View” survey conducted by Compeer, a London-based research and consultancy firm that focuses on the wealth management sector, nearly 60 percent of respondents said they had relied on referrals from friends, family or colleagues to find a wealth manager. 

Many firm...