AAII.com: RSS Feeds and Broker Survey Results
by CI Staff
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NEW to AAII.com: RSS Feeds
New to AAII.com is the ability to subscribe to RSS feeds to let you know when our publications and Web content found on AAII.com have been updated on-line. You can receive notifications that updated data has been posted regarding the Model Mutual Fund and Shadow Stock Portfolios, Stock Screens, the AAII Journal and Computerized Investing. Subscribers of Stock Investor Pro and the Quarterly Mutual Fund Update can receive alerts as well.AAIIs RSS feeds are found at www.aaii.com/rss. There are a number of ways to receive the feeds.
One is to use a Web site such as Yahoo!, AOL, or Google. If you already have an account at one of these sites, you can add the feed directly to your customized home page. Simply find the feed you would like to receive at the RSS page on our site, click the related Web site icon and follow the instructions. If you do not have an account at one of these Web sites, you can create one for free.
You can also subscribe to AAIIs RSS feeds through your Internet browser, provided you are using the latest version of Windows Internet Explorer or Mozilla FireFox. Simply go to the RSS Feed page of our Web site and click the orange icon in the RSS Format column next to the publication or service for which you wish to receive feeds. This will open a new page in your Web browser, which you then save to your Favorites (for Explorer users) or Bookmark (FireFox users).
A third way to subscribe to AAIIs RSS feeds is through an RSS Reader such as NewsGator, FeedDemon, NewsFire, RSSOwl or Shrook. These programs allow you to manage RSS feeds in a variety of ways, including through Outlook and mobile devices.
2007 Broker Survey Results
For the past 10 years, AAII has been polling members about broker satisfaction. The discount broker survey asks which discount broker you use and the primary reasons for choosing the broker, and then allows you to rate the broker on your satisfaction. A summary of the past five years of results is shown in Table 1, which presents the ratings of the most popular brokers based on member responses. Scottrade continues to be the most popular broker among members, as measured by percentage of usage among survey respondents. The top five are the same as last year with a slightly different order.
| Table 1. Ratings of Most Popular Brokers | ||||||
| Rank | Broker | % Usage of Survey Responses |
Ratings (Top Score = 4) | |||
| Overall Satisfaction |
Service Reliability |
Trade Price |
Execution Speed |
|||
| 2007 | ||||||
| 1 | Scottrade | 15.5% | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.3 |
| 2 | Charles Schwab | 10.6% | 3.4 | 3.5 | 3.1 | 3.5 |
| 3 | TD Ameritrade | 10.1% | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 3.3 |
| 4 | Fidelity | 8.7% | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 3.5 |
| 5 | E*Trade Financial | 6.3% | 3.1 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 3.4 |
| 2006 | ||||||
| 1 | Scottrade | 20.4% | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.4 |
| 2 | TD Ameritrade | 17.2% | 3.1 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 3.4 |
| 3 | Fidelity | 15.7% | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 3.5 |
| 4 | Charles Schwab | 13.2% | 3.2 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 3.3 |
| 5 | E*Trade Financial | 9.4% | 3.3 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 3.3 |
| 2005 | ||||||
| 1 | Scottrade | 21.5% | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 3.5 |
| 2 | Charles Schwab | 14.5% | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 3.3 |
| 3 | Fidelity | 14.0% | 3.5 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.6 |
| 4 | TD Waterhouse | 10.5% | 3.3 | 3.3 | 2.9 | 3.3 |
| 5 | Ameritrade | 8.6% | 3.2 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 3.4 |
| 2004 | ||||||
| 1 | Scottrade | 21.1% | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 3.4 |
| 2 | Fidelity | 14.1% | 3.4 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.5 |
| 3 | Charles Schwab | 13.7% | 3.1 | 3.3 | 2.6 | 3.3 |
| 4 | Ameritrade | 9.3% | 3.3 | 3.3 | 2.8 | 3.1 |
| 5 | TD Waterhouse | 9.0% | 3.1 | 3.3 | 2.8 | 3.1 |
| 2003 | ||||||
| 1 | Scottrade | 14.6% | 3.6 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.4 |
| 1 | Charles Schwab | 14.6% | 3.2 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 3.2 |
| 3 | TD Waterhouse | 12.2% | 3.0 | 2.9 | 2.6 | 3.0 |
| 4 | Fidelity | 11.2% | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.4 |
| 5 | Ameritrade | 9.5% | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 3.3 |
| Table 2. Primary Reason Members Selected Their Broker | |||||
| 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | |
| Commissions | 36% | 44% | 53% | 53% | 45% |
| Services | 19% | 27% | 25% | 23% | 26% |
| Convenience | 13% | 21% | 15% | 16% | 24% |
Table 1 also provides ratings for each broker in four areas: overall satisfaction, service reliability, trade price and execution speed. Satisfaction with the brokers in the top five this year has generally increased.
Table 2 includes the primary reasons members pick brokers: commissions, services and convenience. The importance of commissions remains at the top, but the total percentages of all three have decreased over the years.
To participate in next years survey, visit the Member Surveys area of AAII.com.
