A new study reveals that many online investors are revaluating their online investment needs as they look to invest for the short- and long-term.

The “State of Online Investing: Canada” report by the Internet quality measurement firm Gomez Inc. puts the Canadian brokerage market under the microscope.

The study says that challenges facing the begin and end with a retreat in self-directed investing that has mirrored the decline of the five-year bull market.

“The outperforming markets that drove investors online also provided them with a false sense of financial acumen,” explains Guy van Rooyen, Gomez senior analyst and author of the study. “Now, firms must provide long-term planning tools and performance analysis to enable customers to succeed in less bullish times.”

The study’s most revealing finding is that 64.1% of active online investors cited advice as critical to their investment planning. “Investors have signaled their desire for the delivery of advice via the online channel,” van Rooyen said. Gomez believes this void can be filled through interactive, objective planning tools that are updateable and can be tailored to unique investing needs.

Among its other findings, the study notes that mutual funds activity promise to be the next online battleground with 64.5% of active online investors citing an expectation to purchase mutual funds online within the next six months.

As well, there are 3.8 million offline investors who signaled an intention to move online. Nearly 1 million of these will transition during the next six months.

The study also notes that over 40% of the Canadian online adult population have or use a professional financial advisor. The majority (71.4%) of those advice-directed investors have shown a desire to participate in the investment process.