Dealers buy and sell shares on behalf of their investors.
With thousands companies listed in the Stock Exchanges, an investor can not be expected to have the expert knowledge about the fluctuations and definite growth of each share.
The dealers have the professional license to engage in trades for which qualifying standards are prescribed.
They charge a pre-decided commission for each trade.
Whether you buy or sell a stock, the dealer gets his cut by way of commission.
They save your time and money.
You need not visit the office, and this saves your expenses on gas.
You get to know the results of your buying and selling activity through the internet.
Due to fierce competition in the trade, the dealers charge very competitive commission.
Everyone in the trade claims that he has the expertise in the field.
But an investor has to take one's own decision taking into consideration the level and volume of the dealings and the commission charged.
Just because the rates of commission are less, the decision can not favor that particular dealer.
The safety of your capital is important.
With the internet revolution, you find the stunning growth in this profession.
The advantage to deal with such brokers is the lower cost of commission as compared to a full-commission firm.
Since the contract is between two individuals, the scope for bargaining to reduce the commission exists.
The advantage for the investor is the competitive element amongst the dealers who offer a plethora of services free of charge, including the management of investments.
The internet has dispensed with the concept of off-market hours.
Even though stock exchange business hours are fixed, yet you can get information through the net during any day, any time.
The voluminous stationery that you once used to see in their offices are no more and the computers and laptops have taken over, and the paper work is limited to only printouts of the statements and communications.
Some disadvantages need to be mentioned as for dealing with such dealers.
The human element involved in buying shares, has to go through several stages.
Timing is highly important; issues are decided and settled in minutes to enable the investor to get the best deal.
As the client logs on and gets to the site and places the order, precious time is lost.
The dealer has to make a review, possibly with the assistance of a middleman.
With all these processes and by the time the order is actually placed the price might have shot up.
Once the order is placed, the client loses control over the order as he does not know which market maker his order is sent for execution.
The client does not get the information that is important to track the real-time prices.
Do not be fascinated by the number of tools provided by the websites of the online stock brokers.
Look out for the facilities required by you.
If you have any questions and doubts get them solved by asking clear questions and leave nothing to ambiguity.
You are making efforts to establish a permanent relationship and you need to apply much thought to it as you will be passing on the confidential information relating to your financial status to him.
So, no compromise can be made on high quality customer service.