What type of broker service do you need?

If you don`t know much about the stock market or lack the time to research your stock investment options, you may need a full-service or advisory broker, who will provide advice and recommendations, based on in-house research.

Full-service equity brokers will analyze your investment needs and help you to determine your short-term and long-term financial goals, while keeping your risk tolerance in mind.

Be prepared to pay higher brokerage with a full-service stockbroker. If you have a small amount of money for stock investing, it may not be easy to find a full service broker who is willing to handle your stock investments.

A discount broker will not offer advice or recommendations and will only buy or sell shares as per your orders. With a discount broker you can expect to pay lower brokerage than you would have to pay with a full-service broker. Brokerage is usually negotiable, depending on the services you require and their location.

Different brokers specialize in different segments of stock trading and depending on your trading volume it may be preferable to deal with more than one share broker.

Some day traders set up more than one account so that they will have a backup plan, if their favorite broker has some problems. Day traders require fast execution speeds and some brokerages will waive the charges if your order takes longer than 60 seconds to execute. Traders who take short positions prefer a large stock broker company that will have shares to lend for short positions.

Some of the largest online stock broker firms still send customer orders to third parties, who pay them to execute the orders. The third party makes some money on the transaction and as a result, the customer is not able to get the best possible deal.

Research your options before you sign up

Read the fine print before you start dealing with a financial broker. Some of them don`t offer competitive rates, while others add on hidden charges. Most of them will pay you interest on the money you have in your in your account, while you are not holding any position. Some of them will invest your money in the money market, to get you a better return and a few will even allow you to write checks on your account.

The possibility of human error always exists, so look for a brokerage that employs courteous and professional customer care staff.

Talk to many brokers and ask them about the type of services they provide and their charges. Ask them if they have research facilities and provide investment information and stock market news through their website, stockbroker newsletter or seminars. With a full-service investment broker, ask about how your often your investment plan will be reviewed.

The most successful brokers usually specialize in meeting the requirements of large investors, so it is preferable to find a stock broker who is just right for your needs and investment strategy.