The bank of you is coming – are you ready?

12 November, 2021

Fabiola Seminario

 

Reaching clients digitally has never been easier, with the technological tools available today. But truly engaging with clients over digital channels – helping them with their financial journey and converting them into loyal, long-term customers – is, arguably, harder than ever.

As the world has become more digital and we interact with intuitive, easy-to-navigate apps, bank customers have higher expectations than ever for all their online experiences. At the same time, with push notifications and alerts, WhatsApp messages and Instagram nudges, attention spans on mobile devices are shrinking.

So, how can banks connect meaningfully with clients over digital channels amid these rapid changes? Offering a modern in-app user experience is a must. But an outstanding digital customer experience does not stop there.

Rather, financial institutions need to think about creating a “Bank of YOU” for their clients. That means offering not just world class user experience, but personalized interactions, to both foster loyalty among users and to generate new revenue opportunities.

Personalization means leveraging big data, analytics capabilities, and APIs to better understand customers, and what they need.

“A one-size-fits-all approach to delivering digital banking services really fits no-one”

Banks can take advantage of their extensive transaction data, generated by account holders’ direct actions as well as from APIs under data sharing agreements, to understand their clients’ behavior. At the same time, they should create multiple, detailed customer personas banks can interpret the demands of different demographics among your users.

By bringing together those nuanced personas with extensive real-world data, banks can use their digital channels to suggest new products and services that are truly relevant to their clients. A goal-oriented savings account for a recent college graduate, for example. A special offer on homeowner’s insurance. Or even simply a rewards program with partner retail stores and restaurants.

This kind of personalization is virtually limitless. But what is clear is that a one-size-fits-all approach to delivering digital banking services really fits no-one.

Engage with customers, personally

There are also solutions that can create a truly personal relationship through digital channels, highly successfully.
Imagine combining the simplicity, convenience, and intuitiveness of a chat app with a person on the other side – not a bot – and wrapping it all up in bank-grade security. That’s what Temenos’ Infinity Engage platform offers. It’s a portal into world of highly personalized digital banking experiences that drives loyalty, customer satisfaction, and revenue.

Specifically, Temenos Infinity Engage is a mobile app that helps financial institutions deliver human connection over digital channels. The platform allows the customer to choose their personal financial relationship manager and direct all their queries to that relationship manager – rather than the next available agent in a call center.

The benefits go far beyond simply a new channel for customer service agents to help clients. In fact, by truly personalizing the digital banking experience, Temenos Infinity Engage leaves customers more satisfied with their bank and improves cross-selling.

“Personalized contact through a messaging platform creates more opportunities to offer new products and services that are useful, timely and relevant for the client”

By connecting the same agent with the client whenever they have a new query – be it later the same day or two months later – Temenos Infinity Engage deepens the bank’s relationships with its clients. The agent better understands the clients’ situation and requirements, and can serve them more directly. That increases customer satisfaction and thereby better customer retention and higher net promotor scores (NPS).

At the same time, personalized contact through a messaging platform creates more opportunities to offer new products and services that are useful, timely and relevant for the client. Mortgages are a great example. Often, clients complain of complex and unsatisfactory experiences when it comes to getting a home loan: extensive paperwork and documentation and long wait times.

By matching an advisor with a client, Temenos Infinity Engage provides a more intimate, educational interaction during the process. Additionally, the client avoids double or triple conversations with different advisors as they move through the process.

As clients’ demands for excellence in digital channels increase, creating an experience that centers on the customer – creating a “Bank of You” – is critical to win loyalty and grow business. And the more truly personalized the digital experience, the more successful the strategy.

Enrique Ramos O’Reilly is regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean at Temenos