Delivering Across the Full Spectrum of Customer Needs Through Omnichannel Banking

There’s little doubt that we live in a world driven by digital technology and online interactions. This has become even more salient thanks to the global COVID-19 crisis, which has seen online interactions – both personal and commercial – skyrocket, as people have been forced to stay inside and businesses made to close their doors to the public.

However, now we are tentatively beginning to emerge from the worst days of the pandemic, there is a need to focus on how once again we best serve customers across multiple channels. Many people will still prefer to interact with brands through digital means it’s true, but a substantial number are looking for multiple methods of connection with financial institutions.

This means omnichannel banking is back on the menu for 2022 and those brands which want to compete in the next new normal are going to need to renew their focus on proving customers with a choice of seamlessly merged channels.

Mobile Banking

According to research by RFi Group, there was a sharp rise in mobile banking use monthly from 52 -57% of people between 2019 and 2020. In November 2021, Forrester data revealed over half [53%] of adults carried out their banking on a mobile website or app in the month prior.

This is, of course, unsurprising in the face of the COVID-19 crisis, but even before the word coronavirus became part of the global lexicon, banks and other financial brands were pouring investment and resources into smartphone apps and the aforementioned research from Forrester also discovered that many leading banks consider mobile their primary hub for engagement and are diverting even more time and money in its direction.

Leading banks now use a range of features such as notifications, conversational interfaces, and analytics to generate mobile experiences which are tailored to each customer and their preferred means of interaction.

However, this dedicated focus on mobile banking driven by the needs of a world consumed by the pandemic, has resulted in a situation where other channels of engagement and omnichannel customer experience have all taken a back seat.

"All this focus on mobile apps has had a detrimental effect," said Banking Industry Market Lead at Pegasystems, Steve Morgan. "Banks have taken their eye off the ball on non-digital channels and have stopped thinking about the entire end-to-end journey. Instead, they need to make sure that all of their digital services are given the same attention to guarantee a consistent customer experience across the board. This becomes more important as banks accelerate branch reformatting and closures."

Omnichannel Customer Experience

While digital technology has certainly helped banking brands deliver more efficient methods of transacting, it’s also true that it has led to a homogenization of the industry as a whole, with truly little to differentiate between the major providers.

Also, as an increasing number of banks more closely resemble tech brands than financial institutions, customer trust is ebbing. With so many tech companies – especially social media brands – being shown to be amoral and unethical organizations, people do not want to feel their money is being held by a similar kind of business

The banking industry needs a reboot, that much is clear, but it needs to do so while considering the needs of all customers and to present a physical face which can reassure more wary customers they are not amorphous digital only entities.

"It’s clear that banks and financial institutions need to modernize their customer experience to appeal to younger generations, but they can’t rip up the traditional customer service rulebook just yet," reports Forbes. "In truth, customer experience needs to be seen on a spectrum, with appropriate journey options for different customers, which in effect means keeping four generations of customers happy."

Ultimately, while multichannel is good, omnichannel is superior in almost every way. Bringing all engagement channels – both physical and digital – and ensuring they work in harmony with every step of the customer journey, will help banks operating in the post pandemic world boost customer confidence and trust and differentiate themselves from their competitors.

Final Thoughts

Mobile and other digital means of engagement are going to continue to be important in the modern banking experience. However, brands operating in the space must be wary of public perception and being counted among the ever-increasing number of amoral tech companies which, with a staggering lack of self-awareness, continue to erode public trust on a daily basis.

Omnichannel is the key to making sure all channels work together seamlessly and banks can differentiate themselves from purely digital financial brands.

Omnichannel experiences are sure to part of the conversation at CXFS 2022, being held in July at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel.

Download the agenda today for more information and insights.