The importance of User Experience in Digital Banking
We talk a lot about customer experience in these articles – we are CXFS after all – but we don’t seem to pay as much attention to another facet of the modern financial services delivery model – user experience.
In a world which is becoming increasingly technology focused the need for customers to be able to interact with digital tools in a way which is logical, seamless, and enjoyable is of the utmost importance. Neglecting user experience can have customers abandoning your digital tools in droves or even moving away from your brand altogether.
However, UX is not a one-time consideration, but rather an ongoing philosophy which needs to be considered whenever new features are added or customer expectations change. One only has to think of the devices we use every day and how certain actions are now so intuitive and standardized to our behavior we perform them without thinking.
Fintech
With Fintech investment and revenue steadily climbing and predicting to keep doing so well into this decade, the difference between success and failure in this ever more crowded market can all come down to UX. However, one statistic which should give us all pause for thought is this – 58% of all website banking content is too complex for the average user.
This means you could be adding loads of fantastic features to your digital banking experience, but if the UX is poorly designed, badly signposted, or unintuitive, customers aren’t going to use them and may look elsewhere for more easy to use digital tools. Take your mobile banking app for example. Customers probably know how to perform simple tasks such as logging in, checking their balance, and making payments as these are fairly universal across apps and providers, but are they aware they can live chat with an advisor, set up an overdraft, or set spending limits as well?
Making sure all these features are clearly telegraphed within the design of the app will help customers get the absolute most out of these tools and increase their satisfaction with your organization as a whole. Many banking apps will have information regarding various features display periodically when customer log in to make sure they are always kept updated about their potential applications.
Banks also need to become psychology and sociology researchers and keep up to date about the ways customers like to interact with technology. Understanding how the human brain perceives and processes information will help you create more natural and intuitive user interfaces which will also aid in customers getting the best experience possible from your digital tools.
"In recent years, there has been a shift in focus to creating rich user design experiences as users become more intuitive when navigating the digital world,” says HSBC. "Financial institutions, for example, are increasingly realizing the importance of providing their customers with feature-rich mobile banking applications that are easy to navigate and use. Without a seamless digital banking experience, it is difficult for banks to improve customer satisfaction and win the hearts of digital natives such as GenZ.”
Design Thinking
The above is achieved through a process known as design thinking. Through this discipline, user experience designers can develop an empathic understanding of the hypothetical user and design digital interfaces in a way which best resonates with them and helps them more successfully navigate, not just the technology in question, but your financial brand as a whole.
"It is imperative to note that this is not a step-by-step or linear process,” continues HSBC. "Each phase of the design thinking process can run in parallel to others and be repeated several times as needed. Collaboration with people in other disciplines is also key in the process, as they can contribute insights from their unique perspective and experience. Design thinking also focuses on achieving results and solutions that are technically feasible, economically viable and desirable for the end user.”
There are many schools of thought regarding design thinking. One of the most popular is the Stanford school design thinking process (see image below)
(Image source: HSBC.com)
Final Thoughts
User experience is a constantly evolving school of thought and there is no one correct way to approach it. However, the one constant across most philosophies is that design thinking must always begin with the user/customer and work out from there. Empathy is the key to achieving great user experiences and those brands which can fully grasp the behavioral needs of the modern customer and translate that into their digital tools will stand the greatest chance of success in this area.
User experience and design thinking are sure to be part of the conversation at CXFS 2023, being held in July and August at The Westin Copley Place, Boston, MA.
Download the agenda today for more information and insights.