By Jeff Kline
Not to sound like a sentimental card for your grandmother, but nothing beats a hug for making your members feel valued.
Not necessarily a physical hug, but rather the personal attention members are used to receiving from their credit union – warm smiles, greeting by name, eagerness to correct problems and (best of all) knowing who they are. More than any other financial organizations, credit unions are known for genuinely caring for members.
But as more credit unions go digital, I worry that we’re losing our personal touch that makes us stand out from other financial services providers. Already, credit unions’ member satisfaction rate is down from past years, albeit it remains higher than banks’ rankings. It’s a catch-22 because we need to beef up our online and mobile channels to give members what they want and remain competitive. Yet when we do they have fewer reasons to make personal visits or calls. We could lose the opportunity to know our members and, importantly, the chance for front-line staff to show them how much they mean to us – to hug them.
Conversely, as bank customers migrate from in-person to mobile and online it means fewer opportunities for a bank employee to make people mad. As a result, there will be fewer ticked-off customers who are moving to credit unions. Banks face the same issues as they embrace more digital apps, but keep in mind they have a lower hurdle to clear, given their lower customer satisfaction levels.
Further, the industry’s focus on mobile will only maintain our current business model; it doesn’t even begin to speak to the potential disruption attacking us from many fronts, like payments and PFM tools. Many of these disrupters are mobile first or online first, and they don’t have the product variety or legacy system issues we are dealing with.
What’s The Answer
So, what’s the answer? It sounds contradictory, but we need to make sure our online and mobile channels create the same level of satisfaction as our in-person channels. Can we deliver the transaction convenience members expect? Can we do it in a way that offers a great experience? Will our apps keep pace with the other apps on their phones?
It won’t be enough to simply be “best of breed” in banking. Our mobile functionality needs to be as intuitive as other apps members use. As members become more tech-savvy – particularly younger members, who are already more mobile-focused – it puts a lot of pressure on credit unions to create a strong mobile presence. But our focus can’t be simply on transaction types; instead, it needs to be on the user experience. Do we have the biometrics for easy, secure sign-on? Does the app flow? Is it intuitive? Is the language human or even perhaps funny? Does it create value beyond just financial transactions for purchasing?
Two Suggestions
We need to solve the paradox of offering the high-tech apps members desire yet still give out “hugs.” Here are two ways for starters:
First, ensure members enjoy a consistent, satisfying experience in everychannel they use. That’s easier said than done when it comes to mobile banking. Many mobile bank applications aren’t optimized for easy viewing on a small screen. Instead, members have to scroll up, down and sideways to find needed information. Even then, the print is often too small to read – hardly the same as a hug! When members visit your credit union via their smartphones or other mobile devices, they should be able to easily navigate through functions and expect the “look and feel” to be similar to the branch, drive-up, online or ATM channels.
Second, personalize all member interactions, making the best use of available data. Today, 60% of consumers spend more with retailers that use behavioral data to create offers related to their individual needs, according to market researcher eMarketer. Why? It’s the personal touch. People respond to messages tailored to their needs, rather than generic promotions.
Jeff Kline is Chief Executive Officer for MEMBERS Development Co., which said it is exploring not only how to help credit unions be more efficient and give members the anytime access they expect, but also how to continue nurturing strong member ties