As customers and members flock to digital banking solutions, banks and credit unions still want to maintain the type of personalized interactions that customers have come to expect. After all, these customer relationships were cultivated on human connections. Not just any digital platform will do. It’s important that banking customers have the technology that provides them with a quality experience.
That’s why it’s essential that you pick the right digital banking solution partner.
The Move to Digital Banking
Bank and credit union customers live in a dynamic and changing world. Yet despite all of this mobility, the average U.S. adult has had the same checking account for more than 14 years. But not all of your customers live within an easy commute of a branch. Some may live on the other side of town, or even the other side of the country. They continue to bank with you because you’ve built a trusted relationship with them. Now is not the time to renege on your promises.
The COVID-19 crisis underscored the fact that banks and credit unions must have a mobile application. Admittedly, banking is a bit more complicated than selling books or shoes. But many customers came online with high expectations from years of eCommerce shopping. Even without much online exposure, most customers expect to have the same great experience that you provide in the branch.
So when banks and credit unions are looking for a digital banking solution, they need to find a great partner. There are several important factors they must consider.
What Should Financial Institutions Consider?
When you’re evaluating digital banking solutions, be sure to keep the customer’s perspective top of mind. Certainly, a lot of banking happens outside of normal banking hours. Everyone has a 24/7 digital app. But sophisticated users want more. Following are nine of the top considerations.
- Personalized service: When you’ve built your reputation on service, you want to continue to provide an amazing experience to your customers. For that you need data analytics. Although the privacy movement may seem to indicate that customers are reluctant to give up much personal information, a 2019 Accenture study indicates that even the most technology-averse groups are willing to share their data in exchange for personalized financial services. Beyond telling their banking representatives where their last paycheck went, they are particularly interested in learning how to save and manage their money.
- Fast and reliable: Customers demand reliability. They don’t want to see that endlessly spinning wheel when they try to deposit a check or pay a bill. The best digital banking platform supports updates without forced downtime. Not only is downtime frustrating, but it can also cause customers to panic. Panic is not conducive to long-term loyalty.
- Secure interactions: Well-designed mobile apps use cloud technologies that allow rapid updates with minimal risk. Your platform should also deploy strong end-to-end encryption and multiple-factor authentication to keep data safe. In addition, customers should receive real-time fraud alerts and have the ability to turn off their credit cards whenever they choose.
- Flexibility: Banks and credit unions must be able to respond to changing consumer needs quickly. This means that the technology should evolve with customer behaviors and meet the customers where they are today. It also means that a cloud-native platform should provide the flexibility needed to introduce new features in minutes rather than months.
- Integration capabilities: Your digital banking platform should provide the technical foundation for integration with credit and debit card services and call center support so that the customer experience is seamless. Customers should be able to complete nearly all of their banking through digital channels.
- Self-service automation: Not only should customers be able to complete transactions in their entirety on the digital banking platform, but they should also be able to use automated features to manage their finances. This includes automatic payments as well as contributions to savings plans. Customers love the ability to simplify their lives and help themselves.
- Automated continuous deployment: Without going too far into the IT weeds, continuous deployment is the process of delivering new coding, updates, and patches without hands-on intervention. This reduces the possibility of manual errors and saves time, thus allowing banks and credit unions to offer an exceptional and reliable customer experience across the platform.
- Ease of implementation: You could build your own solution. But why would you? Even the largest banks and credit unions are resource-constrained. Plus, with ever-emerging technology, it makes sense to concentrate your efforts and resources on providing excellent customer products and services rather than on continually upskilling your IT department.
- User-friendly: Your online application should be effortless to use without three-deep menus or information overload. Customers should be able to check their cash and credit balances, as well as receive personalized recommendations all on one easy-to-read dashboard. In addition, the options to pay bills, transfer money, or get help must be clearly presented.
Why Lumin Digital Is the Top Choice
Lumin Digital is a cloud-based digital banking solution that provides the quality experience your customers have come to expect from you, allowing banks and credit unions of all sizes to compete with the big guys. But, if you want more than just an also-ran mobile app, you’ll want market-leading technology. That’s what Lumin Digital provides.
Our digital banking solution is a comprehensive, integrated suite of capabilities built from cutting-edge technologies. Our proprietary engagement model allows your bank or credit union to execute highly targeted and personalized strategies. You’ll drive engagement through personalized recommendations, financial advice, fraud alerts, and, best of all, actionable advice your customers crave. It’s the same seamless service that your customers experience when they visit the branch, only better.
At Lumin Digital, we take pride in partnering with credit unions and banks to provide a personalized journey for their members, increase value and deepen relationships. Contact Lumin Digital today.
Sources
Bank Rate – Survey: People Stick with the Same Checking Account for 14 Years
Accenture – 2019 Global Financial Service Consumer Study
