Banking beyond the branch – three relationship tips for the digital age
Your younger customers, in particular, live their life through their mobile. They use it to connect, discover and collaborate on social networks and order virtually anything they want from meals and outfits to music, movies and holidays. They expect their bank to be as simple and accessible as their apps.
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From the banks' point of view going digital makes sense. Lower costs, faster implementation and more personalized customer offers all boost ROI. But customers welcome it too; in the latest EY research, 64% said they were comfortable switching to a digital-first bank.
It's hardly surprising that the European Central Bank has reported a decline in the number of bank branches (the annual growth rate was -2.3% from 2007 to 2017). Forward-thinking organizations have an unprecedented opportunity to re-engineer the banking experience. With the help of VeriPark's Omni-channel solutions – spanning internet and mobile banking, mobile wallet, chatbots and digital onboarding – they can create a dynamic branchless bank that connects with customers whenever they want and wherever they go.
When was the last time you really needed to visit a bank branch?
This was the question posed by Enpara.com, Turkey's first purely digital bank, launched by QNB Finansbank. Their attitudinal research into the millennial market confirmed that this customer group isn't interested in visiting traditional branches. Instead, they're looking for rich and meaningful digital and mobile experiences.
Enpara.com opted for a digital-only branchless approach. They now have 1.2 million retail customers, a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 75% (the average for banks in Turkey is 8%) and 50% of all their new customers come through referrals.
How did they do it? They focused on creating an outstanding user experience to build exceptional customer engagement. Here are their three digital relationship tips.
1. Use customer insights to give timely and relevant offers
In EY's research, 40% of customers say they would stay loyal to their bank if they provided more personalized service. But, only 24% feel that their bank understands their goals.
2. Pass savings on to customers in the form of free services and loyalty rewards
For Enpara.com this includes no subscription fees or transaction fees on payments and transfers alongside discounts on popular millennial-focused services, such as Spotify and Netflix.
3. Make everything as user- friendly as possible
Enpara.com started by simplifying the standard 20-30 page customer contract document. They created one that's just two pages long and written in simple and easy-to-understand language.
Enpara.com proves that a fully digital bank, with no physical branches, can build rewarding relationships with customers. Using VeriPark's VeriChannel Omni-Channel Delivery Solution was a smart and fast way to fuel innovation and harness this global trend towards frictionless digital customer experience.
