With more challengers on the horizon, and customer expectations continuing to evolve, banks are more motivated than ever to strengthen ties with customers by delivering personalised, transparent and relevant communications at scale.
Everything has its season. In recent decades, the personal touch of branch banking was eroded by the compelling convenience – and cost-savings – of digital banking. But now, with branch networks much pruned and the retail market highly commoditised, the pendulum has swung back and banks are seeking to differentiate themselves through personalised services and stronger customer relationships. Indeed, at the recent MoneyLIVE Summit in London, 45 per cent of those polled identified personalised and value-added services as one of the key commercial opportunities in the year ahead. As panellists on the recent MoneyLIVE and Quadient webinar agreed, tailored and timely customer communications have never been more critical.
“The relationship is moving from being transactional to one that is longer term”
The relationship is moving from being transactional to one that is longer term and that builds advocacy and loyalty,’ said Damian Parker, Financial Services and Banking Principle at Quadient. He pointed out that customers will be less likely to be induced to switch to rival banks when they enjoy a trusted relationship with their existing provider.
In the absence of a bank manager who knows his or her customers, sometimes across the generations, today’s stronger customer bonds require communications that are personal and valuable, both in their content and their delivery. The right digital communication, at the right time, delivered in the right way, is today’s friendly branch-teller when it comes to embedding customer relationships.
This is as true of small business banking as it is of the high street, said Maeña Twomey, Head of Customer Journey Transformation (Commercial lending) at NatWest.
‘More than ever it’s about building trust, because there’s real concern out there about deep fakes and scams,’ she said. ‘How do we change our communications to instil trust that we are operating faithfully?’
Trust, she said, comes with simplicity. ‘Even for people who work in financial services, it’s really complicated,’ said Twomey. ‘How do we make it easy for people?’
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