Invest In A New Toolbox; And Curate Its Contents Carefully
While there are go-to resources and approaches that will always hold value, it is likely your toolbox needs an upgrade. We’ve established that serving over selling is a game changer for financial institutions - but what if you took what is largely relational and backed it up with some tech tools?
Lift and Shift
By leveraging technology to streamline operations, you build efficiencies that create space and time for staff to focus on relationship-building beyond the transaction. Ever wonder how your staff spend their time, and what aspects of their work bring the most value to your consumers? Ask! Consider:
- What tasks are your team members doing now that are not directly consumer-facing that could be done more efficiently through an investment in new or even fintech-driven tools and technologies?
- What functions of the transaction itself could be automated without compromising the human element?
- Is there an investment to be made in software, platforms, or web-based tools that empower your staff to be more present and attentive when interacting with individuals in-branch?
We’ve seen many financial institutions find success in offering value-added technological support that doesn’t replace human contact, but creates space to make those interactions more valuable. Examples include incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) like chat box functionality and machine learning that automatically learns insights and recognizes patterns to proactively present consumers with helpful resources based on their actions. Great examples of the practicality of this technological evolution in practice are Coastal Credit Union and Eglin Federal Credit Union. Both financial institutions have even added ITM-only branches to maximize consumer convenience.
Stop Guessing: Unlock The Power Of Data, And Put It To Work
Many financial institutions are sitting on a treasure trove of data that, when activated appropriately, can help target and maximize growth efforts. With AI-powered data solutions, data works for you instead of sitting unused in a system collecting proverbial dust. Data drives action, offering valuable insight into consumer behaviors, preferences and needs. Maximizing and mobilizing data starts when you stop guessing and start knowing. Begin by asking the right questions:
- How can you achieve higher market value in the most efficient way?
- How can you attract and meet the near-and-future-term needs of consumers without alienating customers who have put their trust in you for decades?
- What questions do you have about consumer behaviors? How can you turn data-driven insights about those behaviors into actionable intel to inform future initiatives?
Making Data Driven Decisions
Data powers the creation of target demographic profiles, which can be used to create dynamic content that resonates with your audience. Data solutions provide valuable insight into your customers’ behaviors, preferences and needs, allowing you to meet them exactly where they are and invite them on a unique journey you’ve crafted just for them.
We’ve seen organizations like Landmark Credit Union have great success by integrating intelligent sensors with their cash management systems, allowing financial institutions to obtain demographic information about people coming in and out of their branch space. That information, like a person’s age and gender, is then mined through camera feeds installed in a digital display kiosk, allowing them to capture real-time feedback on consumer experiences and adapt to meet their evolving needs.
Data In Action
Data fuels interactive brand experiences, which serve to educate, entertain and engage your consumers. Informed by data, the creation of custom content placed in interactive displays and kiosks throughout your branch can offer something for everyone, including:
- Opportunities to be playful: Entertain children and adults alike with fun, interactive games and experiences that bring your brand to life.
- Showcase your story: History / local news walls invite visitors to be a part of your story with branded interactive walls that signify rich roots and demonstrate a connection to the community.
- Give a warm welcome: Welcome visitors and capture necessary information in a modern, interactive way with digital check-in stations.
Virginia-based C&F Bank is a great example of a financial institution that went all in on data to turn transactions into interactions. By prioritizing an intensive market study, C&F Bank was able to transform its branch network of over 30 locations, providing unique content deployments to serve different markets in rural and urban communities that each had substantial socioeconomic variances.
Final Thoughts
The landscape has changed, and will keep shifting. The time for action is now; articulate what you do best and identify where you can do better, then let data guide your plan to double down and add additional value. As we step into the final months of 2022, financial institutions that are ready to not only own their strengths and weaknesses, but use them both as fuel to move forward and better serve consumers will see success in 2023 and beyond.
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Tim Klatt | La Macchia Group
As Director of Retail Strategies & Head of Vivalociti at La Macchia Group, Tim Klatt believes in the power of data supported by in-market intelligence to predict viability of new branch locations. Tim is an expert in the industry, participating in colloquiums, focus groups, and round tables.
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