A winning number: 3 keys to a successful member experience

The news is out that Amazon is going to enter the financial world, either sooner with JPMC as the latest press suggests, or later with someone else or on their own. And yes, they’re going to get a lot of customers very quickly.  While that might make many in the financial services industry a bit nervous, instead of seeing this as a threat, there is a great deal every financial institution can learn—and deploy— from Amazon. Amazon’s focus on customer experience, “customer obsession” as they call it, has caused the company to come a long way since it launched in 1995. Their obsession with customers is said to start with defining what a successful customer experience looks like applicable to the type of business and then executing a business model that delivers on those expectations. As a credit union, you may have a traditional view of what your members expect. However, as time goes on, every member’s needs are becoming more segmented, nuanced and thus, complex.  It is important to understand what your members want—from their perspective. Here are three key considerations to keep top-of-mind that will help you deliver an “Amazon” customer experience:

Print or digital—find the right balance

We all know that Amazon is determined not to do things the traditional way. In watching its successes, we are reminded that we also need to think differently about what members are looking for from their credit union today. Few industries are feeling the effects of digital transformation more deeply than financial services. One of the major factors driving this digital disruption is the rapid rise of people using technology for both work and personal business.  This signals a shift from on-premise interactions to mobile capabilities that need to be taken into consideration for credit unions to remain competitive.  However, while many people will use digital options for interacting with their finances, not everyone feels comfortable completing all their financial transactions online or over a mobile application. Here is where, just like Amazon, it is important to define what a successful customer experience is for your members considering your demographic mix. Whether members choose a traditional or digital way of doing business—or both—they are still going to expect stellar customer service. Which leads to the next key direction that needs to be considered.

Conduct business with your members—in a way that works for each member

In every financial services sector, there is a great deal of talk about customer preferences. Most conversations about customer preference almost instantly turn to the need for the right technology that allows the customer to identify their channel of choice. However, while technology certainly is key to responding to customer preferences, it is even more important to consider first what each member really cares about. There are many ways that individual members expect to have their preferences addressed beyond the right channel.  As a credit union, you already pride yourself on your relationship with your members and continue to develop functions that enhance that relationship by being the trusted financial advisor, not just the app that they go to transfer money from one account to another. You can win at the customer experience game every time when it comes to understanding what a member needs and then responding, such as helping your customer with those slower and more taxing transactions, choosing the right account or managing how much and how often they want to connect with your credit union.

Remember every communication counts—print and digital

Every time a member interacts with your credit union, they leave with two things: their memories of the experience and the formal communications given or sent to them. Memories can change, they can be improved over time, and with continual effort, they’re often erased by other memories. Communications cannot change though, they’re permanent reminders of a good or bad experience, often sitting there on the member’s computer or glaring back from the dining room table for a potentially very long time.

Popping back to Amazon, we know they have plenty of information about their customers and use it to build a solid relationship. Credit unions can easily do the same with the amount of member history they have, turning generic communications into ones that are relevant and personalized.  For example, if an individual has a profile that suggests they may be interested in a new car loan, you should have the ability to personalize their next statement with information highlighting the loan options available and of interest to them. Having the technology in place to access the data an organization already has on its members can ensure the ability to put their needs front and center with every communication sent to them.

One more thing that Amazon knows—and is important to remember—a communication is any touchpoint that involves written words, not just PDFs or paper documents. This includes SMS, emails, mobile apps and desktop websites. Your communications solution should have the ability to coordinate and integrate communications across all these channels.

Offering communications in the format each member wants, when they want it and having the right technology in place to accommodate those wants are three critical ingredients to ultimately succeeding at delivering an exceptional customer experience. Your members are in control today and their expectations as to how you communicate with them is only growing. Offering the personal touch that customer experience giants, like Amazon, are known for delivering is sure to result in what you are looking for—member retention, loyalty and a higher level of customer satisfaction.

Andrew Stevens

Andrew Stevens

Andrew Stevens is Global Banking and Financial Services Principal for Quadient, a leader in helping businesses transform their customer experience by creating meaningful connections through digital and physical channels. With ... Web: www.quadient.com Details