It’s time to get a bigger plate

I hear it often in this industry: “We have a lot on our plate this year.” Whether they are banks, credit unions, investment firms, insurance companies – all are focused on consumer finance … and all walk around with a very “full plate.”

As someone who has spent 34 years in the financial industry, I know what it’s like to be limited by budgets and hamstrung by teams that don’t always see the value of innovation. I know all about having a full plate.

Often, it means pushing necessary technological upgrades – operating systems, ATMs, online banking solutions – to the back burner because of other, more-pressing priorities. Sometimes, it means simply dismissing out of hand a daring new product, one that could help customers and move the institution forward.

Can you imagine how many times the people who invented electronic statements heard that phrase? Or the creators of balance alerts, fraud prevention or debit cards? How many times were they met with the same “full plate”? Competitive advantages and technology move too fast for those with full plates to ever keep up.

It’s time to get a bigger plate…or develop a bigger appetite.

Make some room

The tectonic plates of finance, the foundations on which we’ve built 150 years of banking innovation, are shifting. New players are entering the business, and the big, well-established players are paying close attention. Banks like Simple and Ally promise no-hassle setup and stellar remote service in exchange for a no-branch approach to banking. Consumer-focused powerhouses like GEICO, US Bank and Charles Schwab aren’t dismissing older demographics out of hand; they’re providing convenient tablet and smartphone apps that make money management easier. Personal Financial Management tools, once “nice-to-have” upgrades, are becoming the norm in customer experience at financial institutions that want to realize PFM’s true potential: not money makers, but customer retention investments.

Successful companies stay hungry. They never have full plates because of limited thinking. They don’t shy away from the opportunity to put something good to work now. Powerful players don’t take a year to think about their next move: They trust a core team of experts to give them honest, unbiased opinions of new and emerging technologies. And they move forward.

What do they have to show for it? They’re establishing relationships. They’re keeping customers.  And in the world of banking, that’s what really matters.

Enhance the menu

Electronic bill payment. Checking accounts. High-interest savings. Online safe deposit boxes. What do they all have in common? They’re “sticky.” These are products that pull a user deeper into the banking experience and, at a moment when they might consider leaving, convince them to stay put. The likelihood of keeping current customers increases when you have products that are sticky.

My Virtual StrongBox® is just such a product – a convenient, cool and customer-focused online safe deposit box for storage of important documents and files. Already, 12 major financial institutions with billions in assets have implemented our system, making it accessible to more than 1.6 million users. And those using it are seeing value both in security and convenience. So, why do we still hear about the “full plate” everyone has? If a product can go live in 90 days and provides a value-add for your customers – and costs less than the amount of time and money you waste studying it – isn’t it worth fitting on one wedge of that plate?

When it comes to innovation, the hungry ones – those who make room for more, those who get a bigger plate – are going to be the winners at keeping current customers and attracting new ones. They are ready for another helping. And they know they can’t afford to walk away from the table.

What are you waiting for?

Ron Daly

Ron Daly

Ron Daly is the president and CEO of Virtual StrongBox, a secure, end-to-end member engagement platform that can be integrated into various workflow processes to provide high-risk Enterprise IT firms ... Web: www.virtualstrongbox.com Details