Press
Mobile banking the focus for upcoming BankersHub event
MADISON, WI (March 14, 2014) – While bank branches continue to be major distribution channel for many banks across the United States in 2014, most bankers know they cannot ignore the rapid growth of mobile banking as a key transaction channel in financial services. According to the 2013 Retail Banking Satisfaction Study from J.D. Power and Associates, the percent of consumers in 2013 who indicated they used branch and online channels to check account balances or transaction details remained flat year-over-year. However, the percentage of customers who used mobile devices grew 25 percent.
Federal Reserve’s Consumer and Mobile Financial Services March 2013 Report supports these figures, noting that mobile banking jumped 28 percent in 2012, up from 21 percent in 2011. This growth is even more pronounced among smartphone users, with 48 percent reporting usage in 2012, up six percent from 2011.
“There are two big threats to retail financial services distribution strategies today,” banking industry author Brett King notes in his book Bank 3.0. “The first is simply changing behavior with respect to where and how the consumer shops for financial service products. The second is the proliferation of alternatives to traditional financial service organizations.” The implications to this observation are clear that if banks are not proactively charting the course in mobile banking, they run the risk of becoming irrelevant.
King goes on to explain, “The bank account is becoming unhinged from the bank. Mobile is the ultimate disruptor in this shift. Once we can pay with our phone, and it is connected to a value store – this is a far better banking utility than a basic current/checking account. A bank still issuing check books simply doesn’t provide a competitive platform to compete with a mobile wallet.”
Understanding and enhancing mobile banking products and services also yields other benefits to banks. Overall bank satisfaction is much higher, along with lower inclination to switch banks, when mobile products have premium features such as allowing person-to-person (P2P) payments, bill payment and check image deposits (J.D. Power and Associates 2013 Retail Banking Satisfaction Study). Unfortunately, only 1-out-of-2 customers in that same study report they ‘completely understand’ their bank’s mobile products and services, a number that has remained essentially flat over the last three years.
To help financial services understand the opportunities, challenges and risks inherent in this mobile banking growth, online financial services provider BankersHub has teamed up with Worldwide Business Research (WBR) to offer a full day of webinars entitled MobileBanking360, on April 28, 2014. This event will live-stream the first day of sessions from NetFinance 2014, an annual international conference on digital financial services in Miami, FL. Brett King will provide the opening keynote presentation, followed by 13 webinars covering industry insights, research, panels and case studies on topics ranging from mobile strategic planning to the role that tablets and iPads in mobile banking.
“Having BankersHub live streaming our show’s session gives the conference a brand new dimension for both attending and non-attending individuals,” says Worldwide Business Research Marketing Assistant Price Padgett. “This live access makes NetFinance truly unique and jibes with our online theme that attracts the top financial technology minds to our show year after year. It’s a fantastic value-add that most conferences don’t approach, but we are more than happy to provide this enhanced access to our audience.”
“We believe our live streaming services opens a whole new way for attendees to experience conference,” states Erin Handel, BankersHub Co-Founder, who manages education and event technology. “Of course, you will always have the in-person attendees at these shows – which is great. But there are a good number of people who cannot attend various shows for many reasons beyond their control. Live streaming the event allows this population to experience the conference online, still gaining much of the valuable content provided at these shows.”