Everything and everybody has changed since COVID-19 upended our entire world over a year ago. Customer’s financial circumstances are different than pre-pandemic. Some have saved more than ever before. Others have reduced or lost their earnings. Everything you think you know about your customers post-COVID could be wrong. So, it is time you get reacquainted!
Customers Need Humanized Contact
Your customers have been struggling over the past year. Whether hit by unemployment, loss of a family member, managing children’s distance learning, or stuck at home without social interaction, this past year has rocked their world. Since everything has changed, relying on customer data collected before the pandemic will lead you astray in meeting customer’s needs.
You need to initiate new customer conversations either digitally, by video, call center, or in the branch that humanizes the situation. That is the only way to find out what has been happening with them and to show empathy and compassion for their new state of affairs. These conversations will allow you to understand their new needs and how you can assist them with their financial wellness.
Advanced technologies can help you do just that.
Digital Customer Engagement
Spark the Conversation
Learn more about digital engagement solutions for financial institutions that ensure customers’ and members’ needs are fulfilled accurately and consistently.
Go Beyond Chatbots
Chatbots have been an excellent addition to bank’s technology toolboxes. They are fantastic at answering basic inquires such as “What is my checking balance?” or “What are my recent transactions?” or “What is my credit score”? They can also be super helpful with IT requests, for instance, resetting passwords. These types of questions make up a bulk of customer inquiries, and automating the answering process helps banks improve customer service while decreasing costs.
In the sales process, chatbots can answer rudimentary questions on products or accounts. Queries including “Do you have an interest free checking account” or “What is the application process for a credit card?” are perfect for chatbots. They play a role in lead generation and can be the first step in the sales cycle by gathering customer data. However, with the broad and complex set of products that banks offer, more personalized, in-depth conversations are required to uncover needs and engage customers effectively.
Engage in Direct Personalized Conversations
When customers interact with their financial institutions, they look for personalization. Guided conversations that are personalized and direct will lead you to discover customer’s wants, needs, and desires that will ultimately enable you to provide accurate recommendations to fulfill those unique requirements.
Your customer conversations need to be consistent so that they can easily transition to another mode, no matter where they commenced. For example, if the conversation started with your customer while on their smartphone app, you need to seamlessly pick up that conversation when they come into a branch.
Providing Help at Your Customer’s Time of Need
By reacquainting yourself with your customers and showing you care about them, you create a connection at a time when people want and need help. Before the pandemic, JD Power surveyed bank customers, finding that 78% wanted financial advice or guidance from their bank. Only 28% of banks, however, offered this financial wellness insight. After this challenging year, customers are looking to you to help calm their money worries and assist them in financial decisions for their new life. That may be to purchase a home outside of the city, an education investment for a career shift, or a change in school for their child.
Financial institutions that can reacquaint themselves with customers’ current needs by compassionately conversing about today’s circumstances and tomorrow’s aspirations will be in the best position to deliver best-fit solutions for financial wellness.
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The Financial Wellness Plan
Uncovering and aiding in the customer’s financial wellness can build healthy profits for the bank, now more than ever. Discover the 5-step plan to lead your banking customers to financial wellness and improve bank performance.
