We’re in 2022, and banking now looks different.
Perhaps, the tellers will even smile at you. Banks worldwide are now trying to stay more “relevant” by curating more personalized experiences for their customers.
In a bid to scale rapidly and present innovative solutions that will have customers stay, banks are increasingly turning towards the powers of next-gen AI, well-designed and instructive software, and intuitive user interfaces that give customers what they want before they look for it.
So, what exactly does a “digital transformation” now look like for the banking sector?
It looks like a three-pronged approach:
- It’s raining money
Banks will loosen their pockets to hire talent that can change the face of banking. You get what you pay for, and it seems banks all over the world are coming to this realization only now.
Banks will also be lush with spending on technology and how to enable employees and customers to become more fin-tech literate. It may come as a surprise, but banks are now competing with the world’s leading tech companies to hire engineering talent.
By 2025, all banking software that hasn’t seen change since time immemorial are expected to go through an overhaul. App modernization is the only way forward, or bankers will be left behind, using the same old clunky software that infuriates them, further infuriating customers.
Therefore, banks are on the hunt for engineering talent — to give their legacy software a facelift.
- AI is making waves
Banking is becoming a more customizable experience as digital assistants work relentlessly to provide seamless customer experiences. Heard of Nina? It was once termed “the future of customer service automation.” Developed by Swedbank, Nina is a web assistant that serves customers across Sweden and other Baltic countries. Nina quickly became a crowd favorite as its customer grievance resolution rate was 78% in the first three months.
AI applications may potentially save $447 billion by 2023 for banks. To save costs in such staggering numbers, AI applications are primarily deployed in three main channels:
- Front office
- Middle office
- Back office
Or conversational banking, anti-fraud, and underwriting.
This is especially helpful in bridging the gap between a customer and the bank without the need for human interactions. Banks are now leveraging AI for conversational banking to ensure an uninterrupted identification and authentication process. AI features such as voice assistants and chatbots can simulate human-like interactions. They go that extra mile in forging a deeper bond with customers to provide tailored recommendations.
- What you see is what you get
Unless there is a pressing need for human intervention, most of us have chosen not to step into a bank in the past few years. We’ve got the bank on our mobile devices already. But, the experience of banking without going to the bank is what keeps a customer loyal. Those in the banking industry are only now realizing that showcasing their services in a website or app doesn’t have to look like a template.
Yes, people are now ready than ever to take risks, big ones. Banks are moving away from typical or bootstrap designs and adopting user-friendly intuitive designs and trends that elevate the user experience. UI designers now have an exciting proposition – how can they create unique interfaces that are a cut above the rest that also assures people that their money is safe. The more out-of-script it looks, the more people are skeptical because moolah is precious.
Investing in stocks, cryptocurrency, land, property isn’t what it used to be – it’s the new cool. It’s what the millennials are constantly talking about.
Money is cool
The first step to acing this is by understanding the identity of the brand – the visual element and their ethos. A combination of these two things and the audience the brand wants to attract is the answer to your interface’s success.
But, what makes a banking app or its interface a user-friendly experience? For starters, features and trends such as gamification, voice processing, social integration, and blockchain present in the app make it a highly functional super app. But, there’s one more thing that’s taking the cake.
It’s all about omnichannel experience
A customer may start a transaction on his laptop and finish it on his phone. Do your interfaces allow this transition from device to device? If no, you’re going bust.
The attention is now shifting to “people” – those who turn the wheels inside the banks and those who keep the banks alive.
Over the pandemic, 57% of customers moved ship, according to McKinsey & Company. Why? The others provided more value to relationships – they seemed to listen more, care more.
It comes as no surprise.
According to a survey, 52% of the participants expected personalized offers. A whopping 73% said they would not hesitate to switch brands if they had merely three bad experiences. Yet, many banks have not jumped on the bandwagon. By not getting onboard, they could be facing colossal damage.
In an article published by EY.com, a Bank Governance Leadership Network participant said, “Financial institutions are museums of technology dating back to the 1960s. The complexity makes it impossible to manage risk”.
The Wrap
The problem lies in core banking systems and how they don’t run in real-time. But by updating legacy systems, all banking institutions can well be on their way to success. And with a few other tweaks, build relationships with customers for life.
Turn the tables with the modern banking system in place. Let us help you redefine your business with digital innovation.
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