Tag: customer experience

With more than one-third of customers interacting with a single business in five or more channels and more than 85 percent of consumers using online or mobile to conduct business, omnichannel fraud prevention has become a necessity. Implementing a layered approach to authentication and integrating device intelligence into the process to associate a consumer with a known device are critical components of a fraud mitigation strategy. In addition to providing another layer of validation, verifying a customer through his or her device makes it easier for the customer to interact with the business and is a huge benefit to the overall customer experience. Perspective paper: Protecting the customer experience - The impact of fraud on the customer relationship

By: Kyle Enger, Executive Vice President of Finagraph Small business remains one of the largest and most profitable client segments for banks. They provide low cost deposits, high-quality loans and offer numerous cross-selling opportunities. However, recent reports indicate that a majority of business owners are dissatisfied with their banking relationship. In fact, more than 33 percent are actively shopping for a new relationship. With limited access to credit after the worst of the financial crisis, plus a lack of service and attention, many business owners have lost confidence in banks and their bankers. Before the financial crisis, business owners ranked their banker number three on the list of top trusted advisors. Today bankers have fallen to number seven – below the medical system, the president and religious organizations, as reported in a recent Gallup poll, “Confidence in Institutions.” In order to gain a foothold with existing clients and prospects, here is a roadmap banks can use to build trust and effectively meet the needs to today’s small business client. Put feet on the street. To rebuild trust, banks need to get in front of their clients face to face and begin engaging with them on a deeper level. Even in the digital age, business customers still want to have face-to-face contact with their bank. The only way to effectively do that is to put feet on the street and begin having conversations with clients. Whether it be via Skype, phone calls, text, e-mail or Twitter – having knowledgeable bankers accessible is the first step in creating a trusting relationship. Develop business acumen. Business owners need someone who is aware of their pain points, can offer the correct products according to their financial need, and can provide a long-term plan for growth. In order to do so, banks need to invest in developing the business and relationship acumen of their sales forces to empower them to be trusted advisors. One of the best ways to launch a new class of relationship bankers is to start investing in educational events for both the bankers and the borrowers. This creates an environment of learning, transparency and growth. Leverage technology to enhance client relationships. Commercial and industrial lending is an expensive delivery strategy because it means bankers are constantly working with business owners on a regular basis. This approach can be time-consuming and costly as bankers must monitor inventory, understand financials, and make recommendations to improve the financial health of a business. However, if banks leverage technology to provide bankers with the tools needed to be more effective in their interactions with clients, they can create a winning combination. Some examples of this include providing online chat, an educational forum, and a financial intelligence tool to quickly review financials, provide recommendations and make loan decisions. Authenticate your value proposition.  Business owners have choices when it comes to selecting a financial service provider, which is why it is important that every banker has a clearly defined value proposition. A value proposition is more than a generic list of attributes developed from a routine sales training program. It is a way of interacting, responding and collaborating that validates those words and makes a value proposition come to life. Simply claiming to provide the best service means nothing if it takes 48 hours to return phone calls. Words are meaningless without action, and business owners are particularly jaded when it comes to false elevator speeches delivered by bankers. Never stop reaching out. Throughout the lifecycle of a business, its owner uses between 12 and 15 bank products and services, yet the national product per customer ratio averages around 2.5. Simply put, companies are spreading their banking needs across multiple organizations. The primary cause? The banker likely never asked them if they had any additional businesses or needs. As a relationship banker to small businesses, it is your duty to bring the power of the bank to the individual client. By focusing on adding value through superior customer experience and technology, financial institutions will be better positioned to attract new small business banking clients and expand wallet share with existing clients. By implementing these five strategies, you will create closer relationships, stronger loan portfolios and a new generation of relationship bankers. To view the original blog posting, click here. To read more about the collaboration between Experian and Finagraph, click here.  

A comprehensive customer-experience strategy can give companies the competitive edge needed in a market where price, products and service can no longer be considered effective differentiators. Capturing customer insight is critical to developing a sound customer experience strategy, yet research shows that while 85 percent of companies collect such feedback, only 15 percent take action on it as part of their strategy. Delivering a consistently successful experience across all channels leads to more customers who buy more, stay longer and cost less to serve. Companies can drive value and loyalty by taking aggressive steps to develop an in-depth understanding of their customers and then plan, design and implement a structured, comprehensive customer experience program. The New Customer Experience – An Experian White Paper

Customer experience strategies for success Sometimes it’s easier to describe something as the opposite of something else.  Being “anti-” something can communicate something meaningful. Cultural movements in the past have taken on these monikers:  consider the “anti-establishment” or “anti-war” movements.  We all need effective anti-virus protection.  And there are loads of skin products marketed as “anti-aging”, “anti-wrinkle”, or “anti-blemish.” But when you think about a vision for the customer experience that your company aspires to deliver, this approach of the “anti-X” falls flat. Would you want to aspire to basically “not stink?”  Would that inspire you and your team to run through walls to deliver on that grand aspiration? Would it motivate customers to stick with you, buy more of what you sell, and tell others about you? I think not…But it sure seems like many out there indeed do aspire to “not stink.” Sure, there are great companies out there who have a set a high standard for customer experience, placing it at the center of their strategies and their success. Some, like Zappos, started that way from the beginning.  Others, like The Ritz-Carlton, realized that they had lost their way and made the commitment to do the hard work of reaching and sustaining excellence. On the other hand, there are hundreds of firms who have a weak commitment to or even understanding of the importance of customer experience to their strategy and performance.  Their leaders may give lip service or just pay attention for a few days or hours following the release of reports from leading analysts and firms. They may have posters and slogans that talk about putting the customer first or similar platitudes. These companies probably even have talented and passionate professionals working tirelessly to improve the customer experience in spite of the fact that nobody seems to care much. What these firms lack is a clear customer experience strategy. As nature abhors a vacuum, customers and employees are free to infer or just guess at it.  Focusing on customer experience only when a report comes out – and paying special attention only when weak results put the firm near the bottom of the ranking leads people to conclude that all that really matters is to “not stink.”  In other words, don’t stand out for being bad…but don’t worry much about being good as it is not important to the company’s strategy or results. I think that this “don’t stink” implicit strategy helps explain a fascinating insight from a Forrester survey in 2013: “80% of executives believe their company is delivering a superior customer experience, yet in 2013 only 8% of companies surveyed received a top grade from their customers.”  Many leaders simply have not invested the energy and commitment necessary to define a real customer experience vision that reflects a deep understanding of the role that it plays in the company’s strategy.  Beyond setting that vision, there is a big and sustained commitment required to deliver on the vision, measure results, and continuously adjust as customer needs evolve. Like all journeys, a great customer experience starts with one step. Establishing a customer experience strategy is the first one – and “don’t stink” simply stinks as a strategy. Download our recent perspective paper to learn how exceptional customer experience can give companies the competitive edge they need in a market where price, products and services can no longer be a differentiator.