Who would have thought in the beginning of March that our world would go on “pause” by the end of it? We are definitely operating between the parentheses. Eventually, we’ll get on the other side of this crisis and operate again outside of the parentheses where all will go back to normal – or will it?
The answer depends on what you’re doing now inside the parentheses. What are you doing during these days of disruption so that you are actually serving your members better when the “all clear” is given? Will you emerge with more members? More LOYAL members? Stronger member relationships? Will those members who have, by virtue of “social distancing,” been moved abruptly into digital channels emerge loving you more or will they be looking for their next best option?
What you do in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, or any other crisis that descends upon this nation and this world, will determine how much you’re going to have to fix later to truly get back on a solid operating course that leads to predictable outcomes.
When Fear Takes Over You Lose
The first thing to bring front and center to ensure those outcomes outside of the crisis is how you are communicating inside the crisis. And that means not just talking to your members – it means listening to them. We’re talking two-way communication. I find that credit unions, by and large, are doing a great job of one-way communication right now. They’re letting their members know that they have a plan. That they have “wraparound financial services” to help them through (skip-a-payment has notably resurfaced). They are communicating what lobbies are closed, and which ones are open and for what services. They are even communicating when they can expect “extended wait times” in the drive through and with call centers. Oh, and they are amply reminding their members about online banking, mobile banking, ITM locations, ATM locations, etc. What they are purposefully NOT being proactive about is TWO-WAY communication.
There seems to be this false sense of security in fearfully closing the tap on member feedback, shutting off constructive listening posts and discontinuing channel experience feedback until the crisis is over: “Once we’re operating again outside of the parentheses, we’ll open the tap back up.” Well, here’s the problem with that…
Pay Close Attention to the NEW Trajectory
Your members WANT to talk to you – now more than ever. They are anxious, uncertain, insecure…isolated. The last thing you want to do is give the impression that you have tuned them out. Understandably, your frontline teams may not be operating at their best now – but actually, that’s NOT the point. The whole world is operating differently, and to some degree the forced changes will become habits or routines that continue even after social distancing protocols have expired. The point is this: Whether you have accepted the reality or not, you are on a new trajectory that is going to continue to see changes in member behaviors. It is imperative that those behaviors are evaluated and understood, from a data analytics standpoint, in the CURRENT operating environment.
For example, the channels your members are using today by necessity – particularly digital channels, which have tripled in usage during the current crisis – will potentially become their preferred choice for interacting with you when this crisis has passed. The net result is long-term improvement in operational efficiency. But you need to know where the hotspots, the friction, in these channels are now so that you can inform strategies and pinpoint exactly what to improve to ensure these channels are a future go-to preference and best-in-class experience.
The Biggest Lesson of All
While a crisis inevitably prompts reaction, many times out of fear, there is also a unique opportunity for credit union leaders who have vision and can rally teams to hold fast to their member-centric values. Here’s the most important lesson to accept now: When you double down with a comprehensive member experience strategy DURING the crisis, you will have the advantage AFTER the crisis. For you, the “new normal” will be even better than before the crisis, while others are trying to figure out how to catch up. And when the next “between the parentheses” event hits you’ll be able say, “Okay, let’s take a deep breath – we know what to do. Now let’s go to work and do it.”
For more guidance on gaining insight into navigating successfully through the “parentheses of the coronavirus crisis,” reach out to us today at supportexp.com/contact/.
