Banking leaders taking stock of 2024 and poised to seize the opportunities of a new year must deal with this harsh reality: you’re not finding and strategically applying the insights in your data – and your competition IS!
Here’s an example of what reality sounds like, even if you can’t hear it:
Stop changing things with little notice and making paying loans more difficult. This garbage of an institution has repeatedly screwed up my repeat payments and not notified me why something was changed or turned off. I hate this credit union and cannot wait to pay off this loan. I’ll never do business with you all again. Not sure you can redeem yourself.
Yes, it’s definitely raw and unpleasant. And it’s true that unhappy customers have always told their friends and family about unpleasant experiences. The difference now is that social media can amplify and perpetuate this kind of negative sentiment – as they say, the internet is forever. So it makes sense to not only provide a listening post for your customers, but to ACT on what they’re telling you as well!
With so many sources of data and only so much time, energy, and skill to devote to mining the insights from your data, it may be tempting to adopt a “wait-and-see” position. But reality is happening, whether you’re paying attention to it or not. If you don’t act – and act based on solid, reliable intel – it may be too late to catch up to the competition.
Data-driven insights are nothing less than “table stakes” CEOs and other leaders of financial institutions need to leverage if they are to gain and sustain a competitive advantage. If you are wondering if you will have a seat at the table in 2025, read on:
Simply possessing data isn’t enough. Instead, you need to understand the source of the most useful data, what value it has to your organization, and how it can be translated into effective action that brings predictable results.
Why is It a Problem?
What’s at risk for banking executives if you’re not finding and strategically applying the insights in your data?
First things first: If you’re not tapping into the wealth of insights hiding in your data, it’s like starting a car race with a flat tire – you’re at a serious disadvantage. Financial institutions that can’t leverage their data-driven insights run the risk of trailing competitors who are more adept at using their data to enhance services, streamline operations, and make savvy strategic decisions in-the-moment.
But that’s not all – there’s the very real potential for loss of business. Data holds the key to understanding customer behavior, preferences, and trends. If you aren’t seizing these insights, you’re missing out on prime opportunities to tailor your offerings and meet customer needs. At worst, you might be unknowingly bidding farewell to customers who seek out the competition for their next financial product or service.
Getting to the heart of the matter: customer experience. Data-driven insights can serve as a crystal ball for understanding what customers truly want. But it’s not magic – there’s skill, expertise, and a proven process behind it. Banks and credit unions skipping this step will struggle to deliver personalized and targeted services, falling short of the high expectations of today’s financial consumers. Meanwhile, competitors armed with effective data can deliver tailored solutions, meeting your customers’ expectations head-on!
Here’s where it gets real: Understanding customer behavior isn’t just about keeping the lights on – it’s the key to growth. Adapting to change is crucial for long-term viability. Financial institutions not leveraging data might find themselves challenged to retain existing customers and attract new ones, failing to meet constantly evolving expectations in the financial services landscape.
What’s Causing It?
There are a host of reasons why banking institutions aren’t getting the most out of their data. Sometimes the data itself is messed up – it’s inaccurate, incomplete, or just plain outdated. And if it’s all tucked away in one corner (or separate corners!) of the organization, that makes it hard to see the big picture across different departments.
Then there’s the issue of not having the right brainpower. Financial institutions might struggle to find and keep people with the ability to make sense of the data. If they’re stuck with legacy systems (that’s a nice way of saying “obsolete”) or incompatible tech, pulling out useful insights from heaps of raw data becomes a real challenge.
Worse yet, I see some banks and credit unions just checking the “we have a data analyst(s)” box when faced with waves of intimidating data. And yet, nothing confidently actionable comes of it – either strategically or in regard to the in-the-moment necessity of calming the waters, customer by customer.
Thinking the situation is well in hand just because you take on a data analyst (or two, or three), can prove to be a false sense of security if those analysts aren’t telling you something you can actually use.
Blame it on the culture, too – if your organization isn’t comfortable with change, you won’t be jumping on the data-driven decision-making train anytime soon. Plus, employees might not know what to do with the data unless it comes with a tried-and-true set of no-fail best practices.
Last, but not least, the “B” word: budget issues are discouragingly real. To this I say, look at what actually drives revenue: for every 10+ increase in NPS, upsale revenue increases by 3.2%. That’s the real ROI of attention to CX.
Now that you know which lever to pull to get the growth results you need, how can you ignore it?
What Can You Do About It?
Overcoming the barriers described above is not as difficult as it might seem. To put it simply, it’s Leadership. New challenges, new year, new competition, more savvy financial consumers having many options for financial services – all of these call for looking at by-the-book ways of doing things and leading toward the new and innovative, but based on proven principles and sound methodology.
What should be the highest order of data commanding your attention? It should be intel coming directly FROM your customers: what they are thinking and feeling, and how they might act as a result. Without knowing your customers, you’re strategizing in a commoditized way.
To get very raw again, here’s another comment direct-from-the-customer on a loan experience, but after insights have produced action:
I opened my accounts online and then went through with a loan. [The employee] made every step from beginning to end effortless for the customer and was very helpful and informing. Thank you for helping a community member. I am so pleased I want to switch everything I have to [you].
To win praise like this, simply possessing data isn’t enough. Instead, you need to understand the source of the most useful data, what value it has to your organization, and how it can be translated into effective action that brings predictable results.
In a banking arena trending toward digital uniformity, the capacity to understand and respond quickly and intelligently to your customers can be the competitive advantage that elevates your customer loyalty and growth. Imagine THAT being your reality in 2025!
Find out why banks and credit unions of all sizes trust us for complete CX management – from strategies to solutions to analytics, along with the consultative expertise to make sense of it all. Hire the best and we’ll get you to where you need to be.
