Banks and credit unions can win modern consumers with a digital-first focus on customer experience.

Digital banking has quickly evolved from being another service channel to the primary tool that many consumers use to manage their finances. Financial technology providers are upping the ante, continually offering more tech-forward tools. And many banks and credit unions are keeping up with an increased focus on digital transformation as a means of growth.

In fact, 96% of people say they are happy with their bank’s current digital offerings. But that doesn’t mean financial institutions can take their foot off the gas. The digital landscape is evolving rapidly, and consumer expectations are a moving target. What’s more, customers aren’t only basing their expectations on other financial institutions. Instead, they want their banking experience to match other digital interactions, from online shopping to streaming platforms.

Banks and credit unions that want to not only keep up with digital evolution but exceed consumer expectations should focus on these three key areas:

1. Artificial intelligence

AI is no longer novel, it’s part of everyday life for many adults, 70% of whom say they use it a few times a week according to internal Fiserv data. With increased integration into everything from social media and workplace automation to healthcare and search engine results, consumers expect it to be part of their banking experiences, too.

Many banks and credit unions are already on this path. Nine in 10 financial institution boards have approved the use of generative AI, and 3 in 4 banking leaders say their institutions are using it for departmental functions like fraud detection and risk management.

When it comes to customer experience, however, there is room for growth. Experience is critical to consumers – 3 in 4 survey respondents  tell PWC that it is a key factor in their decision making process when choosing a banking product. Yet only half of those surveyed say they’re satisfied with their current banking experience. What’s more, just 42% of Chief Experience Officers plan to leverage AI to transform customer experiences.

With a fundamental emphasis on experience, a customer service call could make or break an accountholder’s loyalty to their financial institution. AI can help institutions make the most of each interaction by taking on routine calls, texts and chats, securely accessing customer data to provide automated, seamless support. That frees agents to provide more in-depth help for complex customer needs, using AI to support their interactions with predictive insights and real-time data.

LinkLive integrates seamlessly with Experience Digital from Fiserv to work in tandem with human call center agents. When financial institutions use this AI-powered tool, 80% of calls are answered within 15 seconds, average handle time is cut by 30 seconds, and customer experience increases by 15%.

2. Automation

71% of new accounts are opened digitally, according to internal Fiserv data, and often outside of standard banking hours. And these new accounts can drive significant growth for financial institutions — more  than 80% of digital checking and savings applications are from new customers, bringing in new relationships and cross-selling potential.

Whether people apply online or in person for a new account or loan, they don’t want to wait days — or even hours — to get approved or access their funds. They expect a seamless transition from application to funding. Automation can carry customers through the process without the hiccups that can send prospective customers packing.

Here’s how:

• Instant loan decisioning: When an application is submitted online, an automated program makes a decision and underwrites the loan based on the financial institution’s custom parameters or flags a loan officer for fast support when additional information is needed.

• Real-time account onboarding: Within minutes of opening an account, customers are onboarded to online banking and can access their funds, move money and more.

• Digital card issuance: Instead of waiting days for a physical card to come in the mail, new customers can start spending instantly — and internal Fiserv data shows that digital issuance cardholders transact 14% more than physical cardholders.

Experience Digital from Fiserv is built for automation, from custom- coded workflows to ready-to-use integrations such as Loan Director and Digital Issuance. Moving quickly keeps your customers engaged and opens the potential for future growth, while driving significant cost savings for your organization.
 

3. Open banking

In a digital landscape where inventive new financial apps crop up regularly, accountholders expect access to an array of digital banking services that speed up payments, simplify and personalize financial decision making, mitigate fraud and more. Legacy banking systems made this level of innovation nearly impossible for banks and credit unions, who often had to custom-build each integration to work with their core and digital banking platform.

Now, open banking gives financial institutions the opportunity to lead the way in digital transformation. By enabling secure, customer- permissioned access to financial data via APIs, open banking allows banks and credit unions to roll out emerging services from financial technology providers that transform how accountholders interact with their money.

Fiserv has partnered with trusted financial technology providers and financial institutions to deliver next-level digital banking solutions through Open Banking for Experience Digital. The robust ecosystem gives financial institutions the choice of hundreds of turnkey applications that support back-end processes and drive better customer experiences. And their consumers get the convenience and personalization they seek, while positioning their institution as a critical partner in their financial lives, rather than just a service provider.