This pandemic has had a significant impact on almost every industry, and financial services were no exception. Dramatic shifts in consumer spending and banking habits led financial leaders to adjust their customer experience (CX) strategies to better accommodate their customers’ needs. By leveraging digital solutions and other innovative ideas, including debt relief and cash rebate programs, many financial services organizations positioned themselves not only to endure the events but also to push forward new CX initiatives in the coming year.

We need to understand how CX strategies have shifted and to understand the future of CX in financial services

Digitization

Unsurprisingly, our study revealed that there was a strong trend transitioning in-person activity to digital activity, also known as digitization. Most of the respondents, 73 percent, said that at least 50 percent of their customers’ financial activities switched from in-person to digital services. Financial services firms had to adapt quickly to new challenges, such as recognizing customers when they put down one device and picked up another. Digitization is no longer solely about providing self-service offerings; it’s about providing deeply personalized and differentiated customer experiences across channels. This trend reflects a desire to leverage customer data more effectively in the branch as well as avoid friction when customers switch between channels.

Personalization

Respondents in the study believe that personalization is the key to the future of CX. One marketing executive for an enterprise capital markets firm stated, “tailoring and personalizing services for customers is something that will redefine CX in the financial services industry.” What’s more, our respondents are backing this trend with their budgets. Of those who said their budget will increase, the number one initiative they’re investing in over the next 12 months is leveraging data for real-time personalization. Examples include personalized offers and communications. One respondent said, “The level of personalization will define how much a brand cares about their customers.”

Artificial intelligence (AI)

AI-powered predictive analytics surfaced as a topic to explore. 51 percent said they used this technology and plan to continue using it, while 28 percent said they didn’t use it, but they have plans to use it going forward. Investing in AI will allow financial services organizations to drive personalization at scale. Additionally, AI can allow firms to uncover new insights, such as predicting customer needs and understanding customer intent.

Self-service

Of the executives surveyed, 45 percent believe their customer experience across channels is very consistent. However, one service capability continues to commonly pose a challenge. While there are many obstacles when it comes to creating a seamless customer experience, the number one challenge our respondents face is providing enough self-service options for customers.

The vision for the future of customer experience in the financial services industry is the speed of service. And when organizations have mastered service speed across all channels, differentiation will come from the accuracy of said service.

Source: https://cloudblogs.microsoft.com/

Global iTS is a leading Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP and CRM Partner, headquartered in the UK. With 300+ clients, successfully proven implementations, an excellent support system by our experienced domain specialist, and a good track record of customer retention. Also, it has a strong foothold and customer base across other GCC countries (Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, UAE, and Qatar).

Global iTS is mainly into the specialized requirements in Financial Services and Insurance sectors focusing on Digital Transformation journey in Retail Banking, Commercial Banking, Insurance Providers, Private Equity, and Investment Banking by bringing Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Blockchain, and Robotic Process Automation technologies and enhanced their productivity and profitability. We bring in over 15 years of international expertise to digitally transform any aspect of a client’s business.