The banking sector has long evolved from a brick-and-mortar distribution system to a multichannel set-up. However, today’s customers expect consistent brand experience across various touch points, which requires banks to implement omni channel banking architecture. Such an omnichannel environment enables banks to achieve a single view of customers’ banking journeys and provide a synchronized experience for all transactions and interactions.
This digital-first and customer-centric approach to banking also necessitates omnichannel payment solutions that ensure data security and easy checkout. On average, companies with robust omnichannel customer engagement strategies retain 89% of their customers compared to a 33% customer retention rate for those with a weak omnichannel strategy. Besides, omnichannel digital banking is beneficial for banks and customers in many ways:
- It helps personalize the banking experience based on customers’ preferences.
- It bridges the gap between digital, virtual engagement and in-branch human interactions.
- It enables maximum conversion rates and minimal drop-offs during the onboarding process.
- It provides anytime, anywhere, any-device access for time-sensitive information.
- It leverages advanced analytics for better customer targeting and reduces dependence on branch networks.
Let’s understand the difference between multichannel and omnichannel customer engagement and the stages of implementing an omnichannel banking solution.
Difference between Omnichannel and Multichannel Customer Engagement
The key difference between multichannel and omnichannel engagement is integration. The multichannel approach is bank-centric that focuses on different financial services and products that banks provide through the spectrum of channels, from internet banking to ATMs. In contrast, the omnichannel approach is about customer-centricity, focusing on unified and integrated customer interactions across all channels. Omnichannel is especially favorable for digital transformation in banks as it expedites digital roll-outs and integrations through two-speed architecture.
5 Stages to Successful Implementation of Omnichannel Banking Journey
Create a 360° View of the Customer Journey
Omnichannel banking solution equipped with the best automation and artificial intelligence technology helps you map customer journeys and get a single view of customers’ geographical, behavioral, and interaction data. It optimizes the customer journey mapping process that records every interaction, from the user coming across your ad on the social network and onboarding to customer service and in-branch applications.
This unified view makes it easier for banks to identify customer pain points, moments of inconsistency, and opportunities for growth and scale. The best thing about mapping customer journeys on a single platform is they often yield clear priorities about where to focus your development resources to fill the lack of cohesion between the channels.
Segment and Define User Personas
Segmentation and creating user personas is to look at user data and group them based on behaviors and attributes. For example, defining a user persona where all users exhibit similar behavior that of browsing for Mutual Fund Investments on the mobile app or completing over five transactions within a week.
Omnichannel payment solutions, CRM, and other channels help acquire user data across the customer’s lifecycle. AI, big data, and analytics create segments of users easily by performing either of these two main analyses—RFM (Recency, Frequency, Monetary) analysis and advanced customized segmentation. This segmentation empowers banks to orchestrate personalized omnichannel experiences.
Empower the Staff
The bank implements holistic omnichannel architecture and design to develop a well-connected dashboard that aggregates multiple channels and vendor cores through APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). In this situation, the next step should be to support the banking staff in their efforts to know customers and respond quickly to their demands through individualized service.
Omnichannel digital banking allows banks to introduce different modules to equip branch advisors, call centers, and other representatives with actionable information. For example, the next best action module can help bankers recommend relevant bank offerings to customers. Co-browsing module speeds up call center assistance to self-service customers. Similarly, social intelligence helps staff monitor social networks for actionable customer comments.
Couple Automated Conversations with Human Interactions
Omnichannel banking aims to provide a frictionless experience by combining digital and physical touchpoints. While bringing automated conversations to the table for real-time customer verification, account opening, and applications for services, banks should also pay attention to the importance of human interactions.
Bringing together the best of both worlds will ensure that the bank understands customer goals before they do. Thus, omnichannel digital banking must have scheduling abilities for customers to book guaranteed facetime or in-person appointments. It helps delegate more involved customer service interactions and design contextual digital experiences.
Stay on Top of Omnichannel Security
Criminal cyber activities are constantly evolving alongside the growing demand for digital services. Banks must explore innovative ways to keep their mobile channels secure. They can utilize smart biometric options like fingerprint verification to protect mobile channels.
Besides, the more channels involved, the more siloed data there is to track, which can be proved potential weak spots. The key to ensuring that the bank’s security system is aligned with an omnichannel strategy is to unite organizational silos that deal with different stages of fraud under the same risk identification framework.
Panamax’s Omnichannel Banking Solution: The Roadmap to Digital Transformation
The customer expectations bar is high, and it will only get higher, demanding consistent experience across channels of their choice—online self-service or branch, Interactive Teller Machines, or virtual conferencing. The omnichannel approach to digital banking is here to stay, and rolling out a mobile application is insufficient to achieve digital success. Banks must join digital dots with omnichannel banking solutions to deliver a seamless and personalized experience across all channels through integration, segmentation, employee-support modules, and security framework.
Panamax’s MobiFin offers an omnichannel banking platform built with high-grade architecture to allow a secure, simple, and consistent brand experience across various touchpoints through robust features like biometric verification, advanced data management, and an integrated user journey.
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