Last week, customer experience (CX) executives from around the world gathered in Boston for CXFS: Customer Experience for Financial Services to discuss the latest in CX design, innovation, culture and strategy in financial services. Several of us from Netomi attended these two days of thought-provoking sessions about digital transformation in the financial services world, and, like sponges, absorbed the content, nodding our heads along the way. The key takeaway? Today, omnichannel experiences and personalization are both imperative, and many professionals are looking to personalize their CX and embrace more channels beyond just call centers and email. Here, we share our most notable learnings from CXFS 2022: Customer Experience for Financial Services.
Top 5 Takeaways from CXFS 2022: Customer Experience for Financial Services
Financial service companies are investing more in CX
Despite the looming recession, the CX field is burgeoning, with financial service companies investing more in their CX efforts by means of hiring larger customer support teams. Yet, in order to better assist the individuals on these teams, technology (read: AI) is also being leveraged…
Times are changing, and “AI is eating the world”
In his opening address, Mark Ryan, Chief Analytics Officer at Finaytics.ai, noted that “AI is eating the world,” pointing out that, in the next five years, financial institutions will all be using AI in some shape or form. Within the decade, 70% of global financial services will be done digitally. During the pandemic, the increase in mobile app usage soared, with U.S. Bank Vice Chair, Consumer and Business Banking Tim Welsh noting that digital interactions, digital active customers and sales of digital loans rose during this period.
In driving forward frictionless customer experiences, connected data is powerful
Panelists in a session on Battling the “New Normal” Fatigue explored how data and CX have changed, shifting towards the intersection of personalization and privacy, yet personalization with purpose. Emphasis is placed on how data can enrich the experience, rather than ‘make it creepy,’ as data that is rich and ready with insights enables leaders to successfully execute their CX strategies. Moreover, in today’s day and age, personalization is welcome – 71% of consumers expect personalization, and 76% of consumers get frustrated when they don’t find it. How do we reach this level of personalization? Data, quality data such as historic email exchanges, chat and phone conversation records.
As more people are seeking transparency about the use of their data, central to all of this is trust – a trusted data foundation enables key transformative initiatives, and, as trust comes through the front line staff – business leaders must stay connected with these teams. Netomi Founder and CEO Puneet Mehta, in his keynote speech at the event, also underscored the importance of trust, which is established by providing secure, responsive, and reliable digital services, and needs to be built with a combination of both human and machine intelligence.
As more people are seeking transparency about the use of their data, central to all of this is trust – a trusted data foundation enables key transformative initiatives, and, as trust comes through the front line staff – business leaders must stay connected with these teams. Netomi Founder and CEO Puneet Mehta, in his keynote speech at the event, also underscored the importance of trust, which is established by providing secure, responsive, and reliable digital services, and needs to be built with a combination of both human and machine intelligence.
Provide customers with numerous options, and don’t discount the power of choice
In his keynote session, ‘Redefining CX through Personalization,’ Jim McKeown, VP of Customer Experience and Mobility at Selective Insurance, emphasized three CX Guiding Principles:
- Listen to your customers
- Keep the “human element” alive
- Recognize the “power of choice”
This third point is crucial. When driving along a highway and seeing numerous options for fast food restaurants, customers are more likely to make a selection if presented with a variety than if only a sole option was available, in which case, they may be not inclined to stop at all. Once a consumer feels as though they have a choice, they are more likely to make a choice, and the same applies to the customer experience realm, whereby presenting customers with options to engage on various touchpoints and channels, from email to social media, is critical.
Optimize your omnichannel approach
While choice is essential, it is also important to ensure a connected customer journey throughout. We at Netomi are firm believers in the sheer significance of an omnichannel customer experience – one that enables a customer to interchange devices and move fluidly between channels, carrying context forward with every interaction.
Much to our delight, the concept of omnichannel was a recurring theme that popped up in multiple sessions. Emphasis was also placed on the concept of ‘omni-journeys’ – when it comes to customer experience, the entire journey is what matters, as the channel where customers begin is not necessarily the channel they end up in. For instance, a customer may initiate a support conversation on a desktop computer and later transition to a mobile app, carrying on with a conversation regarding the same issue. Omnichannel refers to a connected experience, and is all about removing friction for the customer, making it as easy as possible with no need to repeat themselves or re-start a task. These cross-channel integrations need to be seamless, interconnected and multi-directional, and empower customers to complete tasks at each touchpoint – from email, to chat, web, and mobile app.
From dialogue on weaving together the omnichannel customer experience, to growing engagement from a digital perspective, CXFS 2022: Customer Experience for Financial Services was an inspiring event that made us excited about the possibilities of AI and transformational change in the financial services realm.
What did you learn at #CXFS2022? What innovations in financial services are you most excited about? Connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter to share your thoughts with us, and we’ll share ours!