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Banking today looks nothing like it did in years past. The smartphone has largely replaced the teller window as the main point of contact between a bank and its customer. Transactions and customer service requests now occur online at the customer’s convenience—well outside of banking hours. And there’s no going back. Like many industries, the financial sector quickly embraced digitally transformative initiatives in the aftermath of the global pandemic. While many of those initiatives have since matured, others continue to evolve—as have technological strategies, particularly around customer experience, security and scalability. Here’s are a few of the top banking CX trends to look for in the coming months:
1. Banks will get smarter about scaling digital investments
If the past two years were all about digital transformation, 2022 will be a critical year for reassessment and reconfiguration. In its 2022 Banking and Capital Markets Outlook, Deloitte cautions that technology-first transformative strategies “tend to be incremental, localized, and fragmented, resulting in a pervasive and pernicious ‘technology trap’ [that] is preventing many banks from realizing the full potential of their investments.” In other words, many of the institutions that took a hurry-up approach to digitalization in the early days of the pandemic are now grappling with a bloated, inefficient tech stack. While certainly modern, these disparate technologies can actually work against one another, requiring additional skills and effort to switch between multiple platforms.
According to Deloitte,
84%
of banking leaders today
see artificial intelligence
as the answer
As a result, banks are now scrambling to find ways to scale their past digital investments. According to Deloitte, 84 percent of banking leaders today see artificial intelligence as the answer. Low-code automation is a particularly attractive solution. Instead of requiring companies to abandon current investments and start from scratch, low-code technology uses adaptive artificial intelligence to connect various applications and CX channels to create a more cohesive and seamless digital journey at scale.
2. Cybersecurity will be a top investment in the cloud era
The rise in digital banking has, sadly, also seen a rise in financial cybercrime. In fact, the COVID Crime Index 2021 Report revealed that 74 percent of banks and insurers experienced an increase in cybercrime incidents since the pandemic began. Much of this activity has centered around exploiting weaknesses in cloud-based data sharing and storage. As of 2020, 91 percent of financial institutions were using cloud services; expect that number to edge closer to 100 percent as more companies adopt 5G data sharing. With more data spread across an ever-widening network, banks will need to double down on cybersecurity in 2022—or face serious financial and reputational consequences. Conversational AI offers a scalable, cost-efficient solution for tightening security across multiple, cloud-based applications. From highly accurate voice authentication to real-time compliance optimization, AI-powered software can ensure that every step of the client—and employee—journey meets the strictest security requirements.
3. All bets are on personalized CX…
Get ready. You’re going to hear a lot about “hyper-personalization” and “micro moments” in the coming months. Banks—like other enterprises—have already seen how small-scale personalization (think personalized subject lines and email salutations) can increase customer engagement. Now, with the wealth of customer data available, banks are looking to create highly personalized journeys to bolster loyalty and seize upon targeted, time-sensitive selling opportunities, called “micro moments”. As Forbes reports, “this is about being able to reach the right customer at the right time—a cutting-edge marketing challenge but one that’s increasingly solvable thanks to the technology solutions at our fingertips today.” Those solutions are, of course, powered by artificial intelligence. By applying AI strategically to every part of the customer journey, banks can unearth valuable data on customer
4. …and emotion AI as key differentiators
According to Deloitte, “the bank of the future will require new skill sets for higher-order work—ranging from purely technical to essential human skills, such as empathy, judgment and creativity.” Driving empathy is a particularly hot CX trend this year not just in banking but across all industries as digital interactions increasingly become the norm. “Digital interactions, while easy and convenient, fail to forge emotional connections,” Deloitte continues. “Making digital banking channels […] more responsive and empathetic like humans could differentiate in a crowded digital world.” Fortunately, advances in emotional intelligence technology now make that possible. Today’s leading emotion AI software can accurately “read” nonverbal cues, like tone and voice quality and subtle facial expressions, and generate responses based on emotional feedback. For example, signs of stress or frustration can redirect self-service customers to a live agent or prompt agents to apply more empathetic actions.
5. Fintechs will go from disruptors to partner players
According to a recent Forbes article,
fintech received more than
$130 billion in capital
representing 20 percent of all capital invested in 2021
Last year saw record growth and investment in financial technology. According to a recent Forbes article, fintech received more than $130 billion in capital, representing 20 percent of all capital invested in 2021. More companies went public as well—three times as many as in 2021, the article reported. It’s clear that the era of scrappy startups is settling into mainstream maturity. “As fintechs mature, banks should look at fintech partnerships with a fresh lens,” Deloitte suggests. “Many smaller fintechs are at the forefront of innovation and may have [strong] appetite for collaboration.” Look for banks and other financial institutions to partner with—and even acquire—fintechs in the coming months to supplement their technological needs and fill in holes in service.