Consumers are using digital channels more and more each day and becoming accustomed to these experiences being smarter and more personalized. These types of experiences are already the expectation for many credit union members and are becoming a requirement for a positive member experience.
Nearly eight out of 10 survey respondents from PSCU’s 2021 Eye on Payments study agree or completely agree that they want to do business with a financial institution that knows them personally. This presents credit unions with the opportunity to define how they can intelligently leverage the right tools and data to meet, and ideally exceed, members’ digital expectations on an individual level.
Understanding Connected Experiences
The ability to meet members’ digital expectations is already within reach, thanks to the power of data analytics combined with modern consumer experience channels and ever-evolving technology. One way to meet and exceed these expectations is through connected experiences, which stems from a vision to bring all member data and channels together to produce highly personalized interactions. Facilitating connected experiences involves integrating consumer-focused processes across all available channels as well as optimizing the individual channel experience.
Each member interaction should be improved by the best-known information about the member and his or her prior experiences with both the products and channels, consistently connecting relevant data to optimize the capabilities of each channel. For example, a member might begin a business process in one channel, like the mobile app, but not complete it and subsequently access a different channel for assistance, like the contact center, to finish the process. In this instance, a connected experience can be created by using cross-channel context sharing so the second channel, the contact center, already knows where the member left off and is able to seamlessly continue and complete the process from that point.
Implementation Strategies
As the industry begins shifting its focus to more connected experiences and continues investing in data and channels, credit unions should consider creating a series of personalized and connected data-driven experiences. Consider these five value-added categories when developing your implementation strategies:
- Engage. Understanding cardholder preferences and how individuals engage with their cards and subsequent available channels is necessary to reach them in the space they prefer and are most likely to respond. This ultimately drives the experience. Examples include dormant accounts to active accounts, card activations, onboarding journeys, and loyalty promotions, among others.
- Educate. Building these data connections into the channels gives us the ability to understand how a consumer is most likely to engage and the next step is to use that channel to educate them on such topics as product availability, available product scenarios or other messages from their trusted credit union partner.
- Grow. Leverage consumer interactions to grow credit union revenue and penetration. There is an opportunity to drive growth both for the credit union and the member by looking at the data as a whole and identifying how to enhance the relationship. This can include how to provide the right card, rewards, or overall experience. Ultimately, the result is more accounts in a higher-earning card type.
- Serve. Use channels to meet consumers where they are. Consumers today are engaging across multiple touchpoints and expect an integrated experience across all channels. Connecting with them in their preferred channels to create a seamless, personalized experience helps build trust and encourages loyalty. Take it a step further and meet their needs by anticipating service requests, avoiding offer or communication overload, and delivering personalized messaging.
- Protect. Protect the transaction, member, and credit union in all interactions and across all channels. This entails more than just looking at card data from various fraud scenarios and reacting in order to save the cardholder from fraud, but instead proactively shutting down a card based on activity observed in a channel and pushing a new digital card to the cardholder with no disruption of service. This proactively eliminates unnecessary communications to the member, resulting in an overall enhanced experience.
Positive member experiences across all channels benefit both the member and the credit union. They facilitate high-value service, promote product adoption, and support communications that can be broadly delivered in a consistently engaging and personalized manner. By leveraging the digital tools that are already at your disposal to generate connected experiences, credit unions can exceed their members’ digital expectations and deliver an exceptional member experience.
As the managing vice president of digital and data for PSCU, Jeremiah Lotz directs PSCU’s initiatives to empower the company’s Owner credit unions with innovative and engaging payment solutions. With a focus on creating exceptional digital experiences based on data-driven intelligence, Lotz leads an experienced team dedicated to delivering PSCU’s data science, analytics and digital experience solutions. He also manages the strategic relationships PSCU forges with leading payments technology providers to ensure Owners have access to world-class platforms and solutions that build profitability and loyalty.
