Remember having to hurry to the bank before it closed so you could get cash for the weekend? I don’t either.
I’ve heard about it though from older people, and it must have been horrible. Luckily for me, ATM cards had just come out, so I had the freedom of visiting the “money hole” any time I needed.
Maybe I’m spoiled, growing up in the computer age, but all the technological advances we use today without even thinking about have never really surprised me. Not that I could ever invent them, but I always just expected somebody to come up with this stuff.
Get cash when you want it, 24/7? Right, sounds good. Access your account from anywhere in the world? Of course. Now with Internet-based banking and automatic bill payment available, I finally can do all these things with my finances when I want, from wherever I want. Because, it’s all about me right? Actually, it is.
Every business knows the customer is always right. But what do you do when your customers’ wishes conflict with each other?
This is the case as financial institutions try to streamline operations with technology, giving those who want it, direct access to their accounts.
On the other hand, there is a portion of the population that still values visiting the branch, the pot of coffee waiting for them in the lobby and the personal attention of their favorite teller. How do you give to one group without alienating the other?
– Offer Each Group What Is Valued Most
Some people like to have a higher trust level with whom they’re working with, especially when it comes to handling their money. The double-edged sword here is that they are resistant to change.
This means while they will be inherently loyal, they will also be the toughest group to switch over to new, electronic services. It’s the old “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” mentality.
The other obstacle is proving to them there really is a benefit in changing.
“Saves time?” To some older customers, that’s all they have. “You don’t need to come in to a branch?” That may be their only social activity that day.
Surprisingly though, the digital divide is not merely indicative of age. According to one credit union CEO, it’s really a matter of the mindset, not the age. You would think older people would be more resistant to change, but that isn’t really the case. Some people are just more willing to adopt new things regardless of what decade they were born.
– Shower Them With Kindness
The best way to handle this resistant segment of people is to assure them that you are still the same organization they know and love. Acknowledge their loyalty and patronage and gently usher them into the new era with incentives, education and patience.
When you offer a new service, offer a training seminar to the local community. Try to speak to some of the holdouts that finally converted to electronic services and ask them why they now like it and/or use it. That should be the basis for your message to the others in the group.
A few years ago I was trying to get my father into the Internet. He understood it, he just couldn’t think of a reason why he would need it. My mistake was that I kept rattling off a bunch of the reasons I liked. It wasn’t until I showed him how he could use it to get what he liked out of it that the idea took.
Now, of course, he e-mails and surfs the Web daily, and has even met a few ladies online! Remember, too, when marketing to senior citizens, they’ve been through a lot of changes , fax machines, microwaves ovens, CDs, computers , they’ll make the change with you, they just need a little encouragement. Let them know there is a real, friendly person not too far away should they need help.
The “early adopters” are harder to impress. They’ve seen it all, and, like me, sort of expect this level of access and availability.
(Me, More, Now!) The younger ones have grown up with MTV, cell phones and the Internet, and really only need either a keyboard or a skateboard to make them happy. In fact, you may never even see them again after they’ve completed their signature card.
The good news is, they’ll switch to your new services faster than you can say “Napster.” The downside is, it’s hard to make any real personal contact, and it’s easy for them to toss you aside, switching to another company with a slightly better offer or appeal.
It’s important to make sure you have the right mix of high-touch with your high-technology. Make sure people can reach a real person if they want one, and respond quickly. With loans made on the phone or Internet almost instantly, there isn’t a good reason someone should have to wait days for a response after speaking with a real person.
– Say It Again And Again And Again
The key to making each group happy with your organization is communication and consistency. You can’t just announce a new service once and expect people to come flocking to it. Again, different things motivate different people. You may need to have a couple of different promotions, one for the early adopters, one for the holdouts.
The fact is online banking and all the other electronic services that go with it, such as bill payment, are not only here to stay, they are the way we will conduct our finances in the future. They just save too much time and money for both the customer and the financial institution.
The only question is how long will it take to convert the masses to these services. A lot of that depends on you and the way you address it.
Woeller is a principal and creative director at ThinkTank Advertising in San Diego.
