While the basic function of banking and its relevance remains intact, the 'how' has undergone a sea change over the last two decades. As the recently published 'Forrester Wave™: Digital Banking Engagement Hubs, Q3 2021' noted, the changing business environment demands agility, continuous differentiation, and innovation within tighter budgets, with the pandemic further strengthening this demand.
To differentiate themselves, banks need to go beyond gathering customer data, and connect, collaborate, and engage to address key areas of disconnect, and arrive at the customer's specific context. By building a customer's context using analytics from insights obtained at various points of the customer journey, banks can position products, services and engagement in a manner that meets their individual needs, desires, and goals.
Banks are increasingly looking at a Digital Engagement Hub (DEH) model to enable the level of personalization demanded by customers. This is because, by its very structure, the Hub establishes connections along the vital spokes of an individual’s banking engagement resulting in a happier experience overall. Customers typically respond positively to these investments. For example, when Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait (ABK) transformed its digital banking using the hub model, its new customer intake improved by over 90%. The impact of cross-channel integration was also felt by RAKBANK in the UAE as user transactions on their digital platforms grew by 50%.
Building an impactful DEH requires building a connect across the following areas :
Simply put, banks that are looking to modernize operations, need look no further than the hub to bridge over gaps, manage engagement better, and deliver superior experience to customers. As the new digital age reshapes the future of people, nations, and business, the banking sector too must make the necessary strides.
Author:
K. R. Venkataraman, VP
Head Product Architecture,
Infosys Finacle
Narasimha Nagaraja Prasad Senior Director
Product Management and Strategy,
Infosys Finacle