We’ve all seen it: Commercials tout great deals and incentives for new customers, but the companies that air those commercials fail to offer the same ongoing satisfaction and innovation to their existing customers. Yet that innovation and attention are precisely what can transform existing customers into long-term, virtually permanent ones. For financial institutions, innovations like artificial intelligence and app push notifications keep account holders loyal.

Creating goodwill

Digital banking, increasingly popular and increasingly state of the art, is a great place to begin creating goodwill with your existing account holder base. A sophisticated and free online banking platform engages your financial institution's account holders and encourages them to stay with you. You can engage them with digital banking in any number of ways:

•          Personalized digital banking that uses AI to get to know your account holders and creates a unique experience tailored to their needs.

•          Services like simple and inexpensive overdraft protection, trusted Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) services like Affirm and Klarna, and other innovative and helpful financial solutions and apps show that your financial institution cares about account holders' individual needs.

•          Services specifically aimed at low-income or marginalized communities attract them to financial services provided through your digital portal and keep them as engaged long-term account holders.

App push notifications keep account holders informed

In the ever-changing world of digital banking, financial institutions can add value by gently urging their account holders toward specific services and by keeping them informed. Thus, for example, Larky nudge® can provide your members and clients with real-time/real-place lock-screen push notifications about services or offers related to their banking needs. The offers shown are based on each account holder's use of data and third-party services, which show where account holders have been financially and where they hope to go.

These simple app push notifications and messages can gently urge account holders toward your services without aggressive telephone and email marketing campaigns. You are no longer driving your clients to do things. Instead, you are assisting them in the background, helping them make wise financial decisions.

Mobile-first banking is the way forward

We've seen that mobile banking has become increasingly important among all age groups as the pandemic continues to encourage social distancing. More people aged 60 and over have started to use digital banking in the past year and are beginning to be comfortable in that world. Digital use is up and branch visits are down. Some of the latest trends in mobile banking are:

•          Digital onboarding. Prospective account holders don't just want to be able to open accounts online — they insist on it. To encourage new and secondary accounts from existing account holders, you must make it easy for them to open one. The process should be nimble and user-friendly to attract the less tech-savvy older generations.

•          Real-time, real-place app push notifications. Imagine your account holder is approaching a dealership and they receive a notice that a preapproved car loan is waiting. Artificial intelligence and innovative apps like nudge® can provide these real-time push notifications like these. Almost before they know they want or need your service, account holders will see exactly how it is being offered to them.

•          Service fordigital-first account holders. People who open an account online are likely to always prefer digital banking services. The ease and efficiency with which you provide digital services will reduce account holder dependence on and frustration with traditional in-person services at the brick-and-mortar branch. To keep an account holder who was originally attracted to you through digital account opening, you must be able to offer an ever-better free online banking experience.

•          Digital withdrawals and POS transactions. Since COVID-19 made us all hesitant to touch anyone or anything, the development of touch-free apps has been one of the most important trends in digital banking. Among its latest advances is the elimination of the ATM/debit card for so-called "cordless" ATM withdrawals. This kind of service, along with the new tap or swipe POS payment apps, will no doubt lead to the eventual demise of the ATM debit card.

Mobile apps, whether you develop them in-house or purchase them in collaboration with third-party vendors, allow you to expand the services you offer to your account holders. You can let account holders access affiliated products or see offers from vendors with whom you work. You can, with a product like Larky nudge®, tell them about products and services that are available to them through you with lock-screen app push notifications. Receiving that information at the moment they are considering the transaction will fully engage your account holders in obtaining the necessary service from your financial institution.

Digital engagement

Larky nudge® is an industry leader in engagement platforms. Combined with its many affiliated product and service providers, nudge® offers you a platform that will let you take your account holders to the next level of personalized and accessible digital banking. Contact us today to see how Larky can help you engage your clients and members more deeply with your free online banking and digital services.

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