Building primary relationships: What do customers want in a bank?

The ability to build great primary relationships is a critical business advantage for today’s bankers, who are operating in a challenging environment defined by tough legislation, reduced margins, and increased competition.

That’s because primary customers — traditionally defined as those that hold more than one product with their bank — are more loyal. And loyal customers engage more, recommend their bank to others, and are more forgiving when their bank doesn’t meet their expectations.

But building primary relationships isn’t easy. It requires banking leaders to understand the answer to a key question: what do customers want in a bank?

Today’s customers have high expectations when it comes to banking services. That’s because they have become accustomed to the speed and convenience offered by pioneering companies across a wide range of sectors, such as retail and media. According to recent findings from consumer studies, here are four of the top requirements from today’s consumers:

After the restrictions they have faced throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, consumers are looking forward to having more freedom in the year to come.

As well as being able to work from anywhere, they want to be able to bank from anywhere – and any time too. 97% of millennials now use mobile banking and over half of Gen Z (61%) prefer to bank outside of traditional working hours, either before 8am or after 6pm.

What’s a logical way to meet customers’ needs outside of regular business hours? Self-serve applications and other digital services.

More consumers than ever are using technology to access financial services. As a result, their expectations are higher than ever.

So much so that consumers don’t hesitate to switch banks if their digital experience isn’t up to scratch. In fact, consumers rank both online banking capabilities and mobile banking capabilities in their top four reasons for switching banks — outranked only by protection of their data and prices and fees.

Consumers are increasingly taking their in-person interactions online. The use of chat and video services in banking has increased by 10% from 2019 to 2021 globally, with many consumers believing these options will eliminate the need to enter a branch or use telephone banking in the future.

When choosing a primary bank, 70% of consumers in a global survey said that consistent experience across channels was either extremely important or very important to them.

A bank’s ability to deliver a connected, omnichannel experience across both product lines and channels is now table stakes. And enabling customers to switch from channel to channel without losing their progress helps banks stand apart in a crowded landscape.

The most successful banks are adept at tailoring their services to make their customers feel appreciated, respected, and valued. When banks prioritize personalization, their efforts revolve around improving capabilities to anticipate and serve individual customer needs.

Of customers that feel valued, 71% say they will stick with their bank, 89% will act as an advocate for their bank, and 83% say they will buy more from them.

At Blend, we believe that effective digital engagement is the foundation of current and future primary relationships.

That’s why we have built a solution that enables financial institutions to:

• Deliver fast, easy and intuitive digital experiences
• Offer customers the ability to bank anytime and anywhere
• Achieve consistency across channels and product lines
• Personalize experiences so that they are more meaningful

Blend’s unified application experience ensures customers get the same great digital experience in every interaction and across every product — whether it is a home equity product, personal loan, credit card, deposit account, or vehicle loan.

Customers can seamlessly move from channel to channel without interruption or a loss in their progress. For example, a customer can initiate a personal loan application online, then complete the application on the phone with the help of the banker.

And Blend also helps banking teams dynamically present relevant offers at the right time. Bankers and consumers see exactly the same relevant product offers so bankers can also make personalized offers in-branch and on calls.

Ultimately, Blend supports efforts to increase customer lifetime value and solidify long-term loyalty. Our cloud banking platform is designed with the express purpose of building primary relationships through a level of digital engagement that achieves real results. In short, Blend helps banking teams answer the question: “What do customers want in a bank?”