Let’s face it, it’s tough out there. While recent and expected rate cuts push us closer to the Federal Reserve’s 2.0% annual inflation rate target, consumers remain anxious about the costs of goods and housing amid continued economic uncertainty and the impending election. Let’s remember the ongoing commercial real estate conundrum (low occupancy, high rents, high insurance and maturing obligations). And the cherry on top may very well be the uber-competitive banking environment and plethora of product options available to borrowers and depositors.
I know that sounded like the Winnie-the-Pooh character Eeyore wrote that. How do you bring the more optimistic Tigger into your bank software strategy?
One option is to think about your brand continuity, reimagine your marketing strategy and develop and implement a multidimensional software approach. You may even be sitting on untapped (and paid for) resources as we speak. Let’s dive right in.
A trusted mentor once said, “It’s all about the eyeballs,” and that statement immediately landed with me. The specific context was marketing as it relates to digital real estate, but the concept can be expanded as you contemplate an overarching marketing and brand continuity strategy.
Think about McDonald’s. The golden arches are virtually everywhere in and around their product offerings from cups, wrappers and boxes to embossed logos on some of their food. It’s an immersive brand experience where every interaction and touchpoint reinforces the brand, drives the customer experience and facilitates promotional offerings and cross-selling opportunities. Why should banking be any different?
No doubt you’ve got dozens of systems and software applications in your ecosystem; some integrated with each other, some disparate, some that support your digital journey and some that may not. Regardless, it’s time to take an inventory of all things customer facing and evaluate the extent to which you are leveraging their capabilities to promote your brand, customer experience and selling opportunities. If the outcome of the exercise leaves you feeling less like Tigger and more like Eeyore, it’s time to rethink your single-purpose assets and explore more versatile alternatives.
Let me help you get started with some examples.
• Lending and deposit documents and disclosures: Mundane, a bore, inconvenient? Maybe. However, this is a customer touchpoint and beyond — think cosigners, guarantors, non-borrower collateral owners. Your documentation software should be configurable and empower you to include logos, slogans and other trade dress. In some ways, it’s like a McDonald’s wrapper over a Big Mac: your brand, your products and your customer’s experience. Documentation software should also be self-serviceable so you can be nimble with branding and product strategies and not be beholden to multiple lead times.
• The eSign experience: The eSign experience is a wildly underutilized marketing tool. Depending on your provider, you may have the ability to white label and brand the entire eSign experience. Your customer is engaging in an intimate transaction with your institution, and the formal memorialization of the relationship should be part of the brand experience. Further, you should be empowered to configure the email messages that accompany delivery and confirmation of signing ceremonies where you can cross-sell additional or promotional products through embedded links.
• Mass-mailer: This feature may or may not be part of your eSign software, but regardless, it should be brandable and support the features mentioned above. Consider a redisclosure event. That is a massive opportunity to reinforce your brand and cross-sell additional products.
• Online banking: While your experience no doubt contains your branding and style sheet requirements, many institutions do this in a half-baked way. Your apps and desktop applications deserve the same design attention and maintenance as your website. More importantly, this is valuable digital real estate. Your platform should support offering additional products, or better, pre-approved, firm offers customers can easily redeem.
There’s no hiding the fact that growing your business in today’s environment is tough sledding.
You can rest on your laurels and let the dust collect on existing one-dimensional products like Eeyore or spring off your tail and implement a multidimensional software strategy and thrive like Tigger.
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