Mobile Banking Divergence: Where True Adoption Begins
Nearly every financial institution offers mobile banking capabilities to its consumers today. As studies and reports emerge about how important mobile banking apps are to smartphone users -- 39% of consumers vote them important or extremely important -- the opportunity is clear: Mobile has become an essential customer touchpoint. For many, it’s become the number one touchpoint.
[For more on mobile, check out: A Guide to Winning the Mobile Banking Arms Race.]
But as mobile banking continues to take off in a big way, a significant divide has emerged in the space between banks offering a mobile banking app for appearance’s sake and banks that are truly committed to innovating on behalf of their customers. An entry app simply won't cut it for banks looking to drive engagement, gain new customers, and offer existing ones the ability to manage their money effectively on the move and around the clock.
How can you tell? Think about it this way: The advantage of mobile lies in its convenience. Whether it’s in line at Starbucks or miles away from the closest branch or laptop, mobile enables users to conduct transactions and make financial decisions with ease. Outdated apps that lack modern, mobile-centric features are simply extensions of the bank’s online offering, and an attempt to keep up with digital trends and skim the surface of staying cutting edge. For years, mobile has been gaining traction as the “next big thing,” and banks have surely taken note. But without taking full advantage of the unique opportunity mobile has to offer banking consumers, many of these apps fall flat.
The banks that do get it right and go above and beyond the traditional internet offering, embracing mobile as a legitimate force in the banking industry, are already reaping the benefits. With mobile-first features in play -- like easy, non-intrusive login capabilities, push notifications offering engagement opportunities, and sophisticated, user-oriented design features -- successful mobile banking apps have users checking in almost once a day. The relevance of offered services is huge too. ATM-locating capabilities, remote deposit capture, and sophisticated personal financial management features are all attracting savvy mobile users across all age and income demographics.
As the success of these mobile banking apps continues to take off, consumers are rejecting traditional internet banking in favor of mobile, and banks are seeing massive waves of adoption. As consumers are crossing over from internet banking to mobile -- and as mobile begins to take the lead -- technology investments are paying dividends, like attracting new users, increased net promoter scores, and higher customer retention.
If banks are looking to move to a successful mobile banking platform, app strategy must be rethought. For banks that are committed to staying cutting edge, reaching the crossover point from Internet logins to mobile usage is a key milestone. Once users have switched to mobile, it’s only the beginning of engagement opportunities for banks and consumers, and we’re bound to see even more advantages follow. To connect directly with consumers and see increased adoption, stay away from mobile apps for vanity’s sake, and focus on what truly matters to your consumers -- a well-designed, convenient, and easy-to-use mobile channel that offers capabilities that are not available via any other channel.
Mike Dreyer, President of the Americas at Monitise,is responsible for Monitise's business in the Americas. He joined Monitise in August 2014 to oversee all sales activity and major accounts spanning the US, Canada and Latin America. Prior to Monitise, Mike was Chief ... View Full Bio
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