Banks Need to Re-imagine Online Banking

Banks can revitalize their online banking and bill pay products by shifting from a traditional transactional role to a more consultative one, says Javelin Strategy & Research.

Banks can revitalize their online banking and bill pay products by shifting from a traditional transactional role to a more consultative one, making online banking the cornerstone of interactive financial management and pursuing new consumer segments, according to a new report from Javelin Strategy & Research.

According to the report, adoption of online banking, bill pay and bill view at banks has maxed out, with minimal growth projected over the next five years. However, banks can reverse this trend by meeting consumer's expectations that their financial institution help them be smarter with their money, says Javelin. According to the report, 72 percent of consumers who said they are considering switching banks in the next year said they believe online banking should help to manage their personal finances effectively. Online banking and bill pay needs to deliver on its promise to make them effective finance managers, in order to have higher market growth, says Javelin.

Further, Javelin warns that while financial institutions and biller direct sites are currently battling for market share in a flat online bill pay market, new players are emerging -- such as Quicken, MyCheckFree, Bill.com and others -- that are threatening to steal customers away from both FIs and billers and could potentially disrupt the market.

"Consumers are telling FIs that online banking and bill pay isn’t good enough, and FIs aren’t listening,” says Jim Van Dyke, president of Javelin. "FIs need to get to the heart of what consumers really want and take online banking and bill pay to the next level. The way to do this is to make online banking the foundation of personal banking and shift the focus away from simply completing transactions."

Bryan Yurcan is associate editor for Bank Systems and Technology. He has worked in various editorial capacities for newspapers and magazines for the past 8 years. After beginning his career as a municipal and courts reporter for daily newspapers in upstate New York, Bryan has ... View Full Bio