Credit Unions Lead in Online Satisfaction

Credit unions top the financial services industry when it comes to online customer satisfaction, according to a survey conducted by customer experience analytics firm ForeSee.

The firm this week released its "Financial Services Benchmark," which reports on online and mobile customer satisfaction trends for various industry segments. The report used data from more than 335,000 surveys from the first quarter of 2013 in which customers shared their experiences with online websites, mobile websites and mobile applications.

According to Foresee, average customer satisfaction with financial websites is at 72 on a 100-point scale. According to the firm, scores of 80 and higher are classified as “highly satisfied,” while scores of 69 and lower are considered “dissatisfied.”

"While the industry average score of 72 indicates that many consumers are satisfied with their online banking experience, it leaves room for improvement across the industry," ForSsee noted.

Credit unions, however, polled better than average, with an overall satisfaction score of 82. Investments and lending organizations scored much lower with average satisfaction scores of 69 and 70, respectively. Banking and miscellaneous financially-focused organizations (such as financial media sites), fell in the middle of the range, with average satisfaction scores of 71 and 74.

ForeSee also measured satisfaction with mobile financial sites and applications, which scored on the high end of the spectrum compared to customer satisfaction with websites. The firm found that the average customer satisfaction with mobile financial websites and applications is at 82, a superior score that shows customers generally are highly satisfied with financial mobile sites. Additionally, highly satisfied mobile users are 41% more likely than less-satisfied users to recommend to a friend, family member or colleague and are 78% more likely to use again.

“Today’s banking consumers are becoming increasingly mobile, and this shift brings higher expectations for more convenient and easily accessible mobile service offerings from their banks, credit unions and investment firms,” said Eric Feinberg, ForeSee’s senior director of mobile, media and entertainment, in a statement. “Leaders in the financial industry are getting a leg up by measuring their customers’ satisfaction on mobile platforms and making necessary changes, which is essential to serving as a valuable and trusted partner.”

[See Also: Improving the Customer Experience Across Every Touch Point]

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