Building Confidence: Why it Matters in Financial Services

I’ve been intrigued with the bonds consumers have with brands since early in my career. It probably goes back to watching snack lovers sniff bags of chips in a model store when I worked at a packaged goods company. True story: We saw people lift bags of product to their nose and inhale deeply, like they could smell the chips inside—which, of course, they couldn’t.

These consumers seemed to want to tap into the positive association a bag of chips can bring. Most of us know the feeling. Savoring a certain snack or beverage can take you back to your carefree childhood or memorable events, events spent with people special to you. Clothes have their magic too: Certain brands can make you feel more polished and successful. Me, I love the crisp air and leafy scent of autumn because it takes me back to neighborhood football games on my friend’s yard when I was a kid. (I’m fortunate to have pleasant memories of those games and all my teeth and limbs—they could get pretty rough.)

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about powerful and pleasant connections like these—and how different they are from the relationship and experience customers have with brands in financial services. We at Fidelity are honored that 25 million Americans trust us to help them build their financial futures. But while our associations with employers are as strong as ever, euphoria isn’t a feeling most of their employees experience when they meet with a financial professional or check a monthly statement. In fact, all too often, they feel some anxiety: Are they saving enough? Will they be able to pay for college? What about a new home? Even diligent savers may have concerns about retirement.

I’m no different. When I’m sorting the mail after coming home from work, the envelope with the financial statement goes to the bottom of the stack. I know I’ll need time to focus on the material. And sometimes its contents take too long to answer the burning questions almost all of us have when it comes to our savings: “Am I OK?” and “What should I do?”

In a complicated world it is more important than ever that financial service companies answer these questions with speed and simplicity. In a time when we can summon a car and driver or a meal with an app and receive directions from GPS devices, we all seek and expect products and services that make our lives easier. And financial services companies can do a better job of doing just that over the course of a lifetime.

This is a pivotal time in our industry, with great challenges and tremendous opportunity. Helping employers meet the needs of workforce participants—and working directly with savers and investors—is more important than ever. Gone are the days when employees routinely worked at one or two companies before retiring. Today, increasingly, young professionals start entry-level jobs saddled with student debt. Later, they may take time off from their careers for a variety of reasons—and then return to work. And people who reach what was once considered retirement age are just as likely to start a new career as head to the beach or the golf course. 

Moving ahead, personalization of products and services will help us do a better job of meeting everyone’s needs—and right when they need it most. For employers, that will mean service reinvention that will help us work more efficiently. For customers, it will mean important new offerings that help them manage and meet life’s expenses.

Breaking new ground in this business is a lot like innovation in the chip business: It’s more complex—and exciting—than most people think. Sure, it may be a while before anyone cozies up to one of the financial statements we send out, but we think we’re getting there.  And we’re confident that our brand will be one that provides the kind of reassurance that helps build confidence and create lifetime well-being.

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Views expressed are as of the date indicated and may change based on market and other conditions. Unless otherwise noted, the opinions provided are those of the author, and not necessarily those of Fidelity Investments.

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Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, Member NYSE, SIPC, 900 Salem Street, Smithfield, RI 02917.

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