Successfully overcoming challenges in digital onboarding through the advanced customer experience

Successfully overcoming challenges in digital onboarding through the advanced customer experience

Digital client onboarding for banking became the new normal. That is the statement with which a few would argue. In the fast-paced era of digitalization and remote services, banks have to adapt to keep up with the rapidly changing customer needs. In the end, who would choose to spend their lunch break opening a bank account instead of doing it in a couple of minutes in the comfort of their own home? Besides abolishing the need to physically come to the bank, nowadays customers want to communicate with financial institutions on their terms, and the onboarding process is not an exception.

While customers’ needs are more or less clear, there is still a question of why some banks are experiencing difficulties when it comes to remote onboarding. Are they lacking necessary technologies, or does the problem lie somewhere else??Multiple reports and surveys have been done to identify the problem and the answer that has been discovered so far is rather simple. Clients want more and some banks are simply not equipped to provide an adequate level of customer experience when it comes to digital onboarding. However, experts suggest that to stand out and stay on top of the competition, it is crucial to improve the customer experience. How can it be done? Here are several ideas that can be incorporated into any bank’s strategy.

Process speed and simplicity

The first impression does matter, as the onboarding process often becomes the point that starts the hopefully long-lasting relationship between the bank and the client. According to the Signicat report, over 25% of potential clients quit the onboarding process mid-way. When asked about the main reasons for not completing it, most respondents complain about the overall difficulty and the time consumption. The necessity to fill out information over and over again or the overwhelming number of various questions and forms is not something that a customer is eager to deal with in 2022. Luckily, there are options to satisfy the ever-growing appetites for speed and simplicity. There are multiple tools on the market developed specifically to help banks adapt to the new digital reality, from biometric identity verification to eKYC and AML products.

Remote but still humane

Numerous surveys state that customers prefer a 100% remote onboarding process. This means there is no need to go to the bank office to sign any additional documents or verify an ID. Fast, simple, and remote are slowly becoming the new standards of communication between financial institutions and their clients. However, even if the onboarding procedure is fully remote, it is still not enough to outshine the competition. Battling all logic, the human touch remains at the center of the digital customer experience. Even though bank employees are not physically present, clients want to be sure they will receive immediate help if any complications arise. AI can be a part of the solution with personalized chatbots making you feel like you are communicating with a real person. However, the role of humans in digital onboarding can hardly be abolished, at least in the foreseeable future. The ongoing transformation of customer support is one of the essential aspects of the advanced remote CX.

Judging the book by its cover…

is not right, that is what every reasonable person will tell. But that is not exactly true when it comes to the digital banking experience. Onboarding is just the first step and the first taste of the service the customer will be receiving. If the whole thing seems to be just another boring chore, probably a person will not sign up for any additional products unless absolutely necessary. We want things to be fun and, believe it or not, banking is not an exception. As banks evolve from mere financial institutions to customer-centric and experiential entities, so should their digital tools. That is why the interface, digital platforms, and apps play a vital role in ensuring customer satisfaction from the moment of onboarding and during the whole journey.

Any number of tools will not transform the digital onboarding process without the initial transformation of a bank as an institution. Only understanding and following the path of constant CX improvement can help banks stay on top.?

We are also organizing the meeting on the specific topic Digital Identity and Digital Onboarding for Banking, which is our 3rd Annual event in Amsterdam, the Netherlands from 20th -21st October 2022.