It seems that technology has cost banks the close relationship they once had with their customers. But further technological advances could also mend the situation, says Chris Skinner.During the past 25 years, retail banks have pushed customers away. They have thrown customers out of the branch, onto the high street and home again. And now they want a relationship? That is hardly likely when the whole relationship has been broken thanks to technology.
What am I talking about? Go back to 1970 and you’ll find the original concept of a branch. Counter services, personal relationships and a branch manager who knew every customer by sight.
Then the ATM came along. Originally, a cost-saving device to reduce the reliance on human tellers, the ATM eventually displaced human services in the branch with an offer of convenience for consumers outside the branch.
Then the call centre did away with many other reasons for using branches. And, most recently, internet banking has added another dimension of service that gives the consumer the ability to do almost anything to their account with the click of a mouse.
Feeling remote?
The result is that all of this technology has replaced human services and the customer no longer needs human contact with the bank. The customer has been trained to deal with the bank remotely. The bank has commoditised itself through technology to become a pure transaction engine with zero human relationships. And by human relationships I mean a bank whose staff can recognise any of their clients immediately and deal with them personally – in the way that the 1970s branch would deal with clients.
That’s the relationship that’s been lost, and that’s why banks spend fortunes on customer relationship management and other systems trying to retrieve it. However, that dream is elusive when it is based on a concept of thousands of customers dealt with at a personal level by a stranger – the call centre agent.
As a new age of online services comes – with broadband and 3G mobile introducing video contact technologies – the call centre agent at least will have the chance to see the customer’s face. They will be able to see the customer online, real-time and provide them with a fuller financial experience.
The return of person-to-person service will be a major bonus for retail banking, and will sort out the winners from the losers. After all, poor service on the telephone can be irritating but at least the service agent’s reactions cannot be seen. When they are online in real-time, with every nuance of their facial expressions visible to the remote client, imagine how different the service will be.
Chris Skinner is founder of Shaping Tomorrow and chief executive of Balatro Ltd. Find out more at www.ShapingTomorrow.com or e-mail Chris at chris.skinner@shapingtomorrow.com
