Empowering the Digital Bank: Mobility in financial services, driving innovation in customers’ daily lives
Most people have looked at a clock face, but have they ever watched it? Probably not. If people were to watch the face of an analogue clock they would have observed the second hand, and perhaps even the minute hand, moving. However, most would not have seen the hour hand moving. Despite this, they know it is shifting clockwise inexorably. If someone looks away from the clock to write an e-mail to a customer, they may glance back later to find that an hour has passed and the hand has moved 30 degrees. They haven’t seen it move, yet all of a sudden it has happened. That is exactly how mobility became ubiquitous in our daily lives.
Constant connectivity
Everyone will recall the empty platitudes of experts in the mid-2000s who proclaimed that it was the ‘year of mobile’ and then heard the derisive laughter when we seemed to be lagging behind the exponential curve of prediction. Now, people do not question the ‘year of the mobile’ because it is here and it is everywhere, always on and always ready to deliver a download of information. Our lives are shaped by the mini supercomputer in our pockets, which have now become the remote controls of our lives. Connected 24/7 for 365 days a year, these machines offer a window into our connected worlds.
The term mobility includes devices that people use on the go. Chiefly, this is a phone, but it can also be a tablet or, in some cases, the phablet. Mobility is key. To move is to be alive and people think much more effectively when they move. If someone forgets their wallet, they can live without it. However, if they forget their phone, they will always turn back to ensure they have it with them. It is essential, our communicator, entertainer and navigator – the glue that holds our lives together.
The five ‘P’s
When brands think about how to engage people via mobile, they need to consider the five ‘P’s. These include portability to ensure their product or service can be taken everywhere; processing power to deliver the optimum experience; precision to facilitate specific tasks, such as searching for a restaurant; privacy to provide adequate security; and personalization to ensure their brand is personal and germane to each individual customer.
We are now entering a world of ubiquitous personal computing that will help people to manage their lives just as personal finance has done for many years. Finance is no longer just transactional. Banks are becoming institutions that help people to map their lives, deliver fiduciary direction and enable them to become better guardians of the money they make, save and spend. Money gives people freedom, but they need to work out what to do with that freedom once they have it.
Catering to the masses in a personal way
And what is more personal than finance? A person’s bank statement is virtually a blueprint of their life – it is the where, what and how of daily living. Finance lends itself well to digital as it is easy to condense the raw information into binary data and send it wherever and whenever it is required. Mobility can offer financial customers a range of experiences from a simple text message to indicate that they have had a large debit taken from their account, to downloading an app that notifies an in-branch beacon that helps associates identify a customer, allowing them to deliver a personalized level of service.
The financial sector struggles with mass protagonism – a phenomenon where people feel as though they are the main protagonist on their life journey, while the brand delivers a service design model that fits everyone at scale. It is a hard task, but one that the finance industry must get right in order to design for success.
So as mobility transforms to include wearable devices such as smart watches, we will no longer need to fixate on when mobility will become ubiquitous. Mobility is here and the connected digital finance story must drive innovation to remain relevant to people as they go about their everyday lives and help them spend more wisely.
Empowering the Digital Bank
At Microsoft, we recently carried out research to determine what it’s like to be a banking customer today. To bring our findings to life, we have developed a video story to demonstrate some of the ways in which banks can play a much more active role in our financial decision-making processes and remain relevant in our connected digital lives. Our aim is to show you some of the opportunities available to banks to not only fulfill the service needs of their customers, but to develop their brand into an invaluable information service – a service that connects with customers in their daily activities and helps them navigate the milestones in their lives.
About Jonathan:
JC Oliver is an award winning multimedia strategist with over 15 years global media experience. He brings a unique set of skills to his role as Global Head of Innovation with expertise in Digital Marketing & Business strategy. His passion is the intersection of creativity & business fused with tech & science which he defines as the next big growth marketing opportunity.
He is also the IAA (International Advertising Association) Worldwide Chairman of Young Professionals with a seat on the IAA Worldwide Excom Board. His role is to promote innovation, education and best practice within Global Advertising. He is also a member of the Marketing Society, Creative & Innovation Social & Founder of The Kennel Club a community of young creative keen to cut their teeth in the world of digital marketing.
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