How financial institutions can make it through these challenging times for the banking industry.
Times are uncertain today in the banking sector. Bank failures, higher interest rates resulting from central bank actions and the threat of inflation are causing traditional banks, credit unions, and other businesses in the financial services industry to look for novel ways to attract customers and increase profitability in 2023 and beyond. Standard incentives like low ATM fees, limited overdraft charges, and no origination fees aren’t enough to get consumers to take notice and become new banking clients or to get existing customers to take advantage of additional products or services.
A proven way to generate more business is for traditional banks, credit unions, commercial banks, and other old-school financial companies to follow the fintech business model. Fintechs are focused on eliminating barriers to doing business, improving the client experience, and offering products prospective customers find value in.
By contrast, banks and other financial institutions are often viewed as being passé and too hard to work with by many prospective clients. Anything that eliminates barriers to doing business and making the banking experience better could be just what it takes for you to bring in more new clients and increase the amount of revenue you earn from them.
A proven way to do that is to improve your account opening process by using the correct software. This article explains how investing in the right software solution could pay off in higher profits this year and into the future.
Here are three ways the right software could benefit your financial services organization.
It streamlines the account opening process
Prospective depositors have a lot of choices when it comes to where they put their money. Any challenges or friction when it comes to signing up for an account will cause them to move on to another provider that makes the process fast and easy.
That’s why more and more banks and other financial companies leverage proven digital account-opening technology like Biz2X that makes the process quick and straightforward. People transact all kinds of business online and through apps today, and they’re used to all aspects of it happening almost instantly, with no friction, across all devices. They expect — and actually demand — it from their financial companies. Financial firms across America and the world are using software like Biz2X to make account opening smooth and seamless. Ask yourself: If all your competitors are using software like Biz2X, can you afford to be at a disadvantage?
In today’s challenging times for financial companies, especially with the lowered trust in them after recent bank failures, the answer is no. Anything that allows them to think twice about signing on with you could encourage them to move on to a competitor.
Making it easy to do business with you is a sure way to increase your bank profitability today and in a (hopefully) more stable business environment in the future.
Did you know: The right account onboarding software will help ensure your institution meets regulatory requirements? It’s an excellent way to help build customer trust in these uncertain times for the banking industry.
It improves the customer experience
As I’ve already covered, a speedier and more streamlined onboarding process helps make for a better online banking experience from the get-go.
Customers who are happy with your business will likely stick with it over the long run. They’ll also want to move beyond opening a checking or savings account and getting a debit card. They’ll take advantage of more profitable lines of business like taking out loans, opening business accounts, and applying for credit cards. Plus, happy, loyal customers are more likely to recommend your company to friends, relatives, and neighbors.
Word-of-mouth and online recommendations are the most powerful — and cost-effective — ways to attract new customers.
All these factors, taken together, will drive additional dollars to your bottom line.
It makes it easy to offer additional services to customers
The right account-opening software allows your institution to collect necessary information from new customers that makes it possible for you to cross-sell them products and services that are meaningful to them. This includes profitable small business banking services, money-market accounts, loan products that earn interest income, credit cards, and investment opportunities.
The information gathered during the checking account or bank account opening process can be used to cross- and up-sell now and long into the future, making each new customer you bring in through it more profitable immediately and over the long term.
Tip: Every time you transform a depositor into a borrower, you increase the revenue you earn from them. A relatively small investment in account opening software could help you identify more customers that present a low credit risk who could be good candidates for loans or credit cards.
Takeaways
This is one of the most challenging times banks and other financial companies have experienced in decades. Inflation, bank failures, and the Federal Reserve raising interest rates have made it more difficult than ever for them to turn a profit. However, they can take control of the situation and make themselves more profitable.
Investing in the right account opening software, like that offered by Biz2X, is a proven way to do just that. It can:
Make the account-opening process faster and easier, which will help keep prospective clients from abandoning during the account-opening process and moving on to a competitor with a more modern and efficient sign-up system.
Improve the digital banking experience by making the account-opening process smooth and easy. This makes it more likely that clients will stick with you over the long term, purchase more — and more profitable — financial products and services from you, and recommend you to others through word-of-mouth and virtually.
Give you the information you need to cross- and up-sell products and services immediately and over the long term.
Can you afford to NOT invest in software like Biz2X? In these challenging times, the answer is probably NO.
All these things taken together will help increase your firm’s profitability in this challenging year for the banking system and for a long time to come. It’s a relatively small and sensible investment that could pay off in more dollars to the bottom line of your balance sheet.
