Putting the Banking Customer in Control
Appointments are really the norm in most businesses today. From Apple® stores1 to urgent care facilities, people are no longer willing to wait several minutes—or even an hour—for service. Customers expect to be able to select the most convenient day, time and location to get the service they desire. They want to be in control.
And as more and more banking consumers use smartphone apps for simple transactions and upfront research, financial institutions need to encourage branch visits for those who prefer to conduct some of their financial transactions in person or perhaps have online security concerns. For some customers, the added convenience of an appointment enhances the customer experience. Sounds simple, right?
With digital appointment booking solutions, it can be. You’ve already cleared the first hurdle: The customer knows your brand (or is already an existing customer) and is on your website. Now he wants help or more information but is heading out to pick up the kids from lacrosse practice, or maybe she is running late for Chemistry 101 class.
Don’t miss the opportunity to schedule a time to get them to come into your branch to meet with your employees. Even a casual browser can be turned into an engaged customer, if you make it easy.
Results from a survey of more than 1,000 consumers showed that 83 percent of banking consumers are “willing to bank on a weekday if offered a guaranteed time during the week.” For millennials, this number jumped to 86 percent.2
Digital appointment booking puts the customer in control—they decide the why (What do I need help with today?), when (Which date and time fits my schedule?) and where (Which branch location is most convenient?).
So, importantly, what happens next and how can this help your branch increase sales?
With workforce management, banks can forecast demand and schedule employees based on the unique needs of each branch location and its customers. When combined with digital appointment booking, the bank can determine which employees with which skills are available—and then schedule the employee with the right expertise to assist.
When appointments are scheduled in advance, your branch staff has time to prepare in advance and can deliver a higher-quality experience to help strengthen customer relationships and ultimately increase sales revenue. It’s how you use the technologies together that can provide your bank with a distinct advantage.
Getting customers into the branch is challenging enough—make it easier to have high-value, in-branch discussions at their convenience by putting the customer in control.
Read our new Executive Perspectives: Digital Appointment Booking to discover how having this capability can help improve sales results and increase operational efficiency in your branches.
1Apple is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
2 Sarah Wallace, TimeTrade, State of Banking Report 2015.
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