Reshaping Customer Experience Via Technology

In a world where consumer preferences are changing rapidly and new business models are making way for old ones, firms always need to be on the edge to stay connected with their consumers and stay relevant.

Consumers are looking for faster, cheaper, better and bespoke products and services. We are witnessing the digital divide breaching in India, which has led to disintermediation, decentralisation and democratisation of the product and service structure. Direct to consumer and DIY (do it yourself) is the new norm. The banking and financial services sector, which caters to all customer segments, is at the forefront of combining technology with touch to build new business models and provide superior customer experience.

The last five years have witnessed manifold jumps in smartphone and 3G/4G data network. As we transition from a mobile-first to a mobile-only country, banks have started to launch most services on multiple apps, mobile browser-optimised interfaces, social media channels and messaging apps. While earlier one could open a new bank account like Kotak 811 using Aadhaar OTP, now a full-KYC bank account can also be opened using video-KYC from mobile or desktop from the comfort of one’s home.

We will see more financial products such as credit cards, insurance and loans being made available through digital platforms in the coming months. Consumers are no longer required to visit bank branches nor do they have to wait for meeting financial representatives. Such experiences are fast, frictionless and truly digital.Here are some technological innovations that are reshaping consumers connect with financial institutions:

Conversational Bots

Artificial intelligence-powered conversation platforms can understand customers’ queries and can help provide solutions or responses instantly. Conversational bots can be both chat- and voice-enabled across interactive voice response, mobile app, Website and online banking. One can also connect their bank account with Google Assistant, Alexa and Siri to speak with the bank.

Video

Post Covid-19, most consumers are comfortable using video as a medium to stay connected at work or with family and friends. Apart from video-based KYC for various financial products, the medium of video can also support all interactions between banks and consumers. Next time, if you want to talk to a relationship manager, how about a video call?

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

The use of data combined with AI and ML application is becoming core to financial services. Getting personalised recommendations on one’s investment portfolio, instant loan approval or shopping offers on cards are some common experiences. Going forward, the generative adversarial network technique can generate personalised videos-on-fly or users can have trained robotic assistants customised as per their requirements. As speech-to-text and vernacular skills mature, it will support interactions in multiple regional languages across digital channels. Facial recognition will also support seamless and secure banking experiences to consumers across digital channels or while visiting a branch.

New Frontiers

Connected banking is providing invisible layers of banking across multiple platforms. One can find a pre-approved loan on e-commerce websites or travel insurance and forex cards on travel websites. Similarly, a small business can pull account statement and bank statement for reconciliation. Integration between bank and non-banks are creating new frontiers to delight customers across their daily journeys.

Augmented reality, virtual reality and holograms are in the process of integrating real and virtual experiences across a host of areas. With internet of things, we will also see smart meters paying on their own or cars connecting with the nearby service centre or insurance policies getting renewed automatically. We are living in a world of unlimited possibilities where technology is getting deeply embedded in our daily lives. Imagine in the future, if you ask for something and it is done immediately – this is execution at the speed of thought.

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