Empowering In-Branch Associates with Customer Data

An exclusive look at data gathered from members of the Future Branches event community.

With the advent of a mobile-centric world, the role of brick-and-mortar is under pressure to adapt. Fortunately, the same tools that are changing where the branch fits in to overall strategies are enabling their new roles. In a recent study of members of the Future Branches event community, the question of just how far banks are going to enable their in-branch associates with new technology and data was addressed.

In-branch data capture is one of the foundations of the new role for the branch, and the most common way to manage this is through enabling your associates with tablets or other mobile tools. Other sources of information include both self-service kiosks and connected ATMs, which allow information to be volunteered or collected based on preference indicated during a transaction or consultation. In addition, geo-beacons are another way to monitor the frequency that customers will utilize individual bank branches. In conjunction with other information, you can gain a much clearer picture of how an in-branch visit is addressing a customer's unique needs.

The fact that in-branch associates represent the most commonly relied on method is both a reflection on the ease of integrating mobile tools, as well as the ability to personalize interactions and go deeper in conversations to gather more data that are uniquely available to associates.

While enabling customer data collection and utilization on the part of in-branch associates is picking up as a strategy, the evidence suggests that there is still significant room for improvement in the performance of these strategies. In particular, the interplay between gathering data in-branch during client interactions, and being able to turn that data into a customer profile that can go on to inform both future in-branch interactions as well as the personalization of the full omnichannel experience. In an ideal scenario, an associate will be able to greet a customer with insights into the challenges they are facing based on the past preferences. After a consultation where information about consumer preferences are added to, a follow up can be triggered to share information that they can consume on their own time via the channel of their preference.

For more exploration of the synergies that can be created between in-branch technology and overall omnichannel coordination, stay tuned for the release of our full data findings, and check our content center for more reporting on the state of the modern branch.

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