With the financial sector being hit by the digital transformation boom, customer expectations are constantly changing with the personalisation of services being high on the list of desires.
Andy Baillie, Regional VP EMEA at Seismic, is at the forefront of helping financial brands make client interactions personal. Andy joined Seismic as the company’s first EMEA employee in December 2017 and has more than 25 years of sales and general management experience in cloud technology. He is focused on scaling the Financial Services business in EMEA and empowering customers to transform sales and marketing execution.
Here, Andy explains how the power of personalisation can give customer interactions more meaning in financial services.
It has been an interesting 12 months for the financial services sector. The health crisis has accelerated the shift to digital platforms, many financial institutions have been tasked with reinventing themselves to a digital-first operating model.
For example, challenger banks have quickly become a lot more competitive. Their digital-first models allowed them to be better equipped for the challenges that the pandemic presented and now some have reached the point of breaking even.
The digital shift was highlighted in Schwab’s latest RIA benchmarking survey, where 77% of top-performing advisors said they now use virtual client meetings. Furthermore, 75% use screen-sharing or co-browsing tools and 41% communicate with clients over SMS.
Facing bolder competition whilst trying to transition to digital platforms, the more traditional firms in the industry will have to differentiate themselves in other ways to stand out.
This is why personalisation can have such a significant impact. Clients expect advisors and relationship managers to personalise every interaction. Generic, long-form, static content actually generates a negative client experience. Clients make quicker buying decisions when presented with tailored, interactive content.
This is where digital capabilities such as sales enablement and content management platforms can help. Intelligent, data-driven processes empower firms to build interactions that are personal and tailored per client. By offering these personal interactions, advisors and relationship managers are having focused and relevant conversations immediately, shortening deal cycles and improving win rates.
Digital platforms also enable financial institutions to personalise content at scale, thereby allowing for deeper connections and consistent messaging.
To put it into context, intelligent content platforms can provide advisors and relationship managers data-driven messages that are proven effective at the given buying stage and customer profile. This powers the delivery of proactive, just-in-time recommendations for specific sales situations – such as surfacing competitive information based on the competitors the prospect has been evaluating or providing specific content recommendations to handle the most likely concerns a client may have.
Insights like these will allow advisors and relationship managers to tailor their outreach and prioritise the most relevant information when it matters most. And, this can all be done with regulatory compliance and brand protection assured.
As client expectations rise, much of the pressure that advisors and relationship managers are under can be relieved. Digital platforms can automate the personalisation process and remove a great deal of the manual work that has traditionally been required by pulling together customised content for meetings and pitches. Advisors will have access to the exact content and information they need when they need it, in turn increasing productivity and effectiveness.
Being able to do all of this at scale will make establishing and nurturing client relationships a much simpler process for financial firms at a time when competition is increasing. Success in the sector will ultimately come down to satisfying client needs through personalised data-driven content and experiences.
Let’s summarise all of this in outcomes: Do more with less. Increase share of wallet. Close more deals, faster. Increase Customer Satisfaction. Broaden your demographic. Ensure compliance. Capitalise on the power of your brand.
If financial services firms can convert to digital-first quickly, the opportunities are there. All they have to do is choose their path and commit.
