LAKE MARY, Fla. — Personalization, customization and integration of e-services will be necessary for credit unions to remain ahead of competitors in the technology race, according to Harland Financial Solutions.
Giving credit unions a passing grade for their e-services efforts, Jason Marshall, director of product development for Harland, emphasized the importance of integrating multiple systems. "In the microscopic view it will be mobile integration. In my perspective, integrating e-services is the sweet spot. That is where the credit union is going to be successful in the long term. Some of the bolt-on systems that we see in mobile and other apps are fairly short sited. If you cannot integrate these features into the core business, then they are not a long-term fit."
Wrapping Intel Around the User Experience
An important reason for integration, Marshall shared, is that the credit union will need to have business intelligence wrapped around user experience. "No matter what interface the member is in, the system must tailor features to exactly what the member wants to see and use," he insisted.
That ability not only helps members, but the credit union's growth objectives, as well. "We can now filter features into the workflow as appropriate," Marshall explained. "If we know on Monday the member uses bill pay predominantly, then it does not make a lot of sense to introduce other features, like wire transfer, that day. But on Thursday, when the member does all of his reconciliation, wire transfer might be very interesting. For example, you could send a message to say if the member moved a little money out of his Schwab account into a credit union CD, he could gain $50 a month."
Marshall feels the majority of banks will not take this tack. "The big banks do not care about customer experience. But the credit union is all about making Sally feel comfortable and important, and that same member experience must transition to e-services. So across e-services, no matter what the application or interface, the member experience must be tailored and customized to the individual."
And the feeling that the credit union is always there to support the member should exist via electronic mediums. "If members are confused and need assistance, they should be able to push a button and a member service rep could take over the session, see what the member is seeing, chat with them, and guide them through the experience," Marshall said.
Overall, Marshall said e-services have delivered on their promise to date, but had mixed feelings on how well credit unions have performed in this area. "I have some clients that are 'A+,' and others I'd give a 'D,'" he said. "The 'D' players are me-too institutions-just because the guy down the street has it I have to have it. But I have no idea what it is."
Marshall added that credit unions, collectively, have done a good job with communicating, marketing, and educating members about e-services and conversions to new systems, avoiding a great deal of confusion. Where he has seen problems, however, is when small credit unions fail with communication and have poorly trained support staffs. "That can lead to a tremendous amount of 'What's this? Is this phishing?' And backlash."
