TAMPA, Fla.—In what is being touted as the first of its kind in the industry, GTE Financial here recently launched a 3-D Virtual Community Financial Center complete with customizable avatars.
"This has been a fun endeavor for us, and it's something I don't believe has been done in the financial services industry before," said GTE Senior Vice President Brian Best. "3-D isn't for everybody, but I think it is for individuals who want to be engaged in that realm and who want to spend time educating themselves on financial literacy."
The virtual environment, similar to that employed by "Second Life" and "The Sims," allows employees and members to embody customized avatars and access 10 product/service centers from the comfort of their home personal computer (the service is not yet available on mobile devices or tablets). Members can learn about products such as auto and home loans, investments and insurance. The virtual space is GTE branch-branded and includes local aesthetics such as a view of the Tampa Bay skyline.
When asked how long it takes to register and customize an avatar, Best said it could be done in as little as five minutes. "It doesn't take 25 minutes to make your avatar, but it is personal, which is cool. You can change facial types, hair styles, or clothes—if you want to be business or casual, for example."
Intern Inventiveness
The 24/7 virtual space is also populated with GTE employee-avatars that assist with all services and transactions—from deposits to auto loans—during business hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.). Avatars can chat with each other in real time, and the chat content can be saved and downloaded in PDF format. Visitors can also download "library" content and exchange business cards with other avatars.
GTE Enterprise Marketing Manager Shannon Wilde explained that the 3-D website concept originated in 2014 via the CU's student intern program. "The interns helped with the concept of customization and the concept of an avatar that members could move around virtually. They designed what this would look like, and then we worked with Hyperfair."
The San Francisco-based Hyperfair helps organizations create 3-D virtual events through an online browser-based platform. "We knew they would be a perfect fit for this project. Their ability to customize was amazing," Wilde said, adding that the virtual space will likely be built out over time and offer more services.
The Millennial Embodied
Despite the enormous popularity of the 2009 film "Avatar," many members over the age of 45 aren't all that familiar with avatars, let alone creating one to conduct banking transactions or learn about how to apply for a mortgage.
Currently, GTE has 235,000 members, 67,000 of which are active daily online banking users. The average member age is 44. Best said roughly 160,000 members use some sort of "virtual" banking solution, such as mobile or social media. He added that roughly 43% of members fall within the millennial demographic.
"There is no benchmark or any type of studies as to what can be expected with 3-D [banking], so it's interesting and an opportunity because there are still a lot of people, especially millennials, who do not want to sit down and have a physical conversation with someone," said Best. "They would rather go online and somehow educate themselves."
The website launched Oct 15, and in the first four hours of operation, 178 member-avatars visited the 3-D site, Best said. Wilde noted that over the course of the first week, there were 201 unique visitors with total visits at roughly 388 members.
"We can track exactly where they [members] go, how long they spend at certain booths or kiosks and what type of information they are gathering in their shopping cart," said Best.
Calling All Members
The GTE 3D auditorium offers live events, seminars, webinars and other content. On launch day, GTE used the virtual auditorium to announce the winner of its GTE Home Free contest: Ronald and Jessica Beck and their daughter Breeanna from Zephyrhills, Fla. The family of three, who have been members for 11 years, will receive 80 free home payments (up to $160,000).
Upon hearing the news, 32-year-old Ronald Beck, a recent cancer survivor, said he and his family were thankful for the assistance in paying off the home, which was purchased in 2006.
"We will continue to make our mortgage payment to the principal of the loan. We are hardworking individuals and believe in working for what we get in life," said Beck "This blessing will give our families piece of mind so we can better prepare ourselves for our future."
GTE Financial's CEO and President Joe Brancucci said the $1.7 billion CU, which supports 22 Community Financial Centers, is constantly trying to reimagine financial services by creating engaging, informative ways to serve its members.
"GTE 3D is a huge step forward in the evolving virtual financial services world," said Brancucci. "Involving our members in new ways that make their relationship with us more convenient, personal and informative is always our objective."
