MADISON, Wis. - Credit unions far outpace community and national banks in consumer perception and satisfaction, but that doesn't necessarily bring growth or market share, according to a new McKinsey/Filene report set to be released this week.
An advance copy obtained by Credit Union Journal pointed out that CUs' strong position in customer satisfaction leaves very little room for improvement and additional investment likely will deliver little or no benefits to the bottom line.
"The report's key findings may be uncomfortable for credit unions that embrace member satisfaction and empowerment at any cost. For those credit unions, 'cost' is the key word," the report stated. "Credit unions should try to maintain their preferred status but redirect management efforts and resources toward improving crucial functional areas, such as remote delivery, member wait times, and problem resolution."
CUs are very strong in trustworthiness and member pride, but the report revealed they have fewer advantages in functional categories, such as online tools and convenience. While member satisfaction is nice to have and can create strong loyalty, the bottom line is that CUs are, “not always best served by better and better personal service,” the report concluded. “If they were, credit unions' advantage in satisfaction would become an advantage in market share. Credit unions should treat member satisfaction and improved member experience as means to an end-never as ends in themselves."
Instead of putting so much emphasis on superior satisfaction, credit unions would be best served to simply monitor those perceptions and introduce high ROI initiatives such as improved sales channels, streamlined delivery systems and other functional areas.
