FRAMINGHAM, Mass. Financial companies are providing more interactive customer support, personalized content, and special content online than other businesses, according to International Data Corp.s latest survey of more than 600 U.S. Internet executives.
Many financial companies are setting the pace in adopting Web business strategies as they work to overcome online challenges, according to an Internet Executive ePanel survey.
For example, the industry has been more aggressive in investing in noncomputer access to the Internet, such as wireless phones and personal digital assistants, the survey said. In addition, financial companies are more willing than others to offer competitors products on their Web sites.
The financial services industry has long been tagged as being less than innovative with technology investments and business practices, but our ePanel results contradict this idea, said Ian Rubin, director of IDCs online financial services advisory programs.
Financial institutions are very innovative as they integrate customer service and customer relationship management technologies into their Web sites, he said. Also, the degree to which they are using nonconventional selling processes, such as dynamic pricing, is much higher than expected.
