Banks have spent years investing in UX to make mobile banking apps more intuitive. Yet contact centers still field a steady stream of repetitive how-to calls, such as how to set up a transfer, change my address or resolve account lockout issues. So, what’s going on?
The truth is, even with the best UX in the world, your bank or financial institution can still see a significant number of how-to calls. That’s because these calls aren’t UX issues; they’re knowledge issues (or a lack of).
So, what can your bank do to reduce how-to calls? An important first step is leveraging proactive support in digital banking. This post covers common sources of how-to calls, what proactive support actually means in a banking context and steps you can take to provide better banking customer service.
Why are digital banking customers still calling for how-to help?
Digital banking customers still call for help because traditional support channels intervene too late. By the time someone picks up the phone, they have already abandoned the task in the app out of frustration. As mentioned previously, it’s typically not because the app or website is poorly designed, but rather that there’s a lack of easy-to-access guidance for the customer’s problem.
So what are the most common reasons customers are calling for help? Here are a few of the most common mobile banking issues that lead to more how-to support calls.
Logins and authentication issues
Password resets and authentication failures are usually the top call drivers for banks. These issues are often caused by things like:
- Browser auto-fill errors
- Biometric failures (for example, a wet finger)
- Multi-factor authentication issues
These issues often lead to account lockouts, followed by instructions to call your bank’s contact center. This results in higher call volume, leading to longer wait times and the potential for higher support costs. It also creates unnecessary friction in the customer experience, which increases the likelihood of customer rage.
Lack of intuitive app navigation and usability
Over half of customers say using phone apps is their top choice for managing their bank accounts. Yet customers of many traditional banks often deal with headaches due to poor app navigation.
This can result in customers often having to call in for help to locate specific features to complete tasks (such as help finding Zelle so they can send money to a friend). Not only does this drive up call volume, but it can also make it difficult for banks to compete with more digitally savvy fintech brands.
Lack of digital literacy
At one bank Ozmo spoke with, up to 50% of call center volume consisted of routine, self-service tasks, such as checking account balances, that customers could easily do online but choose not to out of habit or lack of digital literacy.
A lack of digital literacy can lead to higher support costs and lengthy call center queues. This can lead to frustration for both customers and agents as they navigate their day-to-day.
What is proactive support in digital banking?
Proactive support in digital banking means delivering the right guidance to a customer before they need to call. Most banks still use reactive support, where a customer tries to complete a task, fails and calls. Often, this leaves customers frustrated, which can affect key metrics for your contact center.
With proactive support, the app or website recognizes the friction point and surfaces guidance in context, so the customer completes the task without having to call. Here are a few examples of what proactive support looks like in practice:
- Step-by-step walkthroughs triggered by user behavior
- Contextual help embedded inside the screen the customer is on
- Visual guidance, like screenshots and annotated flows instead of long FAQ articles
- Consistent guidance, whether the customer is on iOS, Android or the web
Proactive customer service means your banking customers can get the help they need before it escalates to a call. This is critical for decreasing customer churn rate and creating a seamless customer experience.
How can banks reduce call volume through proactive support?
Banks reduce call volume by replacing reactive triage with in-app self-service, omnichannel customer support and AI-driven guidance that resolves questions before they become phone calls.
Implement banking app self-service
Banking app self-service reduces call volume when it goes beyond static FAQs and delivers visual, step-by-step guidance at the moment a customer gets stuck. Self-service is critical to creating a positive customer experience. Eight out of 10 customers try to resolve an issue independently before reaching out to your contact center.
However, effective digital banking self-service doesn’t consist of text-based FAQ articles, which can quickly become outdated. Instead, interactive tutorials are much more powerful tools for streamlining the self-service experience and driving digital adoption.
Self-service tools can be an ideal solution for handling many common customer support requests. For example, customers could leverage automated support tools to:
- Freeze a credit or debit card
- Deposit a check via mobile app
- Check their account balance
- Reset passwords
Encouraging customers to use self-serve support can help decrease contact center call volume and reduce business expenses. It also means customers can access instant support and skip the call queue. This can be especially critical for Gen Z customers, who often hang up after waiting less than a minute on hold. The bottom line? Automated support is critical for the success of your bank or financial institution.
Harness the power of omnichannel customer service
Omnichannel customer service reduces call volume by giving customers and agents access to the same guidance across every channel, creating a unified customer experience.
Many businesses still leverage a multichannel service model. While this means customers can access support on their preferred channel, the quality of the service often varies. It also means agents don’t have the context of a customer’s previous interactions on another channel. This can force customers to repeat themselves, increasing both frustration and average handle time (AHT).
However, with omnichannel customer support, your company retains context across channels through a single, unified platform. This creates a more streamlined service experience by ensuring agents and customers can access consistent, reliable information regardless of whether they call, reach out via email or SMS. This can help your bank potentially improve its customer retention rate and net promoter score (NPS).
Consider implementing artificial intelligence (AI) tools
AI customer service tools reduce call volume by analyzing support interactions and surfacing the right information at the right time. Nearly six in 10 customers report occasionally using an AI tool for banking services.
There are numerous advantages to using AI in customer service. First, it allows customers to access support at any time of day or night. Additionally, it can be critical for helping your bank or financial institution scale support as your customer base grows.
So, how can you integrate AI into your contact center? Two of the most common tools are conversational AI chatbots and agent assit AI.
Conversational AI uses natural language processing (NLP) to better understand the context around user requests, rather than relying on specific keywords as previous generations of chatbots did. This means conversational AI chatbots better understand the nuance of specific requests and can provide faster, more reliable service resolution.
Agent assist AI is designed to help your agents deliver faster, more effective customer service. These tools analyze customer data in real time, providing agents with accurate information to diagnose and troubleshoot customer service tickets. The goal isn’t to replace humans with robots, but rather to use technology to help human agents do their jobs better.
Make proactive customer service your competitive edge
Customers have more choices than ever before when choosing financial service providers. This can make it difficult for traditional banks or financial institutions to compete against modern fintechs. However, proactive customer support can be a critical way to distinguish your bank from the competition.
Proactive support in digital banking means providing customers with speedy and accurate resolutions at the point of friction, before they have to pick up the phone. Proactive support can help reduce the number of how-to calls, since often these calls are driven by a lack of reliable guidance and information rather than a UX issue. By giving customers the guidance they need right when they need it, you can reduce contact center call volume, improve CSAT and drive digital adoption among your customer base.
Are you looking for more guidance on leveraging customer service to differentiate your bank or financial services institution? Download our e-book, which features original research on how to scale customer support while building trust and reducing customer churn. Grab your free copy today.
