Develop and strengthen relationships with customers increasingly through contact channels capable of responding in a personalized and flexible way to different needs. If on the one hand banks modulate and expand their services to support customers 'need for proximity, even in the phase of the Covid-19 pandemic, on the other hand, customers increasingly appreciate the possibility of counting on solutions made' on measure ', simple and reliable. The cross-section emerges from the latest survey carried out by ABI in collaboration with Ipsos in the context of the bank-customer observatory.
The main results of the ABI survey with Ipsos were presented today at the opening of the #ilCliente conference, the two-day event dedicated to the relationship between banks and customers, promoted by ABI. Online, on a dedicated digital platform, freely usable, #ilCliente is aimed in particular at professionals in the sector to offer them an area of in-depth analysis and comparison on the evolution of the retail world, the news and trends in progress also in terms of sustainability and light of the impacts caused by the ongoing pandemic.
One in 10 customers discovered operator chat
According to the Abi survey with Ipsos, carried out on a representative sample of customers, in 2020 61% of customers turned directly to their contact person to receive support with respect to the most complex financial choices. The survey also shows that the range of those who turn to home and remote financial advisors is growing (equal to 16% in 2020; it was 14% in 2018 and 4% in 2012), while the habits of customers the use of contact centers (25% in 2020; it was 22% in 2018 and 7% in 2012) and, in the year marked by the start of the health emergency and the consequent distancing of contacts, for the first time the Chat with the operator appears. Used by 11% of customers to communicate with their bank, this instant messaging channel is quickly establishing itself due to its ease of use, because it allows rapid assistance and is available from computer and telephone.
The increasingly 'do-it-yourself' dispositive operations
The most common method of contact with the bank today among customers is represented by the combined use of physical and digital channels. In particular, the survey shows that the pandemic has not stopped the relationship on the territory to guarantee operations linked to cash and checks, for advice on more complex financial projects or for regulatory compliance (77% of customers used the agency in the last year).
While the agency becomes an important and qualified reference place for consulting on important transactions, the bank via the Web (Internet and mobile banking) is increasingly appreciated for the immediacy and speed with which it is possible to check and manage at any time. account and carry out activities independently, such as payments and routine financial transactions.
According to the survey, 90% of digital customers are using internet and mobile channels more widely, including for payment transactions. If Internet banking is confirmed as the preferred digital channel (for 56% of customers), mobile is quickly establishing itself among the habits of these customers: one customer out of two (48%), in fact, operates on the move, bringing with if the bank goes wherever it goes, accessing services through mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets (the percentage was 6% in 2012).