Delivering Excellent Guest Service: 3 Strategies Banks Can Implement to Wow Customers

Your financial institution can provide great service by responding to what customers really want right now.

Banks are always switching up their offerings to stay competitive, with new kinds of checking accounts and tweaks to credit card rewards programs. But there’s one sure way to win loyal customers: listen and respond to current customer needs.

Those are changing due to inflation and other economic woes in the wake of the pandemic, according to the J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study.

A customer’s definition of support from their retail bank is “no longer predominately about being fast, efficient or convenient,” states Jennifer White, senior consultant of banking intelligence at J.D. Power. “The preeminent performance metric with the biggest influence on customer satisfaction is ‘supporting customers during challenging times,'” she states. “And that means customers are expecting a personalized mix of financial advice, hands-on help with problem resolution and guidance on how to grow their money.”

Here’s how banks can provide better service during tough times by giving customers what they really want in those three areas in the coming year:

Personalized financial help

Offer personalized financial help, especially programs and tools designed to help customers avoid getting hit with high fees, which may make them want to switch banks. The J.D. Power survey asked customers how they wanted their bank to personalize their banking experience, and almost half (46 percent) stated that they wanted help avoiding fees.

A sizable number (37 percent) stated they wanted to get account alerts. Some banks have eliminated or reduced overdraft fees altogether, according to Bankrate, while others offer alerts or other ways for a customer to act to avoid getting a fee. For example, Citizens Bank implemented a grace period.

Support through ups and downs

One of the biggest actions a bank can take to increase customer satisfaction: offer support in tough economic times.

“Overall customer satisfaction with retail banks rises 155 points (on a 1,000-point scale) when customers cite that their bank supports them during challenging economic times,” J.D. Power states. And 63 percent of customers say they definitely will not switch banks when theirs offers this type of support. “However, despite its huge effect on customer satisfaction, only 44 percent of banks are delivering on this metric,” J.D.

Power states. In some cases, banks just need to do a better job of communicating the help they already offer. In fact, almost two in three customers (61 percent) do not know if their bank has made any changes to their overdraft fee policy, J.D. Power states, adding: “Notably, many big banks have introduced fee relief plans this year.”

Tips on how to save time and money

“While banks perform particularly well on traditional customer engagement metrics such as people, digital channels and overall trust, satisfaction scores are lowest for helping retail bank customers save time or money, which has become a key priority for them,” J.D. Power points out. “Financial institutions need to look after their own balance sheets in a time like now, of course, but they can also help themselves and gain long-term loyalty by helping consumers,” states The Financial Brand, a digital publication focused on the retail banking sector.

As consumers worry less about the future (investing, retirement) and more about the now (stretching their money to the end of the month), banks can help by providing budgeting tools that are easy to use and visually appealing, The Financial Brand states. Another big help: automatic savings plans or apps. “For example, Varo Bank’s Spare Your Change plan enables consumers to funnel spare change from all transactions to another savings account,” The Financial Brand points out.

In these challenging economic times, customers need advice, help and support. Banks are perfectly positioned to provide this type of service, helping their customers make it through and securing their loyalty for years to come.