Interesting article on omnicality in financial services companies reinforcing the need to combine physical and digital channels at the customer’s will.
Even though it was published in 2013, it is still relevant today.
The era of omnichannel banking is already here
For financial services companies, the omni-channel challenge lies in finding the right mix of branch banking, mobile, social media and video technologies to deliver contextualized banking experiences to customers.
Omnichannel banking is different from the current multichannel approach in which banks encourage customers to use the least expensive channel, while offering minimal inter-channel consistency and an inconsistent user experience. Omnichannel banking delivers a consistent experience across channels to offer customers seamless access to financial products and services, where they want them, when they need them. In the world of omnichannel banking, customers control the channels they want to use.
Omni-channel banking is not a hypothetical concept, but is essential to satisfy consumers’ desire to control the time, place, channel and information needed to conduct their banking activities. In developed countries a rich mix of physical (branch) and virtual (web, mobile and social) banking channels has prepared consumers for the advent of a seamless onmichannel experience.
Javier Echebarria