When it comes to banking methods, customers have been opting for digital for a long time. As early as 2017, 80 percent of customer touchpoints were digital. 

This shift to a digital-first approach was further accelerated by COVID-19, which drove double-digit shifts in customers’ preferences for mobile and browser-based banking. That’s not to say the brick-and-mortar branch is obsolete though. When it comes to more complex interactions such as loan applications or financial advice, customers continue to value an in-person approach. 

For financial services institutions (FSIs), this means you can’t place too much importance on any single channel. Only an omnichannel approach will ensure your customers get the service they need, when they need it, and in the form that suits them best. 

On the other hand, as omnichannel increases the range of touchpoints your customers can access, it also extends the risk surface for cyber-attacks and data breaches. 

So, how can you balance the omnichannel imperative with the need to keep your customers safe? 

What is omnichannel banking? 

First, let’s clarify our terminology. 

While omnichannel has become a widely used phrase in recent years, it’s often conflated with a related term: multi-channel. So, what’s the difference? 

• Multichannel focuses on providing a range of distinct channels through which customers can access your products and services. It’s about flexibility — ideally, customers should be able to achieve any of their goals through whichever channel suits them best. 

• Omnichannel is about integrating these various channels effectively to create a consistent and seamless experience. Customers should be able to switch between channels without needing to repeat any steps in their journey. 

It's important to note that these approaches aren't at odds with each other. To deliver a powerful omnichannel experience, you need to maximize the number of available channels and expand their functionality. However, the true magic happens when these channels are fully aligned. 

Let’s look at how you can deliver a seamless omnichannel experience, as well as the benefits it can deliver for your customers. Then, we can delve deeper into the security risks it can pose — and how to tackle them. 

How omnichannel banking can transform your customer experience 

Meeting all your customers’ needs 

We often talk about customer expectations as though they are static and unchanging. But each one of your customers, no matter their demographic, will have different requirements at different times. For instance, they may quickly check their balance on your mobile app while they’re outside, but prefer to make a phone call for more complex queries. 

By offering an omnichannel experience, you empower your customers to engage with your services on their own terms. This increases the likelihood they’ll use a broader range of your products, expanding your share of wallet and improving customer retention rates. 

But to achieve this, you’ll need to ensure your systems are fully integrated and data can flow easily across your organization. If your call center team can’t access data customers have provided online, they’ll have to ask them to provide it again — hardly a seamless or satisfying experience. 

Building stronger relationships 

However convenient they may be, digital channels face a key limitation: they are inherently less personal than face-to-face interactions. For younger customers, who tend to rely more on digital services, this lack of a human touch can be a major problem. In fact, almost fifty percent of Gen Z and millennial customers who are looking to switch banks would consider staying if they were offered a more personalized experience. 

An omnichannel approach can help you tackle this issue. Successful omnichannel implementation ensures that customer data is gathered and integrated across all your channels. By combining all of a customer’s interactions into a coherent picture of their needs, you can offer a more personalized service. For instance, you can offer tailored financial advice based on their spending habits, or reach out with lending offers after they’ve made an initial enquiry. 

To deliver this level of personalization, you’ll need the tools to build unified customer profiles that all of your departments can access. With this kind of integrated approach, customers are more likely to feel valued and understood — like a person, and not an account number. 

Offering the best of both worlds 

Instead of separating digital and physical touchpoints, why not look at how they can be merged to deliver more powerful customer experiences? 

This is what a physical approach entails. It brings the benefits of digital to your in-branch services — and vice versa. In practice, this can mean: 

• Allowing customers to activate a new payment card digitally without waiting for it to arrive in the post. 

• Offering video chat functionality so that customers can speak directly to in-branch staff using a mobile app. 

• Delivering digital notifications — product recommendations or tailored financial advice, for instance — based on customers’ physical location or movements. 

Through these kinds of innovative offerings, you can provide the best of both digital and physical approaches. And with 40 percent of customers switching banks in order to receive a more innovative service, the retention benefits could be significant. 

Balancing customer experience and security in omnichannel banking 

Each of the aspects of omnichannel banking outlined above shares a common prerequisite: a steady flow of customer data across your organization. 

As your channels become more extensive and closely integrated, the security issues become more difficult to manage. The imperative to protect yourself — and your customers — against data breaches and cyber-attacks becomes even stronger. 

However, extensive security measures can add friction to your customer journeys, undermining the benefits of an omnichannel approach. Switching to an authenticator app or waiting on a text confirmation can easily lead customers to think, I’ll come back to this later. 

So, how can you balance these two key demands? We suggest: 

• Implementing a regulatory framework. A reactive approach to cyber-security and data governance is likely to leave you exposed to cyber threats — and there’s no bigger CX disaster than a data breach. Get ahead of the problem by developing an organization-wide framework for meeting security requirements. Ideally, this will be developed by a dedicated, cross-functional team. It should also include ongoing training in best practices for your staff. 

• Choosing the right partners. Delivering an omnichannel experience means building a tech stack that can support it. As you explore third-party vendors or technology partners to help you build your capabilities, make security a priority. Does the software come with ongoing support and updates to protect against new vulnerabilities? Are your external partners able to support your cyber-security efforts? After all, no feature set is worth risking your customers’ data. 

• Making security part of your CX. Yes, two-factor authentication or repeated security checks can add friction to your customer journeys. But at the same time, customers benefit from feeling safe. Find ways to frame your security practices as a benefit, not an imposition. Even something as simple as the copy for your verification page can turn an onerous task into an added benefit for your customers, if it’s phrased right. 

Achieve omnichannel excellence with Modes 

Done right, omnichannel banking can transform your customer experience. You’ll build deep and lasting relationships across all your touchpoints, reducing churn and expanding your share of wallet. 

However, achieving this kind of omnichannel experience without sacrificing security requires careful strategic planning and technical expertise. 

If your resources don’t match your ambitions, Modes can help. We bring decades of experience in the financial services industry, as well as a commitment to walking side by-side with you on your digital journey. 

Get in touch today and start co-creating your omnichannel experience.