HOW TO HUMANIZE YOUR DIGITAL CHANNELS

PRESIDENT & CEO LARRY LUBIN QUOTED IN FORBES ARTICLE ON HUMANIZING UX

Year over year BLUERUSH is a DMFS veteran (that’s the summit for Digital Marketing in Financial Services). We participate in the conference to share our experiences and learn from our colleagues. A theme that we presented at DMFS and carried through 2017 is humanization; the idea that digital experiences cannot be static and impersonal. We must imbue digital experiences with human characteristics so as to cater to the paradoxical nature of customer expectations.

I met with Andrew Kucheriavy, CEO of Intechnic, in April to discuss DMFS and the lack of humanization in digital marketing for financial services. I said to him what I’ve been espousing for years – financial matters are complex and emotional. Because of these characteristics, servicing financial clients requires special attention be paid to the customer service model. Here’s why.

THE MODERN FINANCIAL CONSUMER IS INHERENTLY A PARADOX!

On one hand they want self-serve tech-enabled digital experiences; in part because discussing finances in person is uncomfortable and emotional, and also because they are increasingly mobile-reliant. On the other hand they want face to face advice from someone they trust about something that is complex to understand. So how can you be there for your clients and still give them the immediate assistance that technology can provide?

I work with a lot of financial advisors who acutely understand this paradox. Advisors sit at the intersection of human customer service and financial technology. They understand that purely human or purely digital financial advice is not the answer. The answer lies somewhere in the middle.

Customers want a healthy balance between the two.

A portion of all financial activities require an advisor, agent, or broker. Another portion doesn’t require any human assistance at all (eg. Paying bills, simple money management). The remaining portion can be serviced through humanized, personal digital experiences.

What does a personal, humanized experience look like?

I see 3 core elements that need to be addressed in order to be there for your paradoxical clients without physical presence:

Education: Create your digital experiences such that they provide in depth-explanations about financial products. Offer incentives that incite the client to call you and learn more.

• Video is highly effective at this, so are AI-powered chatbots. Watch this clip for a demonstration: Example.

Engagement: create a digital experience that is dynamic and interactive.

• Use customer-supplied data and logic to provide interactive digital experiences that speak to your client the way you would in person

Empowerment: tailor the experience to the client’s specific needs so that you give them the best possible tools for meeting their financial goals.

• Give only relevant, purposeful recommendations to your clients to help them achieve their goals and ensure that human advice is accessible

The intention behind these strategies is twofold. 1) Keep your business competitive digitally. 2) Provide the best possible customer service to generate leads and retain existing clients. This is what I work on with my clients every day. I built BLUERUSH with these two goals in mind and we consistently achieve success for companies by taking this approach.