Customers – focus for Banks?

It’s been a good week for the customer in Retail Banking!

Lloyds has made a commitment to “improve customer services” whilst Santander is bringing it’s contact centres back from India to the UK to “improve customer service”. As for the new banks Metro Bank’s philosophy is “banking focused on the customer”.

So why is it I am not convinced that Customer Service will improve – are you? How many of us can really put their hands up and say they are really pleased with the service from their banks and if so what does “good ” really look like? What is the role of the branch in good customer service and if on-line Banking is the way of the future how do banks show good customer service with a face less channel?

What do you think?

Angela Hickmore is a Director at Interim Partners.

2 Responses to “Customers – focus for Banks?”

1. Donald Davies Says:
   July 11th, 2011 at 12:04 pm

   I sense that Banks will need to really understand what their proposition is, both now and strategically. A lot of talk centres on product cross-sell (Lloyds with Scottish Widows as prime example).

   This type of model, which was developed in the 70’s before the internet and whilst customer awareness of products and market choice, is now challenging. What made it work when the infrastructure costs to support it were so high, were very high margin products like PPI (now outlawed) and punitive rebate structures on loan early settlement, abolished around 2007, all sold to a captive audience.
   The range of customers who now demand self serve, cross all demographics. Look at Amazon, increasing presence in the UK to service “self serve” demand – including food.

   Having been in Banking for over 30 years I really do think its time for radical change, not same as same as.

   The BIG challenge is – how do banks make money in the digital age….. with expensive high street locations and outdated products?

   It is easy to model cross sale opportunities across your customer population on a spreadsheet – gosh I have done that often enough, it is more difficult to actually fulfil, to keep the customers attention long enough in the self serve world to sell a product that makes a margin.

   So, will improved customer service really be the salvation of the system?

2. Liz Sinclair Says:
   July 11th, 2011 at 4:46 pm

   There is one bank whom I would consider head and shoulders above the rest in terms of providing good customer service.Its a bank without a High Street presence,but amazingly with a personality-staffed by a bunch of warm friendly people who are allowed to use their natural instincts to satisfy expectations and resolve issues without resorting to a prescriptive script. We all know who we’re talking about.And no,I’m not being paid to say this.

Leave a Reply

To ensure your blog response is published please provide your first and second name together with an email address that matches the one you used when registering on the IP site. Blog responses will only be published if we can identify who you are and/or that you are registered with Interim Partners. Please click here if you wish to register

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website