In our previous blog, we introduced the first pillar in our pandemic customer strategy: becoming a source of truth. If financial institutions can establish themselves as a trusted partner, their digital channels will become the first (and maybe only) stop for customers looking to navigate the complexities of all the government programs and the applicable financial measures.  A practical, guided experience goes a long way in retaining the trust of existing customers through this pandemic. It also presents an opportunity to attract new customers and increase market share.

Canadian financial institutions have all taken the first step by establishing dedicated COVID-19 pages. These pages aim to be a one-stop-shop for providing financial assistance measures, pandemic updates, and new and applicable government programs. However, due to the rapidly changing situation, and the assortment of customer needs, the pages can be challenging to navigate and maintain. We must assume today’s consumers are feeling overwhelmed, confused, and are generally approaching this pandemic in a reactive manner. Currently, customers are having to click, scroll, and comb through the noise and overload of text. It is impractical to expect customers to be able to navigate without some degree of support. 

This pandemic calls for a different approach – an interactive advice-driven portal built around the concept of answering four points:

1. Tell us about yourself/your situation.

2. What is it that you need help with?

3. Here are some things to consider.

4. Let us help you take action.

Customers can go through a guided or unguided experience, answer a series of questions, and then see recommendations on which form of assistance or information is most applicable to their situation. In the spirit of being a one-stop-shop, recommendations should cover a combination of FI-specific items, government-specific items, and any possible third-party considerations. The solution can live on the public site where authentication is not required. Then once the FI authenticates the user, the tool can later be expanded to refine recommendations further based on what it already knows about the customer (products and services). Below we have an illustration a sample-path of selection options:

The benefits of introducing an interactive system apply to both customers and the financial institutions themselves. With more tailored information at their fingertips, customers can better understand their situation and self-serve, saving the need for a phone call and ultimately relieving pressure on contact centers. In parallel, such a tool could also be used by a contact center agent to guide their interaction with a customer, ultimately helping the customer land on the correct solution.  In either case, the experience is positive, trust is maintained, and peace of mind is gained.

The Interactive Advice Portal would be a tool that continuously adapts as the situation changes, and we learn more, whether that be new assistance measures from the government or new services offered by the financial institution itself. But in a broader, longer-term view – customers want to be guided through the vast amounts of data to make informed decisions quickly. Tools like the financial impact calculators and online application process described in our Financial Assistance Solution blog can be the delivery vehicle to make all the difference to the customer. We will dive deeper into the concepts of these tools, and how using predictive data will help both FIs and customers alike, in our next blog post.

For more information around Capco’s COVID-19 digital solutions, please contact us at solutions@capco.com.