In recent years, big technology companies such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google have shown a growing interest in offering financial services. Yet, they are not the only ones competing for a slice of a market dominated by traditional banking.
Telecommunications businesses, retail giants, and even companies such as Uber are using the power of their brands to carve out space in the world of financial services banking. Faced with this challenge, and instead of completely changing its nature, traditional banking is called upon to show one of its distinctive traits: being the first to innovate and being at the forefront of technology.
Here are five trends in the financial industry for 2022. Check our complimentary resources to know more about critical financial market users' thoughts.
The quest for innovation
Innovation can be quite a puzzle. Taking too long makes new ideas fall short, but innovating too fast brings risks. The challenge is always finding the right moment so initiatives can grow and evolve.
In this regard, technologies such as cloud computing are essential because they make it possible to create an architecture of flexible, scalable services without the costs of on-premise infrastructure. Through cloud services, it is also possible to start integrating technology that is increasingly appealing to users, such as blockchain and artificial intelligence. If you want to learn more about how to migrate services to the cloud, click here.
Designing data-based strategies
Having loads of transaction data does not mean knowing clients, much less understanding and empathizing with what makes them tick. The consequence of this lack of knowledge is the design of generic services and products that do not cater to the end customer's needs.
To close this gap, banks are creating service ecosystems in which the bank connects the user with the provider of the product they want to buy. Whether it's an appliance, a car, or a house, the bank is always there, learning about the behavior of its users and refining its ability to deliver what people need when they need it.
Bringing banking closer to new generations
Approaching new generations of users is crucial for traditional banking. On this path, offering simple, transparent digital services is just the beginning.
Younger users no longer expect a single bank to solve all their needs. The fact that they use neobanks and traditional banking services indistinctly creates an expectation of integration that can be achieved by making services more flexible and reacting quickly.
Connecting with people's values
If banks are perceived as "neutral" or "impartial," it is difficult to attract new talent, particularly to create memorable user experiences.
Having a purpose and successfully communicating is one of the most critical challenges for traditional banking. Overcoming it involves knowing in depth the values that motivate each group of users and designing innovative services in tune with those values. The DO Black Card, for example, allows the users to keep track of the carbon footprint of their purchases while reinforcing the ecological commitment of the brand offering it.
More agile than ever
Still today, and despite the tremendous pace at which new technologies are adopted, many organizations carry the wage of manual processes. Automating processes and updating the organizational culture is vital to minimize time and costs and reduce the impact of digital transformation.
The new players in the sector, especially those from the technological sphere, have years of experience using methodologies based on agility or allowing the constant improvement and evolution of existing products and services.
Refreshing the organizational culture does not mean a change in values. On the contrary, it is the opportunity to fulfill the organization's purpose more efficiently, focused on end-users.
