UX Strategies for Banking Products

How does it help? 

Ensuring Accessibility: It prioritizes clear navigation and content organization. A product that is accessible to all users including users with disabilities.   

Generating Trust and Credibility: By focusing on several key aspects -- clear communication, consistency, security, accessibility, user feedback, and empathy -- banks can create positive user experiences that build trust and loyalty among their customers.

Enhancing Efficiency and Productivity: improving accessibility, improving customer experience, reducing errors, and enabling self-service options. By simplifying complex tasks, UX design can reduce the time and effort required from both banking customers and employees.

Prioritizing Compliance and Security: This aids in building customer trust, managing risk, maintaining brand reputation, and meeting customer expectations. Well-designed interfaces guide users in adhering to security protocols. As banks are subject to strict regulatory requirements

Enabling Improvement Through User Feedback: Gathering and acting on user feedback allows banks to align their services with customer expectations, preferences, and pain points. This iterative process involves creating, testing, and refining designs based on valuable user feedback.

Offering Long-term Cost Savings: It reduces the time and effort required to complete tasks, which can optimize resource utilization and improve overall operational efficiency. 

Business Benefits - 

Customer Satisfaction: greater emphasis on user-centered design, resulting in products that are more intuitive, engaging, and personalized.

Competitive Advantage: This can lead to increased market share and revenue growth.

Flexibility and Agility: allowing them to respond quickly to rapidly changing digital market conditions and customer needs.

Increased Revenue: by attracting and retaining more customers.

Enhanced Brand Reputation: This can help to build trust and loyalty among customers.

Tailor-made Service: By leveraging data and user research tools, financial organizations can create more personalized next-gen products and services that meet the unique needs and preferences of their specific customers.

Main Obstacles to Deliver Next-Gen Financial Products - 

Legacy Systems: Many established banks have legacy systems that are difficult to update or replace. These systems may be outdated and not compatible with modern technologies.

Complex Stakeholder Landscape: Established/Incumbent banks have various stakeholders, including customers, shareholders, regulators, and employees, each with their own priorities and preferences.

Lack of User-Centered Approach: Established banks may not prioritize a user-centered approach to product design, which involves prioritizing the needs and preferences of the end-users. 

Lack of Design Expertise: Established banks may not have the resources or expertise to design next-gen digital products. This could be due to budget constraints, a lack of in-house design talent.

Focus on Functionality: Established banks may prioritize functionality and security over product aesthetics and user experience.

Cultural Resistance to Change: Established banks may have a culture that is resistant to change and innovation

Regulatory Constraints: Established banks operate in a heavily regulated environment, and their digital products must comply with various laws and regulations.

Lack of Collaboration: Established banks may not have a collaborative approach to design, which can result in siloed teams that do not share knowledge and expertise. This can lead to inconsistencies in design across different digital products and a lack of alignment with the overall brand image of the bank. 

How to Move to a Next-Gen Financial Product Design

View Design as a Methodology, not as a Package

Next-gen approach: design is a customer-centered business approach

Legacy approach: design is a package

There are five areas successful financial brands focus on to use UX design as an accelerator of the company's success:

1. Business model that puts the processes of user-centricity first;
2. Team of UX experts who are qualified to execute the business idea and make sure it will truly bring value to the customers;
3. Right actions executed by the UX experts who are able to impact in-depth processes of the financial company;
4. Correct criteria to evaluate the results the team is producing - whether the focus is on the packaging or delivering exceptional experience;
5. The materialization of the unique Value the financial app will provide to the customers, turning the brand into a success story.

Increase the Scope of UX Design Influence

Next-gen approach: designers are UX facilitators, empowering customer-centricity in business processes

Legacy approach: designers create only the top coat of the product

Challenge the Past

Next-gen approach: agile, flexible and quickly adapting to future rules

Legacy approach: relying on past success

Disrupt: 

Meanwhile, successful financial brands challenge legacies and encourage their teams to step out of the box.

Switch from Fragmentation to Ecosystem 

Next-gen approach: developing a holistic digital ecosystem

Legacy approach: developing products separately

Successful financial brands ensure a victorious digital transformation by creating and developing a united digital banking ecosystem that ensures a smooth, connected flow of a delightful experience that the customers expect.

Put UX Research First 

Next-gen approach: the main focus is on the users

Legacy approach: the main focus is on products

Successful financial companies know that mobile banking apps created without proper user research often fail, because it's not possible to address market needs if there's no knowledge about the user problems.

Fintechs and progressive banks invest a lot of time and money in research, data analysis, information architecture, and product improvement.

Provide a Unique Value Proposition 

Next-gen approach: creates an authentic value

Legacy approach: believes that one size fits all

To save their business from the highly competitive “red ocean,” Fintechs and progressive financial brands are authentic. They define the weak points of their competitors and address customers’ pains in a way that enriches their daily lives.

Drop the Obsession with Functionality 

Next-gen approach: aims for fewer functions that better match the users’ needs

Legacy approach: thinks that the more functions, the better

Measure the Result by the Quality, not Quantity 

Next-gen approach: measures results by the value that design brings to the customers

Legacy approach: counts design deliverables

Fintechs and progressive banks focus on intuitive banking experiences and think carefully about every element on each screen.

Focus on Emotions Instead of Information 

Next-gen approach: ensure an emotional connection with customers

Legacy approach: focus on advertising and information

Emotions make customers loyal to the financial brands they choose. To connect with customers on an emotional level, digital-first financial companies provide personalized attitude and a delightful experience, demonstrating that they care about their customers.

Invest More in Improving Customer Experience 

Next-gen approach: focus on how to serve customers through a purpose-driven approach

Legacy approach: focus on how to make more profit in any way possible

Neo banks and Fintechs create a value-based community around a significant purpose and outstanding brand experience.

Focus on security. Ensure your bank's online and mobile platforms can protect customers' sensitive information. 

Make it easy to contact customer support. Provide many channels to contact the support team, including phone, email, and chat.

Personalize the experience. Recommend relevant products and services based on customers' transaction history or provide personalized alerts for account activities.

Provide self-service options. Allow customers to create their own workspace. It can save their time and improve the overall experience. The more options your app offers to meet user needs, the better the digital banking UX.

Provide clear and concise instructions when customers must complete security measures, such as changing passwords or verifying identities.

Adopt risk-based authentication to customize security measures based on the transaction risk level. For example, a high-value transaction may require additional authentication steps. In contrast, a routine transaction may only require a password.