Looking to Get More Millennials in the Bank? Focus on Experience.

October 20, 2024 by

Image credit: Francisco Osorio

It’s hard to overestimate the importance of Millennial customers these days.

This new market of technologically-savvy individuals is coming into its own in terms of disposable income and interest in spending, so reaching those individuals is of extreme importance. But for banks, it’s a difficult question: how do you pull in those users that would rather do business over an app than in a branch? The answer to that question is surprisingly simple: make a better banking experience.

A new report from the Viacom Millennial Disruption Index says that 71 percent of Millennials would prefer a trip to the dentist than the bank, and 53 percent say that banks aren’t offering anything any different from any other financial institution, and that means banks will likely wind up passed up any point it’s possible to do so.

Moreover, 49 percent of Millennials are actually willing to do their banking with technology firms like Google or Amazon rather than with a standard bank. However, there’s one small advantage here, as 69 percent of Millennials actually do trust a financial institution to protect their money, and that may be the wedge that helps gets the Millennials back in the bank.

It’s a deck stacked against banks to begin with; Millennials have conservative spending habits, got their start on the cusp of the 2008 financial crisis, and have full command over the information available online to learn just about anything about just about anything.

A reported 70 percent of Millennials favor debit cards to credit cards as a means to manage debt and stick to a budget, and prefer user-generated content like reviews to help make buying decisions.

Getting these Millennials in the door, meanwhile, requires a focus on the experience. Experience is one thing that can’t readily be had online, so focusing on the complete experience will be vital to keeping the Millennial customer.

An approach known as omnichannel—one that deals with multiple platforms at once, like online, mobile, and in-store—is the best approach to keeping the Millennial user. Make sure that the mobile experience is not only as good as it could be, but that it carries over well to the desktop or to the in-store (in this case in-bank) experience. It’s also important to have a personal connection with the Millennial customer, as Millennials prefer a degree of personalization in operations.

The good news here is that huge degree of trust that Millennials have in terms of banks’ ability to protect money. That’s good news, and it’s one that can be built on. Consider focusing marketing efforts on not just protecting money, but on protecting a Millennial’s financial future.

The bank protects money; that resonates with Millennials. However, the bank doesn’t just protect money today, it can also protect money tomorrow. It can even protect money to go into a Millennial’s retirement plans.

Then, demonstrate how; build on that reputation by showing why it’s merited. Keep up with the flow of technology, showing how maybe biometrics come into play, or regular reports of balances and account activity come in to protect the account holder.

Banks may have a difficult time with things coming up, as Millennial customers are actively looking to potential competitors for banks to handle that business. It could be a big problem, or a big opportunity, depending on how banks address the situation. But either way, it’s likely to be a big change, and getting that next generation of customers in will depend wholly on how banks address the future.

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