The news: Big banks are losing customers to fintechs as early as the account-opening stage. Here’s a look at where banks are falling short in their processes, and what they can do to recover before it’s too late, per Forbes.
Off-task onboarding: Shiny, a PR and marketing firm that works with brands like Barclaycard and lending firm OneMain, conducted an experiment to test different US banks’ digital account opening and onboarding experiences. Its results revealed that the process can be slow, painful, and sometimes even impossible to complete.
Attributes the group looked to assess included: Was the account easy to open and maintain? Were there low or no minimum balance requirements? Were there no or avoidable fees? Was there a hard credit pull to open the account? The group also noted if the account offered a competitive interest rate. Here are some hurdles they encountered:
- The US state in which new customers applied wasn’t available in the dropdown menu on the application, and it didn’t explain why. This happened during two different banks’ application processes.
- Once new customers finally found a high-profile bank at which they could apply, the team spent over four minutes submitting the application and waiting for it to process. They then received an error message and a customer service number to call. That was the only option.
- After calling the number, it took 15 minutes for the team to learn the account had actually been approved. Once funding was set up—which took roughly five minutes over the phone—two days passed before the funds were visible in the account.
- The service rep said it would take seven to 10 days to receive the welcome package with all of their account information.
In today’s digital world, consumers have learned to expect instant gratification. The experiment found that wasn’t possible at a big bank. So consumers are instead turning to fintechs and digital banks, which make speed a priority.