HONG KONG, October 16, 2019 – Capco, the leading technology and management consultancy dedicated to the financial services industry, has unveiled a new report highlighting seven key trends that should inform how Hong Kong’s virtual banking industry deliver more personalized digital banking products and experiences to customers in the city .
As the new report – Customer-centricity in the age of Hong Kong virtual banking – notes, customers have come to expect services that are easy to use and intuitive - yet are also underpinned by complex functions and interwoven platforms. Adopting a human-centred approach to solve customers’ needs begins with empathy. This requires a deep immersion into the customer decision-making process to really understand the motivation behind specific choices and actions.
More than just a simple ‘lift and shift’ of what has worked in the West is required. Rather, new players need to take of the emerging consumer trends and use a data-driven and customer-centric approach that is specific to the Hong Kong and Asia market.
Capco Hong Kong’s Isabel Feliciano-Wendleken, one of the study’s authors, said:
“To succeed in the already crowded Hong Kong banking landscape, which has 160 banking licenses , it will take more than digital transformation and slick customer journey designs. It is a race for retail and small medium enterprise (SME) customer acquisition and loyalty. These new virtual banks must aim at the heart of what customers expect from their banks today, and beyond.
“Amid the initial rush to acquire customers, virtual banks must focus on building long-term relationships with their clients and deliver excellent experiences to achieve brand advocacy, customer loyalty, and profitability. These eight newly minted virtual banks should take stock of these Hong Kong customer trends and expectations, solve for the specific needs and jobs to be done, and offer solutions that approach them in new and truly transformative ways.”
The seven trends flagged in the study are as follows:
• The super app – Tapping into the ’app within the app‘ concept famously pioneered by WeChat, new virtual banks can look at designing apps that not only assist users with making common transactions such as payments and transfers, but ones which also link to other favourite applications, such as cab hailing and restaurant reservations.
• Tie-ups with sharing economies – Hong Kong’s new wave of retail-focused virtual banks will benefit from forging partnerships with sharing economy providers by using their platforms as a complementary channel to provide their financial services.
• Hyper-customisation – The concept of customer segmentation based on factors such as age and income level is slowly eroding. Given the volume of data at their disposal, the new banks can design web or application pages that respond dynamically to customer inputs and offer targeted products addressing specific life scenarios or outcomes.
• Engagement through social connectivity – Asian consumers tend to pursue group-based or family-oriented goals versus the analytical and individualistic drivers of their western counterparts. Virtual banks should design their visuals and messaging in a way that clearly articulates their contribution to achieving family, community, or collective goals.
• Delight & gamify – Tying in with the concept of social connectivity, virtual banks can be creative in their approach to delivering rewards programs by providing immersive experiences. Hong Kong’s digitally savvy millennials may respond favourably to gamification tied to tangible rewards for positive behaviour.
• Not just bells and whistles – Gaining a substantial share of wallet and customer loyalty is largely predicated on the products and services the new banks can offer. In the UK and US, combining the cutting-edge appeal of a digital bank with established offerings such as credit cards, personal loans and mortgages remains a winning formula when converting popularity to profitability.
• Articulate a clear mission – Virtual banks must be laser-focused on their propositions for their specific target audience. Having a clear mission and offering a distinct value proposition to key groups within the wider population will be crucial to gaining traction in a crowded marketplace.
-ENDS-
Media contact:
Lolo Yu, Newgate Asia
+852 6044 7502 // lolo.yu@newgate.asia
Notes for editors:
Capco is a global technology and management consultancy dedicated to the financial services industry. Our professionals combine innovative thinking with unrivalled industry knowledge to offer our clients consulting expertise, complex technology and package integration, transformation delivery and managed services to move their organizations forward. Through our collaborative and efficient approach, we help our clients successfully innovate, increase revenue, manage risk and regulatory change, reduce costs, and enhance controls. We specialize primarily in banking, capital markets, wealth and asset management and insurance. We also have an energy consulting practice in the US. We serve our clients from offices in leading financial centers across the Americas, Europe, and Asia Pacific. To learn more, visit our web site at www.capco.com, or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Instagram.