Blog: Meeting Your Consumers' Needs Efficiently

The pursuit for increased efficiency is a top if not the top priority for any executive in a financial institution (FI) today. Have you considered how the self-service channel can be a true engine to maximize efficiency and improve your organization's bottom line? Do you know that to fully capitalize on the potential benefits of the ATM channel, FIs must ensure it meets 5 Golden Rules?

With this new blog, part of our More Efficient blog series, I’d like to take you through how an FI can ensure that its self-service channel responds to consumers’ needs and meets Golden Rule #1.

A customer-centric ATM network enables FIs to drive loyalty and higher traffic to their self-service channel, positively impacting the profitability of the overall retail banking arm. To fulfill the needs of consumers, the self-service channel must offer:

• a wide range of banking services
• a great user experience, integrating digital and physical customer journeys
• high availability and security

Let's dive into these three drivers of customer satisfaction and explore how an FI can maximize the return. 

A wide range of banking services 

As the pace of their life keeps increasing, consumers look for easy and convenient solutions to complete their daily tasks faster. Through the digitization of the banking experience with internet banking and mobile banking apps, consumers have discovered the convenience of banking wherever and whenever. As cash usage remains high, consumers of all ages still consider access to a self-service channel a top criterion when choosing their financial provider and expect the network to continuously modernize. How can you do that?

The geographies covered by FIs can be diverse from a population density perspective and from the characteristics of the ATM user (i.e., age, profession, and services used at the ATM). An FI should deploy modular ATMs with hardware configuration based on local needs while keeping the look and feel of the fleet consistent. For instance, in rural areas, adding interactive teller modules can offset the lack of a branch. Modularity also means that when components are no longer needed, they can easily be taken out from an ATM in the field. For example, removing a printer if an FI decides to go paperless and offer digital receipts only. 

FIs should also make the right choice regarding the ATM application software running on their devices and powering the services offered. They need to opt for an application offering a rich transaction set including all standard ATM transactions and revenue-generating transactions that help drive more profitability, such as multi-currency and dynamic currency conversion, especially in locations with lots of travelers, state borders or transport hubs. Moreover, offering more sophisticated transaction options for on-us customers, such as funds deposits into multiple accounts or payments to a loan, credit card and utility bill, can truly help drive loyalty.

Delivering a great user experience, bridging physical and digital journeys, and enabling personalization

User experience is critical to differentiating in today's competitive market and enhancing customer satisfaction. Customers expect their ATM experience to be current and evolve as quickly as other banking and non-banking channels. They also expect their FI’s different channels to be joined up and to offer omnichannel journeys that simplify their banking experience. Consumers also value the opportunity to customize their banking journeys. 

At a bare minimum, mobile initiated withdrawals, deposits, and cash remittances should be supported. Any interaction must be seamless for anyone, regardless of their age, height, abilities or disabilities. Features like speech guidance or LED guide lights make the interaction with a device easy and intuitive. With innovative features like SoftADA, the user can press a button so the upper area of the screen is pulled down, and the user interface can be comfortably operated. It is also important to provide the option to choose among multiple denominations when cash is withdrawn. Finally, FIs should consider offering personalization options such as fast cash, language, and receipt (e.g., email, SMS) preferences and targeted information.

Guaranteeing high ATM availability and security

ATM out of service is the number one frustration with their bank for many consumers and poses a business risk. Indeed, one-third of Diebold Nixdorf customers tell us that a poor-performing self-service channel is the single most likely cause for customer attrition. 
Neglecting ATM security can also result in significant losses to business and brand reputation. 

Considering availability, it is important to benchmark capacity cassettes before choosing the devices you deploy. Opting for cash recyclers and enabling cash recycling will also contribute to higher availability as dispense cassettes will be filled following deposits, minimizing empty cassette events. Additionally, outsourcing maintenance to a provider offering a totally data-driven, proactive service model ensures a reduction of breakdowns, faster incident resolution and higher device uptime. In addition, FIs need to pay attention to several aspects of security. First, they must respond to the needs of consumers for a transaction experience that is as private as possible and support multi-factor authentication to reduce risk. Physical security must also be built into the devices they choose to deploy: they should withstand explosive and hook and chain attacks. It’s also critical to protect against skimming and cyberattacks.  

Diebold Nixdorf offers a holistic approach to the self-service channel where both consumers’ and FIs’ needs are at the center. This is why we offer a broad range of devices with many customization options and software that powers an outstanding array of banking services, while our managed services ensure seamless operations and provide the foundation for a successful customer experience. Would you like to know more about how we can ensure your ATM channel fulfills your consumers’ needs in the most efficient manner? Let’s start the conversation.