Millennials are a key and growing segment in the payments industry, with unique and high expectations for customer service. To be competitive in attracting and retaining this important customer segment, issuers should focus on understanding and addressing their service needs.
In Marketing credit and debit to millennials part one, we discussed how this segment transitions to using credit, selects credit products based on fees and offers, and is concerned with building credit, among other topics.
Here we'll discuss how millennials expect a seamless, omnichannel experience, are vocal when their needs and expectations aren’t met—and the solutions we offer to help you provide great customer service.
Millennials rely heavily on digital channels. More than 90 percent are active users of online banking, and they prefer to use digital channels to reach quick and easy resolutions to problems. To successfully attract and retain their business, offer high-quality customer service with emphasis on digital channels and self-serve capabilities.
Millennials prefer to email or chat with a customer service representative instead of speaking live. They reach out to others who have experience with the same product, via online and mobile communities, to help solve problems2.
This behavior has contributed to the rise of "social care"–the act of responding to customer care needs via social media, which has exhibited 68 percent growth from 2012-20143. Social care can be a very cost-effective practice; it costs as little as $1 to solve a customer issue on social media, which is nearly one-sixth that of many call-center interactions.
In addition to the desire to self-serve via digital channels, millennials have higher service standards and a heightened sensitivity to negative service experiences. In fact, millennials are more likely than Baby Boomers to report problems with service, as illustrated by data from the telecom industry4.
This is critically important to issuers as high expectations and low tolerance for service issues translates into potential retention risks. Millennials don’t hesitate to switch if they experience poor service; nearly half have stopped doing business with at least one company in the past year due to poor customer service5.
Millennials are also multitaskers who are likely to use multiple channels to interact with a single company. Retailers like Amazon and Nordstrom have set the bar high for frictionless omnichannel experiences6.
As such, banks should provide omnichannel service, or a multi-channel approach to sales that offers a seamless shopping experience, regardless of shopping channel.
| Rank | Retailer |
|---|---|
|
1 |
Amazon.com |
|
2 |
Victoria's Secret |
|
3 |
Best Buy |
|
4 |
Nordstrom |
|
5 |
Macy's |
The legacy: bulk of content coming from one channel
The reality: Different channels acting independently in silos
The aspiration: Some cross-channel capabilities as part of the same brand
The nirvana: Unified and seamless experience within a brand
What can you do to ensure you’re delivering high-quality service demanded by millennials? Consider these recommendations:
| Implications | Recommendations |
|---|---|
|
Millennials prefer digital customer service solutions and self-service tools |
1. Prioritize user experience by enriching information and functionality provided by your digital channels 2. Enable banking services, traditionally provided by tellers and representatives, through digital platforms (ATMs, online and mobile banking) 3. Create video tutorials to explain complex products, services or financial concepts 4. Build forums where customers can post questions or see responses that have worked for other users |
|
Millennials want to self-serve |
5. Develop 24/7 digital service channels (e.g. text, Twitter, email, live text/video chat) 6. Enable end-to-end customer interaction through their preferred channels, (for example, two-way text alerts for suspected fraudulent transactions, online/mobile DDA account opening functionality online or rewards redemption via mobile devices) |
|
Millennials expect omnichannel experiences when shopping or seeking an answer to a question |
7. Enable a real-time, 360 degree, customer view through complete integration across systems |
|
Millennials seek easy payment experiences; loyalty is undermined when they receive poor service
|
8. Continually monitor customer feedback, utilizing social listening tools and servicing metrics to identify friction or pain points. 9. Prioritize pain points associated with key customer interactions like account opening, fraud/chargebacks and rewards redemption. |
We offer a number of Visa Performance Solutions engagements and Visa tools aimed at helping you improve service and customer experience to attract and retain millennial customers.
Our Digital Functionality benchmark measures client acquisition and servicing functionality. This allows clients to build digital capabilities to improve portfolio performance, provide seamless customer interactions and reduce operational costs by redirecting traffic to cost efficient channels. Scope includes:
Visa Performance Solutions offers custom engagements to improve customer experience, with a focus on digital channels. Such engagements could include: Mapping current-state customer journeys and creating optimal future states via:
Increase millennial cardholder engagement by enabling rewards redemption at point of sale via mobile. Using Visa’s solution, cardholders who make purchases with their Visa card linked to a rewards program can receive a notification on their mobile device within seconds after their purchase, inviting them to redeem points. If they reply ‘yes’, their points are redeemed, and a statement credit is posted to their Visa card.
Drive customer awareness and engagement by using Visa's product portal to create an issuer-branded digital platform for millennial cardholders to access personalized card benefits and offers. This white-label customer service website serves as a “one-stop shop” for cardholders to view benefits/offers on their card, and enables a seamless experience on desktop, tablet and mobile versions.
1 Accenture 2014 North America Consumer Digital Banking Survey, base consumers age 18-29.
2 Aspect Software Survey.
3 Social care in the world of "now," McKinsey & Company, July 2015.
4 J.D. Power, Millennials: A Customer Experience Perspective Webinar, April 2016.
5 North America Consumer Digital Banking Survey, The Digital Disruption in Banking, Accenture (May 2014).
6 Prosper Insights + Analytics.