Remaining top of mind and top of wallet is critical for financial services organizations to thrive in today’s economy. Consumers live their lives with their phones in their hand and they completely augment every experience in which they take part. Research has shown that when consumers designate a card as “top of wallet,” they spend more money both online and offline with that card, and mobility is one way for financial services to get there.
Daniel Newman captured this sentiment nicely in an article earlier this year on Forbes when he stated, “Mobility is a living, breathing phenomenon — a culture all its own that is transforming how our entire world thinks about work, play, and personal connection.”
For this reason it has become increasingly important for financial services organizations to fully incorporate a mobility plan into their overall customer engagement strategy. They should ask the following questions:
- How are consumers engaging across mobile devices?
- Are mobile experiences, desktop experiences, and in-store experiences consistent for customers?
- What’s being done to optimize mobile options for consumers?
In the Reshaping Retail With Mobility whitepaper written by Edward Westenberg, he noted that the dependence on mobility affects every point of contact with a customer. Here’s some advice he shares about the key areas to focus on when it comes to mobile capability:
- Mobile Marketing– Westenberg said it’s “important to understand how to be present at the ‘mobile moment’ (when customers are ready to buy on their mobile devices) with the right offering.”
- Shopper Services– Ensure that the end-to-end experience for the customer is mobile-friendly, encouraging mobile shoppers to keep coming back.
- Mobile Payments– Electronic payment options are no longer just for online purchases. Mobile payment options should be available across all channels, including in-store, as it strengthens customer loyalty by creating a more seamless and innovative checkout process.
All of these objectives can be maximized with a thoughtful mobile strategy and built upon by leveraging technologies like geo-fencing, where customer location data is used to strategically prompt sales and empowers retailers to seize the opportunity to become “top of wallet” with a customer.
Prioritizing a mobility strategy is the only way for both established and rising retailers to remain on the consumer radar. Without it, they’ll soon be left in the dust of their competitors.
To learn more about utilizing geo-fencing technology to maximize your mobility strategies, check out a recent webinar from Pitney Bowes on how to become “top of wallet.”
