UK Customer Satisfaction Index report urges banks not to ignore customer service

​As digital innovation in the financial services sector continues to develop, banks are giving customers greater control over managing their finances.

Leading the way are new, online-only start-up banks which are challenging the conventional ways of banking.

However, traditional retail banks are also adapting.  HSBC is piloting a ‘Nudge’ application to help customers keep track of their spending, Lloyds and Halifax are expanding their mortgage advice services after its success in 2015, and Barclays has become the first UK bank to introduce contactless payment using Android phones.

So what benefits do these changes bring?

Research conducted by Lloyds Banking Group showed 86% of people who use online banking worry less about money because they find it easier to keep track of their finances.

What is more, most UK customers seem happy with the online banking service on offer.  When asked to rate their level of satisfaction with the way they interact with their bank or building society, customers gave smartphone apps the highest score – a solid, if unspectacular, 81/100.

However, according to the most recent UK Customer Satisfaction Index report, 45% of customers still interact most frequently with their bank or building society in person rather than on the phone or online.  

That is why, despite the growing use of online banking, banks and building societies should not ignore the importance of delivering outstanding customer service both in person and on the phone.  Recognising this, the UKCSI has recommended in its latest report that banks invest in training to develop employees’ customer service and emotional intelligence skills.

This is where MSB can help.

Our team has been delivering customer service training - including account management programmes for wealth managers - to financial services companies for 30 years.

We never deliver the same programme twice - each one is tailored to the needs of the client organisation and utilises the latest, most innovative thinking in this field.  It is that approach which saw MSB named the ‘Best Learning and Development Supplier’ by the CIPD last year.

​To find out how MSB can help your organisation, please visit us at www.msbconsultancy.com.