BROOKFIELD, Wis.—New, more affordable cloud-based solutions are integrating branch communications, boosting cross sales and member service as well as the entire expertise of the office.
The improvements, says Fiserv, provide numerous advantages, including:
- Allowing the credit union to identify a high-net-worth member as soon as that person approaches the office.
- Connecting subject-matter experts with members on the fly via video that can be sent to a member’s phone.
- And identifying missed sales opportunities from members who regularly pass the office but rarely stop in.
Through a new agreement with Cisco, Fiserv clients now have access to the Cisco workforce experience solution and Cisco branch solutions. The workforce experience solution allows internal teams and product specialists to interact and collaborate via advanced, unified messaging, audio, video and web meeting capabilities, on any device, from any location. Cisco branch solutions enable video-based remote expert services that let staff hold virtual face-to-face meetings with members via mobile devices. Staff can move from behind the teller counter or away from their desks to interact with members in the universal banker model.
Great Visibility
“The benefits are great: the visibility that you get from the branch wireless toolset, the analytics you are able to gather in terms of traffic patterns—where members are spending time, who is passing by the credit union,” said Brad Mason, vice president, Sentry Performance Solutions, Fiserv. “At the same time you can see what websites your members are surfing via their mobile devices when they are at the branch.”
Fiserv offers these hosted communications and infrastructure solutions through the company's portfolio of managed services, Sentry Performance Solutions. The portfolio includes network services, hosting services, network security services, hardware and software lifecycle management, and unified communications services.
Brad Mason
"Communication today means having the flexibility to call, meet, share or message instantly, using whatever device you prefer, in a way that strengthens relationships and increases productivity," said Mason.
Jim Henschel, banking and wealth management practice manager, U.S. enterprise business transformation, Cisco, said that now credit unions can quickly assemble a great deal of intelligence on members.
“When you come into your branch you are not only detected through the secure wireless app, your profile is pulled up by an employee who can then pull up documents to share with you, or immediately connect with another staffer to gather and send those files,” said Henschel.
More Transactions Heading To Smartphones
As more members offload daily transactions to their smartphones and visit the branch less, Henschel emphasized the importance of making the most of each face-to-face visit.
“The move to digital banking is reducing member loyalty,” said Henschel. “So when a member comes to a branch with a mission, how quickly will you react, especially with the ‘I want it now’ society. You need to connect with the member as quickly as possible with the best information.”
These kinds of communications solutions are not yet widespread, said Mason, due to what has been a high price. With Fiserv’s solution being cloud-based, the price of entry is affordable, he said.
“The philosophy is low cost of entry,” said Mason. “We can scale this to a credit union as it grows. The CU does not face a large upfront capital expense.”
Being able to connect members with the proper subject matter expert on the fly, via video on any mobile device, not only improves staff efficiency, said Henschel, it increases sales.
Jim Henschel
“Research shows that with mortgages, for example, if you can route that member to the best expert available, we are seeing about a 60% increase in mortgage originations from branches that use this solution compared with those that don’t.”
Mason noted that cross sale conversations that also use video increase the cross-sale ratio from just over one product per successful cross sale to 2.5 products.
The interactive tools also lift the entire expertise of the branch, added Henschel.
“The MSR is no longer just handing off the member to a subject-matter expert and leaving. They are there for the video conversation and are learning themselves,” he said.