Reaching the next generation: Digital transformation and credit unions

Modernizing the contact center is critical for credit unions to capitalize on the greatest generational transfer of wealth in history.

Offering a digital experience is no longer optional for credit unions. The high-touch customer service model most credit unions have relied on has failed to convert Millenial and Gen Z customers, and was nearly disastrous when offices were forced to close because of the pandemic.

According to McKinsey and Co, Millennials and members of Gen Z already wield an estimated $350B in purchasing power in the US, and are on the verge of inheriting $61T. These are critical customers for credit unions, and they are digital shoppers, using digital currency, and expect digital experiences. To remain relevant and attract new member segments, credit unions need to adopt a culture of innovation and invest in platforms that help them offer a faster, connected, and more personalized digital member experience.

Younger segments demand a better digital member experience.

Not unlike their parents, Millenials and Gen Z want to make smart financial decisions, trust the integrity of their banks, and feel in control of their assets. But unlike in previous generations, there are better tools and more data available to help them navigate their financial futures. They expect:

• The ability to make data-driven financial decisions. Younger members have different outlooks on spending, saving, and investing than previous generations. Strong analytics will allow credit unions to help them better assess their financial goals, investment styles, and risk tolerances.
• Personalized member experiences. Both Millennials and Gen Zers expect companies to speak directly to them. Credit unions should leverage technology to better understand their needs and preferences and build personalized member experiences. If a member is managing student loan debt or saving for a house, for example, credit unions can proactively provide services to help them reach their goals and improve their financial footing.
• Self-service experiences. Younger segments prefer to take care of simple questions or problems themselves and spend less time talking to an agent. By adopting a digital-first approach to call deflection and self-service channels, credit unions can provide 24/7 access and allow members to get the information faster and in the channel of their choice.

Conflicting investment priorities and talent limitations can make it challenging for  credit unions to tackle this type of innovation. However, without this type of digital transformation it will be difficult for them not only to compete against the big banks and fintech firms, they won’t be able to keep up with the community banks and emerging challenger banks in their existing markets.

An end-to-end CX platform that significantly fast tracks credit unions’ digital transformation.

Talkdesk Financial Services Experience Cloud™ is a unified, modern, and flexible platform built for credit unions to help drive smart member interactions and increase member engagement. Its compatibility to easily integrate with core platforms helps to deliver a complete view of members and also enables seamless service and sales experiences. Its pre-designed workflows and automation are tailored to specifically meet credit union needs. By simplifying the contact center technology ecosystem and expediting time-to-value, Talkdesk can provide a high return on investment while enabling continuous innovation for credit unions.

Overcome legacy data silos and boost personalization.

Credit unions’ digital transformation efforts are often hindered by their aging infrastructure and complex ecosystems that silo client data across multiple platforms and systems, adding handle time and expense to customer service interactions. Talkdesk Financial Services Experience Cloud helps credit unions overcome legacy obstacles by providing agents a 360º view of the client through integrations with core systems creating a single pane of glass for agents to seamlessly access client data, including banking account data, payment information, texts, voice calls, and more. This also allows the agents to understand the clients’ finances, needs, opportunities, and preferences and which helps them deliver a better client experience by shortening wait times. This also allows credit unions to maximize value from agent interactions and deliver a return on their investment.

Leverage AI to create convenient access to self-service.

Financial Services Experience Cloud enables 24/7, fast client service with convenient, automated virtual agents that offer customers the option to engage in two-way voice or online digital interactions depending on their preference. The solution uses artificial intelligence (AI) that’s pre-trained for credit union use cases, so it recognizes account servicing and lending terminology as your clients speak. Credit unions can continuously improve these cognitive models with a human-in-the-loop AI trainer that enables agents to quickly train AI models without relying on data scientists.

Smart self-service not only appeals to younger demographics, it’s also a proven method for scaling service requests without increasing the number of agents staffed. Watch the video below to learn about more of the features in Financial Services Experience Cloud and how the solution can be leveraged to elevate your member experience.