by Thembe Khumalo
In Africa, we talk a lot about the unbanked. In certain circles, this group is considered evidence of the opportunities for innovation that abound on the continent, and in others, they are considered a problem that we need to solve. What interests me most though, is looking at some of the reasons why these people are not choosing banks as their preferred financial partner.
We often list logistics, cost, connectivity, infrastructure, and a host of other challenges. What we don’t talk about much is how unpleasant, confusing and dehumanising the banking experience can be. In spite of expensive advertising and catchy offers, talking to real people about their lived experience is likely to yield the truth that banking is not in fact a pleasant experience for most. In their efforts to keep up with the digital banking momentum, many banks are playing in the digital arena compelling customers to come and join them, or worse still, running way ahead of customers and wondering why they don’t follow. Instead, banks should seek to meet customers where they are, and walk alongside them on the journey to digitisation.
Being able to serve customers effectively, across multiple channels and in real time can increase retention, lower acquisition costs, and cement brand loyalty. But it needs a clear strategy that has the customers’ experience at its heart. This is where I see an opportunity for banking to borrow from nursing.
Of all the professions I can think of, nursing is one that I think most highly prizes caring at its core. The same should be true of a service facility — serving and creating the best experience for customers should be in the very marrow of the business rather than being seen as an optional extra or add-on.
1. Check your culture
It really doesn’t matter how many programmes and incentives you design and attempt to implement, how many customer satisfaction surveys you hurl at your clients, or how many consultants you hire to implement front-of-house training. If your corporate culture doesn’t put customers at its centre, your results are likely to be lukewarm at best. Problems which affect customer relations are usually related to corporate culture. When I am asked to deliver a customer service training, I usually request that the training start at board level, for the simple reason that this is the birthplace of culture — this is the level at which we decide who and what is important to us, how we go about demonstrating that, and who we want to become in the future. Front office behaviour is a reflection of boardroom philosophy. To consistently deliver an above-average customer experience, a business has to have a strong service culture at its core, demonstrated by its leadership at all levels. If top leadership isn’t on the same page about the importance of customer experience, then we can’t expect to see any sustained improvement in service at front of house.
2. Lead with empathy
A good nurse leads with compassion and empathy. It’s hard I know, but can you imagine a bank employee with empathy? A teller or clerk who can put himself in your shoes and communicate accordingly? A relationship manager who is actually interested in nurturing a relationship with you?
Over the festive season, I took my widowed mother through a series of encounters — first with my late father’s bank, and then with her mobile network operator, Econet. As a retired professional, my mother’s understanding of commercial operations is sound, her command of English is strong, and she has operated her own bank account since she started teaching more than 50 years ago. She is in many ways greatly advantaged against the billions of other Africans we say we want as our customers. But at eighty years old, my mother is also tired. She has seen all the changes that have happened in the world of banking and finance, and she has kept up with most of them — some resulting from advances in technology (which doesn’t necessarily feel advantageous to her) and others from the over-discussed things that have happened in the Zimbabwean economy. She is conscious of a loss of control over her affairs as new innovations are introduced at a rapid pace, and feels understandably fragile when dealing with matters to do with winding up my late father’s estate. My sense is that when the bank looks at my mother, they see a statistic, a subgroup within some group, and one to which has been assigned a profitability level in order to rank the amount of effort we should put into servicing her needs. Imagine how much she would benefit from a little empathy.
3. Hold back on your judgement
Nurses see many things in the course of their work — wounds, diseases, self-inflicted conditions and other afflictions that may tell stories of complicated domestic arrangements. In spite of all this, good nurses don’t judge their patients. They don’t make the domestic violence victim feel like an idiot for going back to get more beatings and broken bones. They don’t make the divorcee who has come in for another HIV test feel morally compromised, and they don’t make the youngster who keeps coming back with STDs feel ashamed of his habits. They simply deliver the best care, they can with the resources at their disposal. Banks don’t have the same sense of acceptance, and don’t convey the sentiment that all customers are worthy of care and attention. In an age where connectivity should enhance a personalised approach, there is a gap in the banking sector for making customers feel valued.
4. Let your clients tell you who you are
A key tenant of branding is that your brand is your customers’ view of you. It’s not who you insist you are, but rather who they perceive you to be based on their experience of you. Your brand is your reputation.
Nurses don’t tell their patients where it hurts. They listen with acceptance when you tell them your pain points.
Instead of telling the world what our values are by posting them on the walls of our offices or websites, we should ask our customers. These are the people at the receiving end of how our values play out — they know better than anyone what we stand for because they experience it every time they interact with us.
I challenge you to send out a different kind of survey to your customer; one that says, “Tell us who we are,” instead of saying, “We’re the best, right?” Allow those results to be collated into a list of values and compare them with the values you claim to espouse. Discuss.
5. Practice Universal Patience
Money is something that makes people anxious. When dealing with an institution as powerful as a bank, it’s understandable that there would be a heightened level of anxiety and vulnerability. Nurses know that whether they are dealing with old men or babies, professors or the illiterate, they have to be patient; to treat each one with respect and to protect their dignity regardless of their ailments. A bank that would capture this spirit would be exceptional. One that could treat people who don’t understand technology or those who are nervous about the security of their funds with the same reverence that is offered to millionaires and captains of industry. I listened to bank clerks and Econet staff explain processes to customers who looked utterly bewildered. “You have to set up a Gmail account.” “Do you have data bundles in your phone?” “Wait over there for the download.” “You may need to update your app.” The language we are familiar with is not necessarily the language our customers speak. We must meet them where they are, otherwise we lose a powerful opportunity for real differentiation.
A change of posture, attitude and culture can have a positive effect on customer experience, which in turn can have a positive effect on profitability and business sustainability. If our customers could walk away saying “That bank treats me differently,” this would be the game-changer we need in an increasingly undifferentiated market
Thembe Khumalo is one of Zimbabwe’s leading voices when it comes to brand-building, business growth and personal development. A winner of multiple awards both at home and in the region, she is the founder and Managing Director of Brandbuilder, a high-performance brand strategy firm that helps entrepreneurial leaders and SMEs achieve visibility and growth through comprehensive brand strategy, creative execution and social media content strategies. Known for her clarity and courage, Thembe Khumalo’s leadership track record includes board positions in listed, unlisted and not-for-profit entities. With more than 20 years in the media and communication industry, she delivers a network of high-level relationships across many industries in several African countries. | thembekhumalo.com | www.brandtobuild.co | askus@brandtobuild.co
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