How Well Do You Know Your Clients?

84% of financial services professionals consider it “very” or “extremely” important to know their customers, yet they aren’t taking big steps to implement these strategies.

We talk to a lot of bankers every day. And most say they know their client very well. While some may truly know their clients, there are a lot of misunderstandings. Do you cater to the clients that prefer to do their own research and make their own financial decisions? Do your associates know how to help clients that lack confidence in making big financial decisions and want assistance planning for the future? So how well do you really know your clients? 

The guide you've been waiting for is here...

Get the scoop on the most common types of clients and how they operate when it comes to their finances. Understanding them is key to differentiating your financial institution and growing your wallet share.

 

Who are they? 

Now, you may be thinking that you already have all the information on your client base. Their demographics such as gender, age, etc. Demographics are a great start but digging a little deeper into the data will help you market to your clients better. Understanding spending habits, and using the data to create unique products, messaging, and promotions will help you find more success. Marketers work smarter not harder.

Walking through their client journey is the perfect exercise to gain more understanding of who they are, what motivates them, what scares them, and how you can be their financial decision, advisory partner. 

What do they need? 

When was the last time you sent a survey to your client base? If its been a while, it's time to get a better look at what your client base is looking for in their primary financial institution. Ask questions that will give you a better perspective on what motivates your clients and what problems they are facing. Understanding their goals and barriers opens up opportunities for improvements in product offerings and services processes. Improving these two key categories means more wallet share. 

What do they think of your products and services?

Finding new ways to help your clients is exciting, but you may not have to search far to find some easy wins. Understanding how your clients use your current products and what features are most important to them can lead you to cost-effective ways to enhance your current product offerings. Some of their wants and needs for financial products and features may surprise you. 

Does your messaging resonate with them? 

Using a CRM (Customer Relationship Management software) and other analytics tools are the best way to know that your message is resonating with your clients. It's great if you see people looking at the holiday promotion on your digital signage but how do you know if that message actually increased the number of times your associates were asked about the promotion? There are too many tools available nowadays to stick to the old saying half of our marketing is working, but we don't know which half. 

What is your competition doing right? 

This one may sting a bit, but trust us, it will be worth it. The average American has 16 banking products in their household, but only 2.5 of the products are with their primary financial institution (Celent). That's a lot of potential per household! It takes a little digging and really thinking from the client's perspective to understand what your clients are using outside of your financial institution. Now, all you need to do is adapt and succeed at gaining more wallet share.