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Full Automation Study
Members Shunning Café-Style Branches, Full Automation: Study
November 18, 2016
A new study suggests some state-of-the-art branch service trends aren't sitting well with many credit union members. Scheduling-software company TimeTrade's study indicates credit union members are more likely than bank customers to want personalized service from humans when they visit branches.
The survey of 1,064 credit union members found that credit union members, who are more likely than bank customers to visit branches, largely dislike the idea of fully automated branches and don’t really care whether those branches have “café-style” designs.
The survey also highlighted member demand for time control: 61% of the respondents said they won’t wait more than 10 minutes for help in a branch, almost three-quarters (73%) wanted branches to stay open beyond typical business hours (compared to 69% of bank customers). Virtually all respondents (91%) said they’d visit a branch at off-peak times if there were an incentive.
“The consumers’ preferences are changing in terms of what expectations are for service,” TimeTrade Vice President Lauren Mead said. “Services like Uber are really transforming expectations in terms of what consumers expect and I think, one, that reduces their patience for waiting.”
Credit union members are frequent branch users, according to the research — 43% visit a branch more than 10 times a year. Further, 62% said they like in-person branch visits, compared to 57% of bank customers.
“This provides credit unions with many chances to create a more personalized experience when members conduct business at a branch, creating opportunities to cross-sell other services and products such as loans, insurance and wealth management,” the study said.
The trick, of course, is providing that experience. The vast majority of respondents (67%) said they dislike the idea of fully automated branches (compared to 61% of bank customers). Also, most members don’t care about in-branch cafes, according to the research — only one in five credit union members said it mattered, compared to 26% of bank customers.
“When somebody comes into a branch, they really do have a purpose for the visit. Most people are really in a hurry and they don't want to spend any more time at a branch than they really have to,” Arizona Federal Credit Union Senior Director of Digital Banking Eric Givens said about the study results. Phoenix-based Arizona FCU has $1.5 billion in assets and 123,000 members.
“If somebody is taking their time to walk into a branch, if the first thing that you're going to do is just send them over to a something that's automated, it kind of defeats the purpose,” he said.
“Ideally what we want to come into a branch for is indeed those value-added services like, if they want to open up a new account or loan or realistically it comes down to the financial coaching, education, things of that matter, where just talking over the phone or looking at some language on an app isn't really going to give them the same amount of information or in the right way of receiving it,” he said.
According to the study, time control is an especially sensitive topic, particularly among millennials — a highly coveted demographic among credit unions. Sixty-eight percent of all respondents said they were willing to schedule an appointment to meet with a specialist (compared to 65% of bank customers), but the number spiked to 75% among millennials who want to talk with mortgage specialists or wealth management advisors.
“While millennials are a generation that has firmly embraced sharing models such as Airbnb and Uber, they still want to have personal, face-to-face conversations before they make major financial decisions,” the study said. “To win business from millennials — and turn them into lifelong, satisfied members — credit unions must market themselves effectively to this increasingly powerful generation. And, equally important, they must use the technologies preferred by millennials — online and mobile solutions — to bring them into the branch for the personalized conversations that drive business.”
Tis the Season
'Tis the Season Read the winning stories on What's New!
Final day to enter and win, 1 $25 or 1 $50 Gift Card!
We know you won’t let the hustle and bustle of the holidays get in the way of helping the world become a better place! Look for
those moments when a friend, family member, coworker, your credit union or yourself helps someone/the community in need around you for no good reason other than just to be kind. The Credit Unions mission is to help people. Shared Branching is Credit Unions collaborating together to help each other. The success of the mission depends on people, like YOU, showing others what ‘People
helping People’ means.
those moments when a friend, family member, coworker, your credit union or yourself helps someone/the community in need around you for no good reason other than just to be kind. The Credit Unions mission is to help people. Shared Branching is Credit Unions collaborating together to help each other. The success of the mission depends on people, like YOU, showing others what ‘People
helping People’ means.
How it works:
First, you must be a credit union employee to enter and live within the US. Then starting Monday, December 14th we’re counting down the working days until Christmas by holding a double drawing each day through Thursday, December 24th. One (1) winner will receive a $25 gift card* and a second (2nd)winner will win a $50 gift card* each day. There will be nine (9) total days of drawings. The last day for submissions is Thursday, December 24th by end of day.
How you enter:
- Like us, tell us about a People helping People moment, include your CU name or
- Follow us ,tag @SS4CU in a tweet about a People helping People moment, include your CU name or
- This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. telling us about a People helping People moment, include your CU name.
Each morning starting Tuesday, December 15th we will have a drawing of the entries made on the prior day as well as an
accumulation of the entries from prior days excluding the previous winners. Share to win!
accumulation of the entries from prior days excluding the previous winners. Share to win!
*Shared Services for Credit Unions (SS4CU) is giving away one (1) $25 American Express gift card to one (1) winner and one (1) $50 American Express gift card to a second (2nd) winner daily for 9 (nine) days equaling a total of nine (9) $25 cards and nine (9) $50 cards. Winners will be randomly selected from all qualified credit union employees who live in the US who share with us about a People helping People moment by the end of each day starting Monday, December 14th and ending Thursday, December 24th. There is no purchase required. The winners will be randomly selected each day starting Tuesday, December 15th and notified by end of the following day. The winner has 15 days to respond to the notification or forfeits prize. Must be at least 18 years old, live in the US and a credit union employee to be eligible for the drawing. SS4CU employees and past winners are not eligible. Offer subject to change without notice.
Holiday 2016
Thanks for sharing your stories. They were all wonderful, touching and geniune!
3 winners were chosen randomly. Each will receive a $100 American Express gift card by mail. We hope that you share with your co-workers the fun you had and how easy it was to participate. We'll do this again throughout next year so be on the lookout. We love when you win!
Campaign Details
How to enter:
Be sure to tell us your credit union name in your post or email!
- Find us on Facebook by searching for @ss4cu, Like us , post your favorite holiday story or
- If you're already following us then just post your story or
- Send your story via email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
How it works:
First, you must be a Florida credit union employee and live within the US. Then submit your favorite holiday story and it will be put into a drawing. Lastly, three (3) individual winners will be chosen to receive $100 gift card*. There is no purchase necessary to enter. All winners will be chosen on Monday, December 19th, 2016 and notified via Facebook or email before end of day, just in time for your last minute holiday shopping!
*Shared Services for Credit Unions (SS4CU) is giving away three (3) $100 American Express gift cards to three (3) individual winners. Winners will be randomly selected from all qualified entries. There is no purchase required. The winner has 10 days to respond to the notification or forfeits prize. Must be at least 18 years old, live in the US and a credit union employee to be eligible for the drawing. SS4CU employees are not eligible. Offer subject to change without notice. Winners will be posted and congratulated on our website on the What's New page.
Team MoPRO Active Flag CU 111215
TECHNOLOGY
Team MoPRO Active — With Flag CU on Board — Wins PSCU’s Annual KnockOut
By W.B. King CU JOURNAL November 10, 2015 RELATED
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — In PSCU’s fourth annual KnockOut Innovation Summit, 24 teams, comprised of approximately 200 people in four locations, spent 24 hours going toe-to-toe to develop the next greatest technology solution.
After eight semi-finalistswere chosen earlier this fall, the winner has been announced.
“When we walked in there, we didn’t know what to expect. It was our first time,” said Flag Credit Union’s Members Solutions Representative Beth Wheeler. “We knew it was going to be a great experience, but we definitely didn’t walk through the doors thinking we were going to win.”
Wheeler was joined by Flag CU colleague, Carrie Edgerson, a loan officer. Since they didn’t have a complete team upon arrival, they were assigned three PSCU employees: Heidi Thomas, collections supervisor, Elizabeth Rowe, financial services strategist; and Ed Warren, debit service account manager.
Together, they became Team MoPRO Active and won this year’s KnockOut.
“The evening before the KnockOut, I met my team and we began talking about ideas,” said Warren who has participated in all the previous KnockOut competitions. “A lot of the time judges will ask teams, ‘How do we get from here to there?’ It gives me goosebumps thinking about how our idea came about.”
KnockOut judges included representatives from PSCU, First Data, Filene, Solstice, IBM, Projekt202, Oceanit, Blue Startups, Arizona State CU, Vantage CU, Consumers CU, Lake Trust CU and Hawaiian Airlines CU.
Participating teams in St. Petersburg, Phoenix, Honolulu and Allen Park, Mich., were charged with presenting ideas that fell into three categories: member experience, credit union experience and growth.
Better Way to Collect
Over the 24-hour period -- which included little sleep, a lot of energy drinks and a professional boxing lesson -- Team MoPRO Active developed its winning pop-up feature application that eliminates collections calls in early delinquency stages, offers multiple payment options and enhances member experience.
“We hit on something where there was an unspoken demand for it,” said Wheeler. “Now that we have said it out loud, people really want it.”
With $36 million in assets, 15 employees, 5,400 members and one branch, the Tallahassee, Fla.-based Flag CU is one of the smallest CU’s to win KnockOut.
“Our team represented the smallest participating credit union, but it had big ideas,” said Sue Massa, chief executive officer of Flag CU. “We are so proud of their innovation and creativity and their ability to go head-to-head with some of the smartest people around the country. Their prototype is something that could revolutionize the way credit unions do business.”
When it came to judging, PSCU SVP Marketing Kristin Scharf explained that the MoPRO Active team presented detailed research as to why there is an urgent and compelling need to solve collection problems. “They showed that a credit union could move the needle on collecting, which would help members get in better financial shape, but also collect on the debts,” Scharf said.
Wheeler added that the app, which will likely be offered online via a credit card portal and a mobile portal, was designed, in part, for millennials who generally prefer automated self-service services. It was also geared toward members who might be in debt for the first time.
“People that are having trouble paying bills are embarrassed. Sometimes it is a member who has never been delinquent before and they don’t what to do, or it’s a member that has a big problem,” said Wheeler. “They are afraid to call because they think we are going to take a hard line with them, but we have tools that can help them get back on their feet and this app can help.”
Over the course of the coming year, Team MoPRO Active will regularly meet with PSCU’s innovation team to develop the app. In 2012 the winning entry was a mobile app that allows cardholders to report a card lost or stolen or dispute a transaction. Scharf explained that PSCU adapted this idea and incorporated it into a larger credit card data and account servicing app that is now offered on iTunes.
While Team MoPRO Active works toward bringing the app to market, they will also take time to enjoy the $1,500 travel voucher each member was awarded. Warren said he is considering a cruise, but Wheeler’s vacation plans are already set.
“I’ve already book my flight to England. My boyfriend is British, so I’m going to visit him and some family, too,” said Wheeler. “It’s going to be a blast.”
