Mobile is No Longer Optional | Do You Have A Mobile Strategy?

Dan Fisher

With over 35 years in the financial industry, Dan M. Fisher has proven himself as a leader in the financial industry holding roles as the former director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis and former Chairman of the ABA Payment Committee.

Your customers and members are mobile, it’s time you become mobile, too!

The mobile platform has become the de facto platform for all things, including the U.S. Government.

October 3 was the first test of the Presidential Alert system for disasters.

The important distinction here is that if you have a powered-on mobile phone and it is connected to a network, you received a message. No one can opt out! I am not sure why you want to opt out, but the news flash is that you can’t, even if you wanted to! Big Brother? Hmmm… that is a Blog for another day.

Statistics clearly convey that in 2017 every age group (from age 18 through 65+) in the United States had a minimum of 85% ownership of at least a cell phone. For the 18-29 yr old age group, 94% owned a smartphone.

The important point to acknowledge is that the U.S. Government and FEMA, have concluded that the best way to reach out to the residents of the United States is through the cell phone platform. Radio and television are no longer dependable outlets for reaching the greater U.S. population, and neither are landline phones. The focus on mobile communications is an important lifestyle shift that is driving the U.S. Government to make changes.

Do You Have a Mobile Strategy?

We still encounter financial institutions that do not have a comprehensive mobile strategy nor do they feel that the mobile platform is something they need to spend a lot of time on. Their response is, “Our high touch customer service is the most important product we have, and that is why our customers come to us!”

Building a mobile strategy with your lead vendor takes time. If you don’t perform a thorough Due Diligence you will over pay and under-deliver. The result will be an underwhelming product that will not be something your customers find useful.

Your first step should be to examine everything internet first, and don’t just look at mobile. Second is real-time. Internet based applications that only update overnight are a waste of time and money. Your customers will soon become frustrated and leave you.

Third, integration… this is huge! You know how frustrated you are when you have to log in at your desktop into multiple applications separately. How do you think your customers feel when they can’t see their checks, or make a Bill Pay transaction, or receive a transaction at one log in from one mobile user ID and application? This frustration is real. If your vendor is unable to provide this functionality, then don’t sign up… they are already behind and it will be a while before they catch up. Look for another vendor. It is as simple as that. Most Tier One processors already provide this integration and functionality.

Finally, if the vendor says they will have it ready this year or first quarter, ask yourself this question… Have you heard this before from your vendor and they were not on time? If the answer is yes, then ask yourself what makes this situation any different.

The conclusion, your customers are mobile, and it is time you become mobile, too!

The Wombat!