New Virus-Era Survey Shows CU Members Weighing Fewer Branch Visits
According to survey results, credit unions have maintained member relationships and increased member loyalty,
The practical effects of the coronavirus pandemic could be felt for months or years from now, as consumers embrace efforts to minimize physical contact and businesses ramp up their efforts to provide touchless and digital solutions.
“To state that the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world is an understatement,” Mickey Goldwasser, vice president of marketing and chief of staff at the digital payments company Payrailz, wrote recently for CU Times. “Not only has it disrupted business as usual, but it has changed how business will operate moving forward.”
A new survey of credit union members from the Berkeley, Calif.-based digital banking platform Access Softek said 1 in 5 respondents said the COVID-19 pandemic likely would cause them to make fewer branch visits in the future. The poll was conducted using Google Surveys, and responses were sought from 500 credit union members in early July.
Access Softek said nearly 30% of respondents said they would continue to use new digital banking features.
“This is encouraging news for credit unions. Even during unforeseen circumstances, they have maintained member relationships and, in many cases, increased loyalty,” Chris Doner, founder and CEO of Access Softek, said in a statement. “Digital has been instrumental in their success, as online and mobile solutions allow members to continue banking, virtually uninterrupted.”
Credit union affinity has increased in the virus era, Access Softek reported. “Only four percent of members are more likely to leave their credit union post-pandemic, and by a factor of more than three to one, members reported they were less likely to leave their credit union than more likely,” according to the survey results.
Many credit unions have reopened, or are considering reopening, branch operations. Expect more signage, and more messaging, as credit unions ramp up their efforts to keep employees and members safe.
“Two-thirds of consumers indicate that they feel better about using a branch where there is some type of communication, such as signage, telling them what we [credit unions] are doing in order to keep our members safe,” Tim Klatt, director of retail strategies for the LaMacchia Group, said on a webinar for the Cooperative Credit Union Association.