The Digital Transformation Misstep to Avoid

Credit unions are moving forward with their digital transformation efforts: Whether it’s loan automation, back-office operations or member-facing solutions, to date, 75% of banks and credit unions say they’ve launched a digital transformation initiative, according to Cornerstone Advisors. Good for them. But most are getting a foundational component of digital transformation – intelligent digital assistants (IDA) – wrong.

Implementing a digital assistant isn’t like installing digital banking systems or mobile apps. Instead, it’s like implementing a tiny little banker – a more human-like bit of technology that, while certainly focused on helping members get the information they need quickly, can do so much more. It can be “trained” with natural-language understanding and conversational artificial intelligence to be the welcoming presence at a credit union’s digital front door, and offer advice, financial resources and insights, and product information.

This intensely member-facing digital solution is exactly what consumers are demanding. The 2022 Global Marketing Trends report from Deloitte emphasized the two most valuable tactics for consumers are timely offers and knowledgeable customer service — both of which can be deployed via an IDA.

Intelligent digital assistants play a critical role in building out a credit union’s digital infrastructure, and can initiate a sea change in how member contact centers are experienced as well as managed. IDAs can promote growth, attract new member demographics and identify cross-sell opportunities – to name a few. As Deloitte maintained, they enable a credit union’s member experience to “get more human at machine speed.” IDAs can support things like product-shopping and account-opening journeys, thus enabling more channels to become revenue generators.

3 Considerations

Here are three considerations for building out the right IDA for your credit union and ensuring their pivotal role in humanizing your digital transformation strategy:

1. Develop a thorough understanding of what you want your IDA to accomplish for your organization. Your team should identify the goals and strategies behind IDA adoption and use. Gather your requirements and configure your digital assistants to make sure they speak the unique, on-brand language of your credit union. Downplay the tech; humanization helps your assistant to be embraced by your employees and your members. And that’s what drives revenue.

2. In a hurry? Don’t let perfect be the enemy of the good. While there’s plenty of room for customization, digital assistants come with lots of prepackaged intents, or queries, to get started. As with all technologies, there are tradeoffs between speed of implementation and customization. Those who have done their homework and launched quickly have been surprised by the immediate, unexpected benefits to their brand and productivity. With the right technology partner, it’s possible to launch a highly skilled, top-performing digital teammate in only one month. And the best digital assistants can achieve a 90% conversation containment rate, right out of the gate.

3. Consider what information you’d like to learn from your digital credit union officer. An IDA should be ever mindful of data capture, processing and access. IDAs can deliver sophisticated performance data and insights to inform your team about what information is most important to your members. It can suggest new products and services, and recommend adjustments to your member care processes. Credit unions should think carefully about how – and who – is shepherding these insights to support the organization.

Digital assistants do take thought, planning and teamwork to get them right. Yet member expectations have advanced so far beyond pre-pandemic levels, they might not wait for your credit union to catch up. The most successful digital transformation stories aren’t written by those seeking to reduce head count. They are told by the credit unions that develop a digital assistant into the most human-like, best branded banker, trained to interact with members and employees in meaningful and engaging conversations. A digital assistant is a cornerstone of a contemporary digital strategy. It can add enormous value to your member experience and ultimately, to your bottom line.

Lindsay Soergel is the Chief Product and Member Experience Officer at Kasisto, a New York, N.Y.-based provider of conversational AI-powered digital assistants for financial institutions.