Positive user experience is the key to drawing customers to your ATMs. Instructions on the interface should be simple and easy to understand for everybody. It should be stocked with cash in different denominations and allow the customer to choose. Any downtime should be off-peak hours. If an ATM cash management process is in place, it should be followed diligently.
Forecasting customer expectations
Often banks outsource the upkeep of their ATMs to a third party, which ensures a professional first level of maintenance and ATM cash management services for maximum uptime. Issues related to repair and ATMs’ software can also be outsourced to a third party for second-level maintenance. For accurate demand forecasting both these parties share reporting and analytics with the bank. This data is also useful for setting cash replenishment schedules across the country and abroad.
Customers perform a variety of available transactions at ATMs and visit branches rarely. With the advent of social networking tools, most customers raise their queries online through their preferred social media platform like Twitter or Facebook. This allows the bank to prove their professionalism by responding to these queries accurately through the same platform.
If an issue arises for the non-availability of funds for a cash withdrawal transaction, the customer has a variety of ways to register a complaint – mobile, email, social media, or a visit to the closest branch. In most cases, the customer would firstly look for an alternate ATM to complete their transaction successfully. Though a third party might be responsible for cash replenishment, the bank will face the brunt of the angry customer due to inadequate ATM cash management services.
There could be multiple reasons for unsuccessful cash withdrawal at an ATM. Still, mostly it is because the service provider has not made an accurate calculation based on existing data of customer usage trends. In other words, the cash in the machine fell short because someone was sleeping on the job. With the availability of many forecasting tools, the service provider has no excuse for miscalculating the volume of cash required at a specific ATM. If the ATM cash management process is followed, the customer would not have walked away empty-handed.
Staying ahead of the competition
To sustain competitive advantage, banks must pay careful attention to all customer portals and an assortment of channels. Customer-facing staff needs to be up to speed with the latest developments in the bank with regard to marketing and customer service. With a modern CRM interface, the bank’s staff should know about the customer’s complaints and queries before interacting with them.
For an ATM, user experience and customer satisfaction are closely linked. To encourage customer advocacy through word-of-mouth marketing, the bank and its vendor for ATM cash management services should match expectations and understand needs across age groups. Both first and second level maintenance should be up to the mark, ensuring the smooth functioning of ATMs around the clock and across geographies.
Social media is a double-edged sword – banks need to hire professionals for responding to customer queries and complaints. If handled correctly, customer retention will be secure. The process set in place for ATM cash management with the C-suite executives’ approvals should be followed carefully to ensure almost 100% uptime.
Introspection
With the beginning of a new decade, banks need to be accountable for lapses in serving customers professionally and formulate new strategies to avoid churn. All customer touchpoints are an opportunity to impress customers and then encourage them to consider new offerings. ATMs are the ideal interfaces for effective new campaigns and a chance to win new customers.
