October 11
Banking Online – BofA style
No one can argue with the efficiency and utility of carrying out banking and finance management activities online. I have attempted to move as much of ‘my life’ online where practical and necessary, and I feel lucky to be a Bank of America (BofA) customer in this regard. The streamlined and thorough online banking experience offered by my bank is really the standard that I think all banks and financial institutions should aspire to replicate. BofA allows you to see all your account information and manage most types of transactions and banking activities online. In fact, Bank of America released a new feature on their online banking site that allows individuals to manage their entire portfolio on the Bank of America site. This includes non BofA assets and investments and things like frequent flyer programs. In doing so, it is really starting to push the limits of whether you even need a real brick-and-mortar branch.The implications of the rohbust online banking strategy afford BofA a great number of advantages. Here are just a few -
- Cost savings by allowing its customers to carry out everyday transactions in a paperless and FTE-less environment (branches and call centers);
- Customer loyalty by offering a comprehensive, best in class banking solution to manage an increasing number of financing functions in a secure online environment;
- Acquisition of a new wave of customers specifically looking for online banking, which will increasingly be the only wave of customers;
- Customer intelligence by tapping into highly traceable online behavior and also access to the customers non-BofA portfolio;
- Increasing the number of transactions per customer by making more services and transaction types available easily and online;
- Increasing the value of each customer as users move all their banking to a highly convenient single online banking platform hosted by BofA.
There are some areas however that BofA should look to invest in, to really take a strangle hold on the online banking market. They are in a position to be the ’platform’ for all financial transactions that an individual may need. In a quickly evolving webscape, BofA must continue to build its momentum in order to maintain and build upon its competitive advantage. Some areas that could bolster their stellar online offering would be -
- Mobile banking. This really is the next step in the evolution of banking and is a natural extension from online banking. Users want the ability to translate their online experience into a effective and utilitarian mobile experience. I know BofA says they have mobile banking, but I am talking about being able to use your mobile phone to make purchases etc.
- Customer mobility. By offering a complete online solution that includes the services one would normally have to go to a branch for, BofA can effectively extended their footprint to cover geographies in which they do not have a physical presence, albeit for a defined web savvy demographic.
- Invest in free services. As cost savings are enhanced by customers performing more and more of their transactions online, BofA should strive to make these transactions not cost the user anything.
- Tap into the community. Customers always want to know how to solve their financial challenges seeing what others like them do. BofA should leverage what will surely be a increasing number of online users in providing practical, non-intrusive and ‘commercial’ alternatives gleaned from the customers peer group.
- Tax preparation and execution. Having all of the users financial information means that it is a simple leap to offer most individuals a ‘Turbo Tax’ service where at the right time of the year, the individuals taxes are processed, and additional information requested to complete the tax transaction.
While banking is not a topic that typically excites me, the fact that a company is making it easier for me to bank online, the way I want to, is something that is very appealing. The BofA solution is well positioned to replicate the likes of Money and Quicken, and supersede them via direct integration with a customer’s core financial asset. The other players in the banking space have a lot of catching up to do.
The Banking Online – BofA style by Molecular Voices, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.
Joseph Price said on October 11th, 2007
You’re right though, I think tax preparation is a killer feature.
Dirk Reckerman said on October 12th, 2007
Rob Ehlert said on October 13th, 2007
Joe 10 said on October 15th, 2007
Scott Abel said on October 15th, 2007
However, the website fails to address the mobile nature of its customers. For instance, when one travels abroad, 1-800 numbers aren’t very valuable. Yet, those are the numbers they provide you (both on the back of their cards and on the website). Finding 24 hour help numbers that work abroad is nearly impossible. And, when I did find them, they were disconnected.
When you travel abroad, BofA computers may deactivate your debit/credit cards to protect you from fraud (they’re really only protecting themselves, but that’s another story). Unfortunately, if your BofA experience is like mine, when you land in a foreign country and your credit cards/debit card don’t work, you can’t get a hotel room. And, without a hotel, you may find it hard to contact the bank (even if you knew the number and how to dial it from another country), especially if your cell phone stops working, too. Without a hotel room, there’s often no internet and no phone.
So, while BofA website is very good (and useful), it’s still not good at providing relevant information on-demand based on the actual situation of individual card holders. And, much of the service offered is based on the profiles of customer groups, not your individual profile.
Scott Abel
The Content Wrangler
Deanna Glaze said on October 26th, 2007
BOA was also quick to get a mobile site for the iPhone (for that alone I will always be loyal!).
My only complaint is that their billing notification is a bit clunky…it doesn’t always update my due dates which is problematic for someone as forgetful as myself.
Tax preparation would be incredible, as would a virtual financial advisor.
Traci Lepore said on October 29th, 2007
One point that I was triggered by Dirk in your original posting was the point of “tapping into community”. i have known in the back of my head that BofA is big in community development, but only recently learned a little more about some of the kinds of programs they support through my recent studies in school. A woman named Gail Snowden ( a boston native) who worked at Bank Boston/Fleet through the mergers started the Community Bank Investment Group, a specialized bank within the bank that went into depressed communities (starting in massachusetts and new england) and started this bank tha focused on creating products to meet the needs of the community and therefore help in community develpment. Today BofA still continues to work in this field. http://www.bankofamerica.com/community/. Not only do I find this a great activist interest, I think they are uniquely creative in thinking about how to develop and define products that meet user needs as well as their business needs and strengthen community all at the same time!!
Their mission in this area is “to offer lending and investment products that
- Serve low- and moderate-income individuals and families
- Improve underserved low- and moderate-income communities
- Create sustainable practices for the long haul ”
Those three key points are easily translatable into the work we do every day if you think about user needs as serving those who are underserved and not tapped into and creating sustainable practices. Some interesting things i’ve started to think about.