Arca Bank Is Preparing Staff for Deeper Conversations with Customers
One advantage the physical bank branch will always have over digital disruptors is its staff. The benefits of having a friendly and helpful human face to interact with cannot be over stated.
However, staff can only perform at their absolute best if they are supported by a resolute and organized human resources effort. This means regular and meaningful ongoing training and development which will keep you people operating at optimum level.
Your staff need to be perceived as trusted and knowledgeable advocates for your brand. They should know their customers’ lives as well as their finances and be ready and willing to help them overcome any financial challenges that might come their way.
Staff should be prepared to engage customer with deeper and more meaningful conversations and act as a concierge rather than a traditional banker.
Arca International Bank Inc.
As a relatively new and small banking institution, Arca International Bank Inc. understands all too well the importance of establishing an intimate and sincere relationship with customers and believes this is the key to meaningful banking in the modern era.
This has led the San Juan, Puerto Rico headquartered financial brand to speak up regarding the importance of this facet of the bank branch customer experience.
"Creating the optimum banking experience covers a lot of ground today – from streamlined service and improved security like cash recyclers and ATMs, to a clean, organized bank – including the customer-employee relationship," said Arca in a blog post. "How your team interacts with customers is a key reason why they either come back or switch to a competitor. Creating the perfect experience spans two main elements: verbal communication and body language."
Body language and other non-verbal forms of communication can often be more important to address than the spoken word. Not because customers pay more attention to body language – that’s a long-standing myth – but because it can take more work to address these issues than with the words coming out of their mouths.
Factors such as eye contact and proper posture can indicate confidence, a caring nature, and a professional attitude and will help to make customers more comfortable and confident in your ability and willingness to help them with their problems. Keeping arms crossed is viewed by some as a power stance but can actually make you appear guarded and defensive.
One factor which can affect an employee’s body language is if they’re having problems in their life outside of work. This is why it’s important for your human resources team to establish a company culture where staff can talk about their problems as, as much as is appropriate, get support from their employer. Companies which support their employees in this way will actually tend to see better performance from them on the branch floor.
Deeper Conversations
When it comes to actually talking to customers, Arla has three key points it trains its staff to keep at the fore of their thinking.
The first is to always remain positive. Staff will be faced with customers with a full range of problems, from the relatively minor to the catastrophic and life changing. Whatever the issue, staff should always look for the positive aspect and search for solutions while remaining sensitive to the customer’s circumstances.
Simplicity is a key component of delivering effective financial services. Arca trains its people to avoid complicated jargon and focus on explaining concepts and products in every day terms. When you work in a particular field, it’s amazingly easy to forget that not everyone is as familiar with the terms and concepts associated with it as you are.
Finally, employees should always dig deeper and try and gain as much insight from the customer as possible, so they can make the most informed choice possible when developing a solution.
"Employees should always be on the lookout for problems and concerns among your customers," concludes Arca. "The best way to find out is by asking questions. Make sure your team is actively engaging your customers in conversation. How you talk to customers at your bank will set you apart from your competitors, and it will be the groundwork for strong customer service for years to come. With the right technological tools that free up time to interact with customers, your branch can dedicate more energy on the consumer experience."
Final Thoughts
Customers rarely walk into a branch without a problem which need to be solved. By training your staff to dig deeper and better manage their own verbal and non-verbal conversation skills will empower them to understand their customers better and solve challenges more effectively.
Training Employees to Have More In-Depth Customer Conversations is set to be a keynote topic at Future Branches Boston 2022, being held in July, at Westin Copley Place, Boston, MA.
Download the agenda today for more information and insights.