A collection of exclusive studies, white papers, eBooks and research reports produced in collaboration with The Financial Brand’s partners.
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How to Be a Valuable Partner to Consumers in Difficult Economic Times
This 22-page report from Franklin Madison explains where banks and credit unions can help consumers stand out from the crowd and engender loyalty: by helping them with their financial health and wellness.
This timely research includes:
- How to create consumer loyalty by partnering on concerns
- How a financial wellness approach can retain and attract consumers
- How to meet consumer needs amid uncertainty
Credit Card Strategy in a Rising Rate Environment
This 14-page research report from Elan Credit Card details how financial institutions now need a new card strategy that considers the balance of risk and profitability, technology, card assortment, and financial education.
This timely research includes:
- Rethinking the credit card product strategy
- Creating a better product with less risk and more income
- How economic pressures could pinch profitability
Make Bill Pay a Consumer Magnet Again
This 16-page research report from Paymentus analyzes the current bill pay experience for most financial institutions, and how improving this experience can transform bill pay into a personal finance tool for your customers.
In this report you will discover how to use bill pay to:
- Transform bill pay into a personal finance tool
- Create loyal customers
- Expand revenue-driving opportunities
Stellar Strategic Planning Advice From 10 Changemakers in Banking and Technology
To learn more about how banks can prepare for 2023, Nymbus spoke with ten industry leaders about how they approach strategic planning and what banking executives should plan for in the coming year. This 27-page report details their thoughts and guidance on how financial institutions should approach their strategic plans for 2023.
In this report you will discover:
- How to create a companywide culture of innovation
- Tips to improve customer retention
- How to think like a “brand,” not a bank
Loan Payments: A Hidden Opportunity
This insightful and timely report from Paymentus details where banks and credit unions fall short of consumer expectations, and more importantly: strategies to combat this shortfall.
In this report you will discover:
- An in-depth look at today’s modern borrower
- The must-haves for a satisfying loan repayment experience
- Five strategies to maximize your loan payment modernization
From Prospect to Evangelist: Retail Banking Text and Webchat Strategies
This 30-page report from Podium takes a look at the modern banking customer and how banks and credit unions must up their customer experience game to attract, convert and retain them.
In this report you will discover:
- A snapshot of the modern banking consumer
- Why good customer service doesn’t guarantee a good customer experience
- Text and webchat engagement strategies that convert customers
Deepen Relationships with Small Business Customers
This report from Bottomline features insights from Aite-Novarica Group and details how banks and credit unions can provide SMB customers with a best-in-class digital banking experience and the opportunity it brings.
In this report you will discover:
- How even big banks with massive tech budgets are perceived as lagging behind in meeting the needs of small businesses
- Gen Z and Millennial business owners want a different business banking experience than previous generations.
- What financial institutions can provide that their small business clients are asking for
Getting the Most Out of Marketing Automation
This 17-page research report from Act-On outlines how FIs can overcome marketing automation challenges with technology, process, and people.
In this report you will discover:
- 3 secrets to getting the most out of your marketing automation
- How to use data for segmentation and personalization
- How to integrate your marketing system with your CRM
How to Get the Insights You Needed Yesterday… and Avoid Pitfalls Along the Way
This 19-page research report from Amperity and Microsoft dives into how FI’s should start comparing their user experience to big technology firms such as Google and Netflix.
In this report you will discover:
- Which financial institutions do you benchmark your customer or member experience against?
- Why data modernization is worth it
- Why you can’t put off data modernization any longer
Niching Down
This comprehensive, 22-page report from Nymbus explores that while traditional banking models are being disrupted, banks and credit unions can also find new opportunities.
In this report you will discover:
- How financial institutions can create new opportunities by launching a financial brand
- Why financial institutions need to take greater measures to innovate outside of their technology stacks
- How to identify your market and create a brand with niche products aligned to it
Automate or Die Hiring
This comprehensive, must-read report from SMA Technologies includes 16 pages of industry data, trends, analysis, graphs and charts aimed at arming you with what you need to make pressing automation choices now.
In this report you will discover:
- How automation can drive growth at banks while keeping hiring costs under control
- How financial institutions increasingly must figure out how to do more with less
- How financial institutions can overcome the significant IT skills gap
5 Trends Driving the Digital Banking Landscape
This 17-page research report from Alkami details why banks and credit unions need a nimble partner that helps them grow confidently and adapt quickly amid unrelenting change.
In this report you will discover:
- How banking executives setting their institution apart from the competition
- How banks and credit unions are adapting to the evolving digital landscape
- Learn how your digital transformation journey stacks up
Stop Fraud With Inbound Call Authentication Report
This 15-page research report from Neustar, a TransUnion Company, describes how you can use inbound call authentication to provide the experience customers expect without exposing your financial institution to sophisticated fraudsters.
In this report you will discover:
- Why fraudsters love your call center
- The benefits of inbound call authentication
- How to stop fraudsters before they attack
Getting to a Segment-of-One: How Credit Unions Can Use Data and Journey Orchestration to Leapfrog the Competition
The importance of digital to a credit union’s ability to retain and attract members is widely preached, but harder to practice. This research describes how leading credit unions are dealing with the widespread digital-first mindset prevalent among members.
Download this 29-page insights-filled report from Finalytics outlining how credit unions can use digital as a competitive weapon.
In this report you will discover:
- Top 3 Member Expectations for a Digital Experience
- Top 3 Syndromes Holding Credit Unions Back from Meeting Member Expectations
- Why Transactional Data and the Net Promoter Score Are Limitations
Insuring Success Report
By offering insurance, banks and credit unions can help people fill in this financial health gap. And guess what? They would gladly purchase insurance from you — their trusted financial institution.
Download this 32-page detailed report from Franklin Madison examining the untapped insurance opportunity for retail financial institutions, the benefits of offering insurance, the resources needed, and the best practices for success.
What You’ll Learn:
- How insurance can help banks and credit unions can help customers and members fill in financial health gaps
- Why offering insurance is more compelling than it ever has been before
- Why there’s never been a better time to offer insurance
Modern Connectivity Report
In today’s digital era where consumers demand integration among their accounts, financial applications and payment platforms, legacy systems can no longer keep pace. That’s where modern connectivity comes in. Download this 23-page, detailed report from MX detailing how modern connectivity, a consumer-permissioned method for data aggregation and enhancement, can help financial institutions share and access customer data in a faster, more reliable and more secure manner.
What You’ll Learn:
- Why it’s critical to offer customers a more secure and reliable connection to their financial accounts
- How banks can boost their bottom line with better products and services
- How to create effortless digital experiences across all applications and devices.
Creating a Truly Personalized Digital Banking Experience
With financial consumers exponentially adopting digital channels, it’s increasingly important for banking providers to deliver the level of customized experiences people now expect. Download this 20-page, data-driven research report from EVERFI exploring how financial marketers can deliver a more personalized experience across digital channels by tailoring interactions based on users’ generational segment and financial goals.
What You’ll Learn:
- How to deliver a more personalized, customized experience on digital channels
- How financial goals and desires vary by generation and how to tailor the digital response appropriately
- How to consider touch points as opportunities to solve issues and remove complications
Customer Experience Maturity for Financial Institutions
What makes a bank or credit union better at CX? Total Expert wanted to find out, which is why they conducted a survey of over 200 financial institution leaders to understand the maturity of their overall CX, then identify the specific customer engagement strategies that correspond to higher levels of maturity.
What You’ll Learn:
- What makes a bank or credit union better at CX
- Which upgrades are taking financial institutions to the next level
- Which banking products are key for high-performing institutions at CX
- Why certain decisions will define winners and losers in the CX race
2021 State of the Financial Marketer
Which financial institutions will win and thrive in 2021? Find out in this report from Total Expert, examining how evaluating financial institutions’ overall readiness to deliver on point customer experience.
What You’ll Learn:
- How banks and credit unions market to consumers
- How they leverage data throughout marketing and the customer experience
- The three challenges that most financial institutions are facing
- Four steps banks and credit unions can use to overcome the key obstacles
2021 Digital Lending Trends & Priorities
With new technologies advancing at a breakneck pace, how can traditional lenders keep up? Compounding the problem, financial institutions face mounting pressure from big techs, online challenger banks and digital lendtech competitors encroaching ever deeper into the auto, home and consumer lending marketplace. Download this report from CUNA Mutual Group examining the critical issues facing digital lenders in the year ahead.
What You’ll Learn:
- Where banking providers are placing their biggest digital bets to win big with borrowers
- The biggest digital lending challenges and headwinds traditional institutions must overcome
- Trends and priorities for transforming the digital lending experience
The Rise of Intelligent CRM in Banking
Download In the post-pandemic world, there will be fewer handshakes in branches. To build digital relationships, financial marketers will have to leverage data with new tools and smart technologies. This executive-level study examines the critical role of intelligent CRM tools and the data management solutions do you need to make the shift.
What You’ll Learn:
- What you need to do to improve CX and drive growth
- The challenges of sharing data and obtaining a full view of customers
- The looming ‘engagement gap’ facing smaller banks and credit unions
- Applying personalization at scale
Digital Approaches to Financial Education in the COVID-19 Era
How has the pandemic impacted bank and credit union marketing strategies? Find out how the COVID-19 pandemic and other megatrends have impacted bank marketing strategies — from the importance of digital engagement to the impact of financial education.
What You’ll Learn:
- The impact of COVID-19 on marketing strategies in the banking space
- How marketing investments are shifting and where budgets are being reallocated
- Why digital financial education tools are skyrocketing
- Insights from a survey of 200 financial institution marketing executives
The Ultimate Guide to Data, AI, + Personalized Financial Automation
When it comes to data and AI, are you ahead of the curve or behind the times? What can you do to take the lead? This 20-page guide is full of original survey data from banks and credit unions.
What You’ll Learn:
- How the industry is currently using data
- What percentage haven’t even started discussions about AI
- Why companies feel they’re blocked when it comes to data initiatives
- How you can evolve from being a financial intermediary to being a true financial advocate
Benchmark Report: A New Path Forward
Benchmark yourself against 195 U.S. banks and credit unions in this report from Temenos. Before you can move ahead in the post-COVID world, you need to understand where you are today.
In This Report:
- Coronavirus financial health pulse survey
- Understanding the four stages of growth in banking
- Critical investments and growth priorities for 2020
State of the Financial Marketers Report
What are the challenges facing bank and credit union marketers in the digital age? Find out in this 24-page report from TotalExpert.
What You’ll Learn:
- How financial marketers are pursuing personalization strategies
- The struggles financial marketers face with data collection and analytics
- How financial marketers are trying to humanize their CX
The World Branch Report
What’s the future of brick-and-mortar branches? Are they still relevant? Find out in this 60-page report examining the role of branches in the digital-first era.
What You’ll Learn:
- Current trends impacting branch networks, design and retail strategies in banking
- Why many banks and credit unions continue to invest in more branches
- The new tools and emerging concepts financial institutions are rolling out
- How branches are increasingly transitioning from transactions to interactions