CX, journeys, benefits and X tools for you to use in FinTech and baking today – here’s how to use customer journey mapping to anticipate needs and keep customers loyal

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Are you using customer journey mapping to identify market needs and boost loyalty?

The high levels of regulation and bureaucracy in banking and finance, for example, make it an extremely easy industry to fall behind on evolving customer needs. Slow processes and siloed departments have enabled numerous major banking disruptions in recent years – from cryptocurrency to savvy FinTechs coming in and eating banks’ lunches.

New innovations that enable customers to do so much more are a powerful way for virtually anyone to stake off a piece of one of the largest industries in the world.

Yet it needn’t be that way. The simple act of using your data to keep up with what your customers want and need is more than enough to keep any financial institution at the top of their game – and customers more loyal by the day.

It’s a method many FinTechs in the startup space will be familiar with, but everyone in finance, big or small can always do better in – customer journey mapping to anticipate needs and build loyalty.

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Here’s what you need to know…

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What is Customer Journey Mapping?

Unlike in the past when banking was kind of “inevitable” for economically active people, today, they have more options than ever. This means that to continue to grow and succeed in finance you need to employ the same basic steps to attract, engage and retain customers as any business.

What this does offer you, though, is the ability to map out an entire customer journey – every step from when they first hear about your product until they eventually purchase. It’s called customer journey mapping, and you can do it both with current customers or hypothetically when you roll out new products.

It’s basically plotting out the major interaction/decision points of each potential customer and you can use it to:

• Analyse existing customer behaviour – which CTA did they respond to the most?
• Model your conversion rates – what percentage of people at each step move onto the next step?
• Or use it to identify potential future needs, so that you can pre-empt them and retain more customers.

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Generally, most customers have similar journeys with a product/service…

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The Stages of Customer Journeys

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1. Awareness Stage: Potential customers first encounter the brand or product via various channels like advertisements, social media platforms, referrals from friends, or other means.

2. Consideration Stage: At this stage, potential customers view the brand or product as a possible solution to their needs. This phase often involves researching alternatives, comparing features, and seeking advice from trusted sources.

3. Evaluation Stage: During this phase, customers refine their choices by closely examining the brand or product's features, advantages, and cost. They may consult reviews, gather additional details, or engage with customer service.

4. Purchase Stage: Here, the decision to purchase is made. This stage typically includes activities such as completing the buying process, choosing payment methods, and confirming the order.

5. Onboarding Stage: Post-purchase, customers enter the onboarding phase, where they become acquainted with how to utilise the product or service efficiently. This may involve initial setup, educational tutorials, or support from customer service teams.

6. Engagement Stage: In this stage, customers actively use the product or service, exploring its features and realising its value. This includes regular usage, interactions with support, involvement in loyalty programs, and more.

7. Retention Stage: Customers continue to be satisfied with the brand or product, often resulting in repeat business and a loyal relationship. Key activities at this stage include offering personalised services, proactive support, or rewards to enhance customer satisfaction.

8. (Optional) Advocacy Stage: Content customers turn into brand advocates, sharing their positive experiences online, referring new customers, or providing endorsements. This vital stage helps in expanding the brand’s reach and attracting new clientele.

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What you can do is plot out where customers are in this journey, and then determine what they need to progress to the next stage.

For example, if a lot of customers are in the evaluation stage, what do you need to do to shift them to purchase?

Or, more to the point of this guide: When customers are engaging with your product, what additional needs and concerns are they expressing (faster payments, lower fees, easier applications etc.) in your feedback loops that will help you retain them better?

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See how to use big data to understand customer needs and learn how to perform in-depth customer feedback analysis.

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5 Key Benefits of Customer Journey Mapping Anticipate Needs & Enhance Loyalty

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1. It Helps You Visualise the Customer Journey

We humans are visual, and your team can do more if you help them understand customer needs visually. 

Customer journey mapping is a powerful visualisation tool that allows banks to step into their customers' shoes and see the banking experience from their perspective, from initial awareness through to loyalty. This holistic view helps banks understand not just what their customers go through, but also how they feel at each step of their banking journey. 

By visually mapping the customer journey, banks can easily see where they're meeting expectations and where there might be gaps that need attention.

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See the best app features for personalised journeys.

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2. Identify Key Touchpoints

Journey mapping helps banks identify all the key touchpoints where customers interact with their services, such as through online banking, mobile apps, or physical branch visits. 

These touch points are critical because they significantly influence how customers perceive the bank’s service quality and efficiency. 

Recognising these interactions allows banks to focus their efforts on refining these experiences to enhance customer satisfaction.

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See the latest in banking UI trends.

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3. Pinpoint Pain Points & Opportunities

The detailed analysis that journey mapping provides helps you pinpoint specific pain points in the customer journey, such as confusing navigation in their mobile apps or excessive wait times at branches. Identifying these issues is the first step toward resolving them and improving the customer experience. 

Furthermore, journey mapping uncovers opportunities to exceed customer expectations, for example, through personalised financial advice or innovative loyalty programs that reward customers for their business.

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See how to use analytics to boost user engagement.

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4. Gaining a Competitive Advantage

Effective customer journey mapping lets you visualise how customers respond to your products and the value they present, allowing you to adapt, innovate and tailor services to meet the evolving expectations of modern consumers. 

By understanding and optimising the customer journey, banks and FinTechs can differentiate themselves from competitors, offering superior services that cater precisely to the needs and preferences of their customers. 

This strategic insight allows you to stay ahead in a competitive market where customer experience often dictates customer loyalty.

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Also see the benefits of custom software development.

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5. Boost ROI from Customer Loyalty

By addressing the identified pain points and capitalising on opportunities to improve and delight customers, banks can significantly enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty. 

This heightened satisfaction leads to increased customer retention, more cross-selling opportunities, and a stronger reputation, all of which contribute to a higher return on investment. 

Loyal customers are more likely to recommend the bank to others, reducing the cost of acquiring new customers and increasing the overall profitability.

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See how to use data to boost customer loyalty.

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The best part is you don’t have to reinvent the wheel to get these kinds of insights. Journey mapping is a big part of most businesses’ growth strategy, meaning there are ready-built tools to help you do it effectively…

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6 Customer Journey Mapping Tools

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1. General-purpose tools

These offer flexibility for various industries, including banking and FinTech:

• Miro is a highly collaborative online whiteboard platform which allows multiple team members to brainstorm, map out, and visualise the customer journey together in real-time.
• Visme is used for creating visually engaging customer journey maps that can easily be understood and shared across departments or presented to stakeholders in the banking sector.
• Lucidchart supports detailed diagramming with an extensive library of shapes and templates suitable for mapping intricate and more complex customer journeys from multiple channels.

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2. Customer experience (CX) focused tools

These cater specifically to CX mapping and might offer additional functionalities:

• UXPressia specialises in creating detailed customer journey maps, personas, and impact maps, adding detailed layers of analysis, such as emotional journeys, which can be critical for building loyalty and satisfaction.
• Smaply excels at providing detailed, structured, and easy-to-navigate journey maps that can handle the complexity of services such as finance.

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3. Digital experience intelligence (DXI) platforms

These go beyond mapping journeys and offer deeper customer behavioural insights:

• Glassbox uniquely offers the ability to connect your website or app and automatically map out existing, real customer journeys based on actual interaction data with real-time analytics and visualisation of current customer behaviour.

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See why you need a digital consultant in today’s market.

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How Specno Can Help

As tech and innovation consultants with our own development, venture, integration, product management and customer experience teams, we live and breathe iterating products for growth and scale. Our teams of FinTech specialists will gladly partner with you to help you make the right decisions.

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