Abstract
Overview
This latest Javelin report outlines why SMS (Short Message Service) or text
message alerts will be the real driver of adoption of the mobile channel.
Building on extensive, longitudinal data, this research promotes the need to
look beyond online bankers, the current target for most financial
institutions' mobile banking programs, and provides preference data for alerts
types that will gain traction among a wider cross-section of a financial
institution' s customer base. The study concludes by demonstrating the natural
evolution of SMS alerts to two-way Interactive Financial Messaging™ over
the next few years that distinguishes mobile from the online channel.
Primary Questions
- Why are SMS alerts key to mobile channel adoption?
- What type of SMS alerts should FIs offer to prove the value of the mobile
channel to their customers?
- Why should banks target both online and non-online bankers with SMS alerts
to encourage mobile channel adoption?
- What is the next development after SMS alerts that will drive mobile
adoption?
Findings and Analysis
Adoption of the mobile channel requires that banks and credit unions implement
SMS alerts with the eventual goal of developing simple alerts into two-way
Interactive Financial Messaging™ (IFMs™). Those institutions
aiming for widespread adoption must focus on communicating the concrete,
real-time benefits that SMS alerts provide instead of merely promoting the
existence of a new channel. Alerts that focus on account security and fraud
management are critical to consumers: “Any unusual transaction that you
specify” has been the most desired alert of consumers for the past three
years, with billing alerts and account change notifications tied for second.
Banks and credit unions able to provide time-sensitive informational SMS
alerts that affect account status will experience higher adoption of the
mobile channel and give consumers the control they desire, priming them for
more advanced transactions as trust and dependence on the channel increases.
Audience:
FIs: Online banking/eCommerce, mobile banking, marketing, fraud prevention,
customer alerts departments; Vendors: SMS service providers, mobile banking
platform providers
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