Trust in the financial services industry is being highlighted for the second time in a week as another report reveals falling figures.
According to the Restoring Trust in Financial Services in the Digital Era, which was commissioned by Salesforce, 34% of customers believe the industry can be trusted.
The new report recommends firms need to demonstrate their commitment to putting customers’ interests first, with more than half of customers believing the digital experience with their financial providers still needed improvement.
The report also found that privacy and data is an increasing concern, an issue across the globe at the moment after recent data scandals.
Customers said the drivers of trust were systems to protect data and privacy, ethics and social responsibility and the belief the firm is putting customers’ interests first.
Twenty-nine percent of customers said they were less willing to share personal information and data than six months ago.
However, 58% of customers said they would share personal and financial data with their own financial providers to access higher quality products and services.
Customers said the drivers of trust were systems to protect data and privacy, ethics and social responsibility and the belief the firm is putting customers’ interests first.
The report also said financial services firms were lagging behind on customer expectations, with respondents believing their providers were failing in providing personalised products and services and proactive advice and alerts.
Twenty percent believed the industry failed to meet most or only meets some expectations.
Customers also said they would consider alternative service providers. Thirty-eight percent would consider personal financial management fintechs, 35% would consider superannuation fintechs and 34% would consider banking fintechs.
John Moran, regional VP at Salesforce, said, “Pressure on the financial services industry to improve the customer experience and rebuild trust continues to grow.
“Millennials in particular are showing that with the breakdown in trust customers are looking to alternative providers for financial advice and services.
“Customer relationship management technology has never been more important to the industry with the need to rebuild relationships and deliver the level of transparency and customer experience expected today.
“Trailblazers like Moneytree and Study Loans are great examples of companies that have leveraged technology to put their customers at the heart of their business to provide a trusted and seamless experience.
“Building deeper and more personal relationships with customers will separate successful companies in financial services from the crowd.”
Deloitte digital partner Brad Milliken said, “It isn’t sufficient for financial services firms to simply talk about trust, they must actively diagnose, improve and manage for better outcomes. This survey clearly demonstrates the appetite to use emerging technology to do this.
“Our research shows that an organisation’s trustworthiness is impacted by three pillars: ethical intent, capabilities and an alignment to customer interests. And that having ethical intent is not sufficient if the organisation can’t deliver on the promises it makes.
“They need the right people, systems and processes and our survey identifies systems to protect customer’s data and privacy as key.”
The report was based on a survey of 1,005 customers in Australia and New Zealand. The full report can be accessed here: https://www.salesforce.com/au/form/pdf/deloitte-digital-report/
