What drives your business? Are we all in danger of losing sight of the bigger picture and focusing on tactics rather than overall strategy. In times of austerity can cost cutting become a mantra rather than just a means to an end? To what extent are our actions driven by external factors? Are you customer-led or are you trying to influence the way consumers behave as part of a wider strategy? Do you really understand what your customers expect from you and what makes them more or less likely to buy your products or use your services?

In recent years a whole vocabulary has evolved around the need to grow and retain the customer base. In retail banking the threat from new competitors lacking the 'fixed' costs associated with traditional players and an increased likelihood of consumers switching service providers has led to the quest for greater 'stickiness'.

But do we really know what these customers want and how does it fit in with other drivers such as the need to lower costs? Can the two be mutually compatible and what role should technology play? Is the introduction of new technologies more or less likely to attract new customers or persuade existing customers to stick with their bank or a particular retailer?

A new survey carried out by PWC has addressed a number of these issues and makes for interesting reading. The recent report “Experience is everything: Here’s how to get it right” concluded that 'the key to retaining and attracting customers is providing a great experience '. Of course technology plays a key role as an 'enabler', but in addition to speed, convenience and consistency, friendliness and a human touch are key elements of customer service delivery. It's not just about cutting-edge technology but rather 'giving employees what they need to create better customer experience' by minimising friction and stress.

While customer experience delivers stickiness and influences purchasing decisions, failing to get it right can be costly. According to the survey 32 percent of customers say they will walk away from a brand they love after just one bad experience. At the same time 52 percent say the customer experience delivered by most companies needs improving.

In all industries surveyed there remains a gap between customer expectation and service delivery. PWC concludes that the way to close this gap is by using technology to complement the human element of customer experience 'without creating new frustrations '. In other words, it's not 'either or' but “together”.

Customers value human interaction, especially when things go wrong. Only 3 percent of US consumers want their experience to be 'as automated as possible' and 55 percent strongly disagreed with the statement that 'once technology becomes advanced we won't need people for great customer experience '. In both the US (82 percent) and the UK (78 percent) there is a strong belief that interaction with a real person will be more important as technology improves.

At Glory we are working with financial institutions and retailers worldwide to ensure effective investment that frees up resources, enables the correct balance of technology and staff and delivers the service levels customers require. The PWC survey confirms the view that human interaction remains key to service delivery. 

For retail banks this involves an ongoing role for the branch. The cost-effective deployment of branches involves the best use of available space to deliver fast, convenient transactions, assisted service solutions with the potential for staff intervention where required. For retailers, it’s about driving the most efficient cash handling processes through the store.

Whichever industry you are in, Glory is focussed on releasing your staff from the burden of manual cash processing to focus on delivering the best possible experience to your customers to drive greater brand loyalty and ultimately business success.