Wachovia bets on teleconferencing

Mon, 12 May 2008 09:19:58 -0400

Wachovia bought a fancy "telepresence" system from Cisco last year and has developed an eye-catching system around it. Bank Technology News describes the special studios as having "ultra high-definition displays," each of which show on-screen participants in near-perfect resolution, while "spatial acoustics approximate their position at a virtual round table. Cameras are positioned so that participants can share direct eye contact. Some are said to have offered to shake hands. But one big issue is whether this can alter the customer acquisition dynamic. Top banks are said to be thinking about using such technology in retail settings, allowing potential customers to interact with specialists less expensively. It's a money saver to be sure. Cisco, H-P and others are marketing hard, as you would expect.

For more:
- here's the article from Bank Technology News

How to retain customers with analytics

Mon, 12 May 2008 09:18:30 -0400

Technology can be the marketing department's best friend. A great example is the use of analytics to retain customers. Bank Systems & Technology notes that Wachovia builds "attrition models" to anticipate if an individual might defect to a competitor. That gives staff a head-up in terms of reaching out to them. While the industry tends to focus on customer acquisition more than retention, there maybe a change underway. Technology and analytics are big reasons many banks now are taking their first steps toward understanding how to generate the right data and how it might be used. The credit card industry seems to have enjoyed the best returns so far. As with all things tech, there is a learning curve that must be traversed.

For more:
- here's the Bank Systems & Technology article