Amazon is building a store! Bank branches must be here to stay

To paraphrase a recent statement from a financial services CEO, "Amazon is opening a physical store, when the largest Internet retailer is opening a store that only shows the value of the physical location to customers and thus the value of our branch network to clients."  Shortly after that statement was made the Wall Street Journal published this April 21, 2017 headline, "Brick-and-Mortar Store are shuttering at a Record Pace".  The article goes on to note that based on the pace for 2017 "retailers will close more than 8,600 locations this year, which would eclipse the number of closings during the 2008 recession."  And that Amazon store?  That store is attempting to be a technological marvel with no cashiers...which sounds more like a large ATM then a branch.

This is not the beginning of an argument to throw away your significant investment in branches.   Your bank's culture is not ready for that, your leadership is not ready for it, your shareholders are certainly not ready for it.  And let's face it the customers you serve today are likely not ready for that.  But will you win the customers of tomorrow through those branches?

This is a call to action, that to compete and differentiate you cannot imitate your competitors and you cannot just incorporate and use the digital services around you (e.g. "but my bank has a Facebook page and a Twitter account therefore I'm social") to say you're ready for a digital world.  To differentiate yourself you're going to need a strong digital [now here comes the frankly exhausted, overused term of] "customer experience".  The challenge here is to question how it is your clients would like to interact with your bank in a digital world, regardless if the branch is an option today for your clients, this is to at least prepare for the risk that a costly and capital intensive branch network is restricting you from investing in the digital experience that could one day replace the need for a branch, that is one day needed to satisfy the client who learns they really don't need a branch.  

Let me help evolve your financial institution! Whether in technology leadership, product leadership, operations leaders or more.  Lean how my years of leadership and experience sitting at the intersection of business and technology can help your financial services company compete.  Click here to learn more about my background.