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ATMs play a role in FIs’ omnichannel goals

January 28, 2014 by Dan Kramer — Senior Vice President, Marketing & Merchant Servic, SHAZAM

Mercator Advisory Group's recent "2013 ATM Market Benchmark Report" examines the ways in which the ATM channel is assisting financial institutions in their efforts to create an omnichannel banking experience.

Omnichannel is the fusion of channels to create a unified customer experience. Essentially, it's the convergence of physical and virtual channels, allowing for the experience initiated in one channel to be seamlessly transferred to another.

Earlier research from Mercator examined how FIs were progressing toward omnichannel means and practices, rather than traditional monochannel and multichannel approaches to banking.

The Benchmark report continues to examine this progression toward omnichannel banking, and specifically, the role ATMs are playing in this movement. Researchers dig into the metamorphosis of the ATM from just a cash-dispensing machine to a multi-use device for numerous interfaces between FIs and their customers.

"Today's ATMs have evolved beyond their uninspired, appliance-like roots as a basic cash dispenser to a robust, full-function complement to the growing online and mobile banking self-service channels," Ed O'Brien, director of Mercator Advisory Group's Banking Channels Advisory Service, said in a press release. "ATMs are part of FIs' larger initiative to invest in and update core, channel systems, back office, and analytics systems toward an omnichannel banking environment."

As many community FIs have found, consumers are becoming even more demanding about how an FI interfaces with them across all channels, including digital.

"To be successful in today's challenging business environment, FIs must be creative and fluid in the way they reach out to engage and service their customers and members. Moving beyond a view of channels as silos of information is key to the success of today's FIs," said O'Brien, in an earlier press release.

Indeed, the findings in this report remind FIs that consumers' relationship with their FI as a whole is what matters (including ATMs, online, mobile, and digital offerings).

Therefore, it's important for FIs to focus on offering seamless transacting for customers across all channels. This will help build solid, personal, and more substantial relationships between customers and their FI.

Read more trends and statistics.

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