2021 saw exceptional innovations in blockchain, AI & analytics, and digital. For 2022, these high-profile areas signal the need for very big shifts in how we operate. So here are three priority areas for 2022 that I believe will be important to drive growth and higher relevance with customers and partners alike. The big wins will come for those who […]
In the past year alone, there has been a dramatic rise of mobile payments. Systems such as Google Wallet have incorporated loyalty programs, expanded their payment vehicles and made it easier for users to engage. Starbucks reports that almost 11% of all its transactions are now being done on mobile. This is really heartening. But as merchants sign up for these […]
Omni Channel customer engagement has been a hot topic for the past several years. But despite all the buzz the real status of Omni Channel has been lagging at best. The question to ask is: Are organizations themselves integrated enough to be capable of initiating and delivering Omni Channel customer engagement initiatives? Instead of looking at third party reports and statistics, […]
It’s human nature. We try to protect what we have even though we know that change is coming. In this post I’ll bring out some real drivers of customer engagement, and provide some tactics to get ahead. There has been lots of buzz that the store can never die (Amazon is also getting into physical now), and how customer experience […]
For many years now we’ve been witnessing the phenomenal rise of Amazon.com. Retailers and manufacturers of all kinds have been scurrying to get their digital act together. The media has been rife with questions about traditional business models of stores and distributor channels. And now finally, Amazon has opened physical stores in key categories – grocery and books to name a few. The […]
In today’s fast paced, connected world, it has become crucial to engage with our customers, not just find ways to advertise to them. Customer engagement is actually a strong branding vehicle because it helps us align with the causes our customers love. And it can drive more profitable growth because it realigns our business with its higher purpose. The UNICEF Kid […]
There’s so much is happening in the financial services world that its enough to make your head spin. At the same time, if you take a look at the news today, you can see who’s getting it and moving forward, and who’s content with playing the same old game risking their very survival. Here’s my Fintech Innovation Watch. With a […]
Excited to announce from Barcelona, Spain, that my second book “Connected! How #platforms of today will become apps of tomorrow” is now live as a Kindle eBook! The paperback & hard cover versions will out through the distributors soon. I’ll also make the eBook available on Barnes & Noble & Apple in the next few weeks. For a limited time, get it […]
Let’s start with some cool statistics to set the stage for customer engagement. The numbers are hard hitting. Online sales clearly exceeded offline sales as nicely explained here. 25% more people did not stand in early morning lines. Obviously the availability of blockbuster deals is not an issue anymore. Good in a way but kind of takes some fun and thrill […]
In a turn of events that demonstrates how rapidly the financial payments market is evolving, Visa and MasterCard have both entered into separate deals with PayPal. (ref 1 and 2 below) Image courtesy It was puzzling. Didn’t PayPal already accept both Visa and MasterCard? Yes it did, but the growth of PayPal (and now Stripe), also posed a very real risk […]
Timing is everything. Brands and businesses worldwide were quick to cash in on the Pokemon Go launch mania. Businesses jumped in with all kinds of promotions and offers as millions of people took to the streets hunting Pokemon on their mobile phones (I did too). For the most part, the promotional tactics for customer engagement by businesses can be categorized […]
A recent multinational study by the Cloud Security Alliance showed that financial services firms are improving adoption of the cloud. The top 3 reasons stated for cloud adoption in financial services were: Flexible infrastructure capacity (68%) Reduced cost for provisioning (63%) Reduction in TCO (57%) The top 3 wish-list items revolved around audit, compliance, forensics and encryption. The top applications that […]
In a recent article on American Banker (Don’t Give Away the Store When Enabling APIs), I brought out three best practices for banks to adopt as they think of leveraging the Fintech and Banking API phenomenon. Even as Banking API are being touted as a must for banks, the common position of argument is from the perspective of emerging companies and […]
I’m sure every one of us is looking at how our banks are going to respond to the winds of change. Disruption and disinter-mediation is in the air. The following is a summary of an article on this topic on BAI Strategies. The most important task for banks in the age of Digital Disruption in Banking is to look beyond the traditional […]
What happened to URLs such as www.facebook.com/yourbrand? Is the great promise of building a community through social media effectively over? Just as brands were starting to figure out how to improve their social investments ROI, and how to attribute success to their social media efforts, prominent networks such as Facebook have pulled the rug out from under our feet – […]