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Is Your Credit Union Ready to Communicate With the Next Generation of Members?

Need help engaging with younger depositors? Embrace modern messaging tools! With the rise of platforms like SMS, WhatsApp, and Snapchat, younger generations expect instant communication from businesses. Keep in mind, this generation has grown up with smartphones. They are more comfortable using messaging platforms compared to traditional communication methods such as phone calls, emails, or even face-to-face interactions. Credit unions that adopt these modern communication habits can enhance their strategies, deliver personalized messages, improve member service, and reduce expenses. Stay caught up in the digital age by making the switch from traditional communication habits to a more modern approach today!

What ChatGPT and GPT4 will do for Banking

We received an inquiry from the press today about sharing our thoughts on how can ChatGPT be used in the banking industry, the opportunities and threads it will bring, and how should banks and credit unions approach this technology?

I will share my personal opinion from all of the knowledge and experience I’ve gathered over the past 12 years helping financial institutions automated their banking processes. 

Process Mapping: Unlocking AI’s Potential

In today’s world, technology is rapidly changing how we do business. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a buzzword in the banking industry, promising significant improvements in operations and customer experience. However, before investing in AI technology, it is essential to understand existing processes in order to determine the areas best suited for automation. This is where process mapping comes into play

Shastic launches Elle app on Finastra’s FusionFabric.cloud to streamline the mortgage process

Elle embeds text messaging into existing Finastra platforms to turn days of chasing customers and documents into minutes

How to Keep Lending High-Touch in a High-Tech World

By Joseariel Gomez, CEO of Shastic

Most financial institutions are racing to go digital, and they’re making significant investments in new digital infrastructure to get there. However, these institutions are now faced with the challenge of going digital without losing personal relationships with customers. For community banks, which many customers choose precisely because of personalized service, going digital runs the risk of transforming their services into a commodity in which the only differentiators are interest rates. Investing in digital personal touch-points can be a key competitive advantage for these community banks.

Priority One Integrated SMS for Verification and Security

Recently, Shastic and Priority One collaborated to create a technology solution for the credit union’s digital platform.

With the addition of SMS, Priority One added an innovative security process for the verification of the member’s identity. This allowed the credit union to perform specific tasks over the phone, such as balance inquiries, transferring funds and making loan payments.

HBR Poll: Offering the Best User Experience is Powerful

CorePlus Adopts Strategy to Grow Digital Presence

CorePlus Credit Union, based out of Norwich, Connecticut, took a big step in growing its digital presence by incorporating Shastic’s member engagement software into their pre-existing web pages and mobile apps.

Credit Union Times covers New MeridianLink SMS announcement

Technology, especially Fintech, is designed to make life easier for both companies and the people they serve.

Banks and Credit Unions Are Losing to Fintech

Both banks and credit unions continue to lose market share to digital lending platforms that offer better user experience and more personalization. 
Fintech startups issued 38% of all US personal loans in 2018, while banks provided 28% and credit unions accounted for 21%, according to TransUnion. This is a significant change from 2013, when fintech startups issued only 5% of US personal loans, banks issued 40%, and credits unions 31%.

Shastic Partners with MeridianLink to Leverage SMS in the Application

MeridianLink is the largest loan origination system in the United States, providing the nation’s first multi-channel loan organization platform

Recently, MeridianLink announced a partnership with Shastic to deliver an innovative SMS and real-time tracking integration inside all of their applications. Before this, financial institutions did not have a way to communicate with their customers as they moved through the application process.

The Problems With Shortcode

There is a good chance you have used a shortcode at some point when communicated by SMS with a business organization, whether it be in the financial services, retail, travel, or transportation industry.

How Messaging Has Transformed Customer Service

There’s no denying that technology has changed the way that people communicate, for better or worse.

Fintech Provides Customers with Meaningful Experiences

Everyone has experienced at least one instance in which they’ve had a lackluster customer service experience. The best that companies can hope for with those is that they fall to the wayside, but they can quickly become the bane of a company’s existence

How Credit Unions Verify Each Member’s Identification Digitally

Most credit unions currently have a process in place to verify each member through the call center. The verification of the member’s identity allows the credit union to perform specific tasks over the phone, such as balance inquiries, transferring funds and making loan payments.

To Be a Leader in the Industry Mobile Banking is the Key

Mobile Banking: Exploring Trends For Market Leadership

In the past, people had the time to visit a bank. But all companies must re-evaluate their customer service routines, and market leadership today means exploring how technology can help customers at financial institutions.

Studies Show Mobile Banking Apps are Among the Most Popular

Most people who have a smartphone utilize it for more than just phone calls.

Driving Credit Union Messaging: What Works?

Not all credit union customer service strategies are created equal. Customer service solutions that incorporate some form of nonverbal messaging are better-off than those without.

Two-Way Text Messaging for Credit Union Communication

One challenge that credit unions face today is the need to keep themselves relevant. Usually, this involves making a face for themselves on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, but this alone is not key to keeping technologically viable. The key, it seems, is adopting a technological advancement that has been around for decades and yet has been primarily underutilized by companies. The technology? Two-way text messaging.

Best Practices to Drive Messaging at Your Credit Union

Text messaging is now a commonplace practice among most people, and more and more financial institutions are adapting text messaging solutions out of convenience.

Credit Union Digital Strategies Aren’t “Set and Forget”

Anyone involved in a technology field can tell you business technology is growing rapidly. What this means for companies is that they must update their technology in order to remain viable in their field of competition. “Set and forget” technologies, or technologies that are not designed to meet the constantly shifting expectations of modern technology, pose problems to potential company growth. In many cases, set and forget technologies can put companies years behind and create cost burdens to businesses. 

Why Your Credit Union Needs a Defined Data Strategy

If your company is a fledgling in the world of technology, don’t worry. The term defined data strategy is nowhere near as challenging or technologically advanced as it sounds. 

How to Build Community With Text Messaging

There are reasons why banks and other financial institutions are adopting mobile-based platforms for their customers: It fosters a sense of closeness that has been lost in the business of the modern world.

CUTimes story: Why Credit union members love text message interactions

Last week, the CreditUnionTimes featured a story about why three of Shastic’s credit union partners are integrating text messaging into their operations strategy.

Why it’s Now Time to Adopt an Omni-Channel Digital Strategy

The financial industry is seeing an emergence of digital technology, delivering enhanced experiences to customers who demand convenience, accessibility and easy-to-use platforms.

Park Community on pace for 2044% ROI from loan growth

Credit union uses text messaging platform to give members actionable loan app information.

In 2018, Park Community was evaluating messaging communication services to create a better experience for their members. The credit union needed a text messaging platform that could accurately capture loan prospects in real-time and help guide them through the digital application journey when applicants entered Park’s online loan applications.

Millennial Text Messaging Statistics

Think that adults age 40 and over are your biggest worry? Think again. When it comes to servicing the largest group of potential customers, this role goes to the Millennial population and is closely followed by Generation Z. For this specific audience, the digital user experience takes a much higher priority.

While in-person or over-the-phone interactions may have been the preferred method in the past, the next generation of banking customers are challenging this idea, and backing it up with surprising statistics. 

Reducing Friction in Account Opening

The Dos and Don’ts of Text Messaging

Credit Unions are up against tough competition when it comes to providing digital services to a young, growing population. This is particularly true when you consider how just one bad user experience can turn away a potential long-term Millennial customer permanently.

Benefits of Workflow Automation

With many people concerned about the prospect of “robots” taking their jobs, the idea of an automated workplace just might seem like one step closer to a dystopian reality. But for those in workforces where the majority of the work can be completed on an employee’s own time and without direct supervision from a manager, workflow automation can be a blessing. Not only does it place more trust in your employees and cause them to focus efforts on more meaningful tasks, but it can also increase the level of satisfaction held by your customers.

Best Practice for Complying with SMS Regulation

B2C Text Messaging: Knowing the Rules for Digital Banking

Receiving Banking Documents Just Got Easy

Over the last year, the Elle text messaging platform continues to advance with new benefits and features the banking industry. Today, we are highlighting on such addition that our banking partners have been taking advantage of recently – collecting loan and new account documentation by text messaging.

Text Marketing Vs. Email Marketing: Infographic

The importance of texting as both a social and marketing tool is now more important than ever for businesses.

Key Reasons SMS Marketing is Essential

Four Reasons Why SMS is More Effective than Email Marketing

Email is attached to everything today in your career and your personal life. With this widespread exposure, it is understandable why so businesses flock to the simple email as a means of marketing. But emailing might not be the best way to reach your audience.

Eight SMS Opt-in Approaches to Consider

An article covered in Entrepreneur points out a few things that really do not change much over time — customers, regardless of demographics, always want the same basic things. Author, Derek Gehl breaks down a few approaches to with getting these customers to opt-in to offers that speak to this mindset.

Mobile SMS Secrets: Strategies for Success

If you have a mobile device, chances are you’ve probably gotten an unwanted text or SMS before. They are unavoidable, ranging from unsolicited advertising to ‘special’ marketing promotions. In the end, it makes you ask how your number was made available to this person. Even worse, when customers find out a company they are affiliated with is doing this, a common knee-jerk reaction is to stop being a customer altogether.

How to Design a Millennial Bank

In a recent article by The Financial Brand, Alex Kreger describes the complexities of banking for a Millennial customer. It is important to consider this age group, argues Kreger, as it is estimated that before 2025 Millennials will control $7 trillion in global assets.

Text Messaging Metrics You Can’t Ignore

Make Mobile Messaging Part of Your Communications Plan

In an article by Tim Fujita-Yuhas of The Financial Brand, the author highlights some staggering statistics concerning text message usage by mobile banking customers. For example, “64% of millennials prefer text messages to voice for customer service.” The Financial Brand also notes how “77% of millennials look favorably on companies that offer text messaging communications.”

Know the Text Messaging Guidelines

Since the 2015 FCC ruling, all companies that engage in text messaging are required to comply with TCPA regulations in reference to their text messaging services. Under the ruling, it requires banks and credit unions to follow certain stipulations when it comes to sending our SMS or MMS messages.

How SMS Increases Convenience for Banking Customers

OpenMarket did a great job of explaining the simplicity of bank text messaging. Beginning first with a brief overview of what different text banking messages look like and explaining the different functionality available to these financial organizations.

SMS Marketing Case Study: Avoid Jiffy Lube’s Costly Mistake

In 2012, cell-phone usage was beginning to peak and was quickly becoming one of the most important tools for marketing. Text messaging, especially, was showcasing its versatility and abundance. Unfortunately for some companies, such as Jiffy Lube, little research was done into opt-in text messaging solutions before deploying to their customer base. This article highlights exactly what can happen if precautions are not taken to respect customer wishes regarding opt-in texting.

Text Messaging Vendor Checklist: Four Questions to Ask

In the fast-moving world of financial technology, better known as fintech, determining whether or not a partnership makes sense is a challenge in itself. This is particularly true when you are considering a collaboration with a text messaging vendor.

SMS Opt-in for Banking: How to Opt-in Users for Text Messaging?

FCC Rules & Regulations on Text Messaging: Understanding TCPA

Text messaging functionality is quickly being adopted by financial institutions seeking to better serve their customers. Once deployed, these leading businesses see it as an invaluable communication tool. However, it is important to understand the do’s and don’t when it comes to text messaging regulation.

How to Improve Customer Experience with SMS Banking

Why Poor Customer Service Costs Billions and How to Fix it

How Banks & Credit Unions are Using Text Messaging

Push Vs. Pull :  Which Text Messaging Service Benefits Banking Customers Most?

You get a text and you don’t really think about the processes it takes to get that message from sender to receiver.

However, financial institutions must think about this when implementing their own text banking options. Here’s a look into the various text messaging offerings for financial institutions and how each motivates different type of customers.

Five Benefits When Adding Messaging to Your Banking Strategy

Why Financial Institutions Must Expand Omnichannel Services

Over the last decade, banking technology has expanded rapidly with the growth of several new communication channels to improve the user experience. And the expansion of these new digital cross-channels can be attributed to a single group — Millennials.

As Communication Changes, Banking Call Centers Turn to Text

Text messaging is no longer considered a complicated, high-tech decision for banks and credit unions. Statistics show that text message for banking is critical to efficiently service customers in today’s world. Furthermore, a majority of financial institutions see text message as a gateway to provide consumers with a better digital experience.

How Educators Credit Union Achieved a 68% Completion rate from Loan Applicants

A loan applicant prospect starts to fill out a loan application online. This applicant comes to a section that confuses them and stops completing the application. They decide to come back to the loan application tomorrow when they can get help. However, the applicant forgets about it and the financial institution never follows up with this prospect. Does this sound familiar?

How the World is Communicating and Why Banks and Credit Unions Should Pay Attention

Susan is a CMO at a Washington-based financial institution. She loves her team’s outreach strategy, but deep down she knew something wasn’t right. Her promotional emails were ignored, outbound calls went unanswered, and overall engagement was low. She didn’t know why this was happening, but knew that she had to make a change.

If you work at a bank or credit union, you may have noticed there’s a fundamental shift in how communication is delivered and received, and this change is happening at unprecedented speeds. 

Why Email and Social Media Campaigns Fall Short

A common goal for marketing professionals at credit unions is getting the right content to the right audience at the right time. So, you put extra effort into your strategy. You categorize and target your member audience to specific financial products or promotions. You make your email and social media posts engaging. You offer fun and interactive sweepstakes.

However, despite this effort, you notice your members are not responding at the same rate as they have in the past.

Why You Must Start Designing Your Conversational Banking Strategy Now

Why Conversational Messaging is a No-Brainer

Why Members Don’t Answer Your Calls

7 Strategies for Credit Unions to Grow Text Message Opt-in Consent

Five Credit Unions Sign with Shastic’s Text Messaging Platform in January to Enhance Lending and Operations

Shastic has signed on five new customers in the first month of 2018. The recent growth follows the company’s early launch of Elle, a conversational text messaging platform built for credit unions. Elle is an expansion of their automation services to deliver efficient, real-time message communication between credit unions and their members.

Is Email Dead?