USAA uses personalization to retain customers

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April 23, 2022

USAA Bank's niche audience insights drive a highly personalized mobile app

USAA Federal Savings Bank, which also offers insurance and caters to military members and their families, has overhauled its mobile app for the first time in 10 years, per American Banker.

Ameesh Vakharia, chief strategy and brand officer at USAA, told American Banker that the bank is tailoring "to an audience of one," adding, "The faster we can get to predicting what they need ahead of time is a big area of focus."

After the overhaul, a personalization platform triggers on-screen alerts and conversational interactions with the enterprise virtual assistant, EVA. These alerts and other communications now include nudges at log-in to finish applications or set a travel notice, an ATM locator that uses geolocation technology, and a new search tool that uses natural language processing.

This level of personalization is critical to customer retention—and it starts with the customer, rather than with the banks' products and transactions.

Insider Intelligence's Sherry Fairchok has the full story.

BRIEFING HIGHLIGHTS

JPMorgan reorganizes its tech teams to nurture 'that lean, startup kind of mindset'

JPMorgan's IT teams will reorganize along product lines, enabling them to operate more like startups, per Business Insider.

Gemini credit card helps Mastercard stay competitive in the crypto sphere

Gemini rolled out its crypto rewards credit card in all 50 US states, per a press release—more than a year after the project was announced.

IMF's report says banks and fintechs need to compete on a level playing field

In a blog post on the latest chapter of its Global Financial Stability Report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) urged more regulation of fintechs, saying that they're introducing systemic risks because they're not playing by the same rules as traditional financial institutions (FIs).

Buy with Prime pushes Amazon further into checkout solutions for sellers

Amazon has launched Buy with Prime, which aims to improve its suite of checkout offerings for sellers, according to Bloomberg.

Meta's grand plans for WhatsApp business payments in Brazil have stalled

Meta's plans to let users send money to businesses via WhatsApp in Brazil have reportedly run into problems, according to the Financial Times.

Customers want to pay with their crypto

US crypto owners are increasingly using their digital holdings to make purchases online and in-store, according to an April PYMNTS survey.

Synchrony's robust Q1 undergirded by key investments and product launches

Synchrony Financial posted strong results in its Q1 2022 earnings, per a press release.

UK lender discounts its rate for consumers sharing open banking data

UK specialist lender Shawbrook Bank will give a discount on loans to applicants who share their open banking data, per AltFi.

Survey finds incumbent banks at a crossroads, losing customers to agile fintechs

Bankers are worried about their ability to offer high-quality omnichannel and personalized experiences to their clients, according to a report from Capgemini and Efma.

RESEARCH IN FOCUS

The UK Digital-Only Banks Report

UK digital-only banks—particularly neobanks—have broken into the mainstream, but not into steady profits. Under pressure from investors, neobanks are trying a range of strategies to diversify their revenue streams. Whether they can pull it off remains to be seen, so incumbents should seize this moment of flux to secure a bigger share of UK digital account holders. This report delves into the largest UK neobanks' growth and what's fueling their rise, explores the challenges they face as the market evolves, and presents actionable steps that incumbents can take to strike back and win over digital account holders.

Get the full report →

Insider Intelligence's Banking Trends to Watch in 2022

Digital transformation is disrupting the banking industry. Incumbent financial institutions (FIs), Big Tech firms, neobanks, and fintech companies will each feel its effects differently. This report explores how consumer demand for hyper-personalization will reshape banking and payments experiences, what the rise of super apps means for banking titans, and if Big Tech's foray into financial services will affect banking and insurance.

Get the full report →

The Banking CMO Report

Today's banking CMOs are redefining their role as digital becomes the default banking channel for customers. With CMOs being responsible for customer retention as well as acquisition, they are seeking to exert influence over more stages of the customer journey. In this report, we synthesize exclusive interviews with 10 CMOs at some of the largest and most innovative banks, credit unions, and neobanks in the US and Canada. We provide insights into how CMOs define their roles and responsibilities; how trends are shaping their strategic priorities; and how a changing consumer and competitive environment is changing the CMO role more fundamentally.

Get the full report →