The physical bank branch, rather than the Internet, will be the engine of future growth for financial services firms, according to new research commissioned by Deloitte & Touche.
The traditional branch was used by more than 80% of a sample of 2709 consumers interviewed for the study and is the preferred channel for 52%. Importantly, the branch is preferred by 45% of customers in the more affluent AB segment of the population, and by 48% of C1 customers. It is also liked by the banks’ future potential big spenders, the 16-24 year old account holders, 78% of whom use it in preference to the Internet or phone.
The results run counter to the popular notion that sophisticated and younger customers tend to avoid branches in favour of online channels.
The consultancy says that bank must re-position and re-purpose the role of the branch, "both in the mind of the customer, and for some banking institutions, in the thinking of senior management too".
Download the document now 295Kb PDF