F2 Strategy’s Executives in Residence bring years of high-level experience to our clients and with that comes unique perspectives and powerful insights that wealth management firms can use to make critical decisions. Our “What I’ve Seen” series gives the executives an outlet to share their insights with the industry in three categories: driving change, marketing and sales, or customer-centric business.
Jaci Stanton speaks to customer-centric business by implementing the latest technology tools to create personalized experiences that help clients envision their future and take action accordingly.
Google “A Christmas Carol for Financial Services” and you will find several articles using Charles Dickens story to teach money management lessons. It’s a powerful story with big emotions. But it’s not the only story worth considering.
Dickens’ uses mirroring techniques to reveal personalized visions of the future to Scrooge. In doing so, Scrooge can see the future consequences of his past and present actions. The view of a bleak and pitiful future causes Scrooge to change behavior. It’s a simple story made famous because we can all relate. No one wants a bleak future.
And yet consumers continue to make poor decisions despite availability and abundance of information. Historical renditions of data, stories, and visuals do not appear to significantly change behaviors. So what gives? Enter Ghost of the Future.
Recall that Scrooge did not understand the significance of his actions or visions until the Spirit pointed to his own Gravestone. The personalized gravestone was the turning point in which Scrooge made a decision to change his behavior.
Now, with the acceleration of artificial intelligence (AI) and behavioral finance, we are at a pivotal moment in financial services. We have an opportunity to leverage new technology to build visualization and drive better experiences that inspire clients to take action. Here are a few examples of solutions that may help:
- BEFI Tools - leverage cognitive science to personalize client experiences based on virtues, values and biases. These tools categorize investor types - overlay with analytics - and use content to drive better (more meaningful) conversations. Atlas Point is a good example.
- 3D Experience - use immersive (augmented) technology to build 3D digital experiences that tells a story, engages consumers and builds visual excitement. It shows promise with younger generations. RockPaperReality is a good example.
- Virtual Reality Goggles - imagine a world where clients could see their financial future in front of their eyes! We are not there yet, but other industries, like real estate and roofing have good examples.
- Age Progression - consider an experience where one can see their future self (vivid facial aging) in effort to better connect to their current self and drive better long-term decisions. Great research is available online.
Through my experience I have not found a holy grail or one-size-fits-all approach. But that’s the beauty. We are all on different journeys and think about personalization in unique ways. Now is the time to lean in and take advantage of these great tools. How will you help visualize the client experience?
