Core to Forrester's value proposition are the insights we derive from in-depth surveys to understand consumer preferences, attitudes, activities and desires. On the flip side, is understanding how businesses are responding to consumer needs and opportunities. Over the last few years, Forrester has been focusing on building up this business side intelligence, and I am happy to report we have further extended that in the retail banking industry.

Forrester in partnership with the Consumer Bankers Association did an in depth survey of digital banking executives in North America to understand the state of the digital channel. Our survey which included responses from 19 digital banking executives contains data from 13 of the top 50 retail banks in the US. The survey covered many aspects of the business including organizational structure, hiring, channel priorities, and business metrics across online servicing, mobile servicing, payments, social, and sales. The output of this survey work is two reports outlining "The State Of North American Digital Banking." The first of which is availabe on Forrester.com. 

Here are some of the highlights of the report:

  • Digital channels are growing. "The State of North American Digital Banking 2012"s survey shows that investment in the digital channels continues to grow with budgets being split 70/30 online to mobile and budgets that range from from $250K to over $25M.
  • Sales and money movement are the focuses overall. In 2011, more US online adults who opened a financial product did so through digital channels than any other. That trend is showing up in digital channel investment priorities with sales improvements being a top area of investment. A close second is money movement which includes advance transfer capabilities.
  • Specific priorities differ by area. The survey looked at priorities at a granular level. Results show that the top priority for mobile servicing is remote deposit, online servicing is personal financial management, and digital sales priorities are A/B testing, ratings and reviews and click-to-call
  • Payments are a priority. The broader payments category is not only top of mind for digital executives, but also it is a key focus of the mobile channel in 2012. Specificlaly, person-to-person payments is the priority. While mobile wallets are not a top priority for 2012, they are on the radar of execs and will be high on the agenda for 2013.
  • Digital analytics have a way to go. The backbone of any successful digital organization is analytics. While top of mind, digital channel analytics have a ways to go with most organizations describing themselves as analytic "laggards" where they not only have mediocre metrics, but also are not using metrics to drive better decision making.

The full report is available on Forrester.com:

THE STATE OF NORTH AMERICAN DIGITAL BANKING

Brad