Innovation-minded financial services companies are testing the waters of ‘crowdsourcing,’ to better understand their customers’ deepest wants and needs. This new twist on market research – which meshes online collaboration tools with social media – could help organizations polish their brands, launch tailored products and transform their processes.
A recent phenomenon, crowdsourcing applies social media tactics – like online polling or discussion groups – making it possible to engage in an ongoing dialogue with targeted customers, employees and other key stakeholders to gather deeper, and potentially innovative, market insights and ideas. This helps an organization develop or fine-tune products, programs or processes. In its simplest form, crowdsourcing updates the classic focus group for the digital era; enabling marketers and innovation leaders to collaborate with online communities of hundreds or hundreds of thousands.
Unlike those very visible, open social media campaigns often seen on Facebook, a crowdsourcing program enables you to build a closed, controlled community, in which you might invite your most valued customers, opinion leaders or influencers, – also known as ‘prosumers’ – to register and take part in a single or ongoing conversation.
Increasing customer loyalty, through collaboration and regular conversation.
Although consumer product retailers and manufacturers were among the fastest to embrace crowdsourcing, the financial sector is eagerly testing the waters and creating ‘managed communities’ to gather fresh market intelligence. Among them, a Singapore bank applied crowdsourcing to involve its generation Y clients in new branch design, a German insurance company invited clients to create and evaluate insurance options, while an Australian bank encourages customers to post, vote on and discuss new product ideas.
There are also opportunities to use crowdsourcing to engage corporate and commercial banking clients, or to help financial firms comply with new regulations that demand greater public consultation and community engagement – such as the renewed and proactive conduct risk agenda being pursued by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Follow-through, by delivering actions or implementing solutions, to show commitment, and build credibility, with your fledgling crowdsourcing community.