Idebank: Danske Bank Leverages Facebook to Improve its Mobile Banking Application

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Last week, I caught up with Thomas Heilskov, Manager Group Online Communications at Danske Bank. Thomas made me aware of Danske Bank's latest initiative in the social media space: Danske Idebank on facebook.
 
I invite you to watch the interview I shot with Thomas a couple of months ago about Danske Bank's social media strategy.

Danske Bank Idebank: Improving the Bank's Mobile Banking Solution
Once more, Danske bank demonstrates its commitment to be a better bank, more engaging and more transparent. In this case, the Danish bank wants to improve its mobile banking solution based on their customer feedback.
 
It seems like banks are really starting to leverage crowdsourcing to design their mobile banking apps: check Webank's innovative Wepad Project which involves public brainstorming sessions and customer input.
  
Please note that the initiative is limited in time, facebook users have until mid March to submit their ideas and suggestions.
 


Please find more info on Danske Bank's mobile banking offering (source: YouTube):
"With Danske Bank's Mobile Banking application, you can keep track of the economy with a single click on your iPhone, iPod touch, or IPAD. For example you can check your accounts, transfer money and convert amounts to more than 25 currencies. The application can also help you find the nearest ATM, branch and contact us."
 
Please find below an extract of the Terms & Conditions of Idebank:
"Danske idebank is developed by Danish Bank A/S and found on the Danish Bank A/S's Facebook page. The purpose of idea bank is to get input and ideas for improvements and / or new products and services from anyone who may have something to say." 
 
a Facebook Only Initiative: Tab, Application, Blog, Videos
I love that the bank identified facebook as the best vehicle for this initiative. 
 

It includes a dedicated tab "Danske Idebank" and facebook application "Idebank" including a blog and a few videos.

  

The blog section contains just a few posts so far, all written by Esben Torpe Jørgensen, Consultant - Online Channels at Danske Bank Group.
 
  


Structured Data & Interactive Display
Two of the key challenges of social media and UGC are getting rid of "the noise", the vast amount of unstructured data, and identity who the contributors really are.
 
Danske Bank has invited users to submit their ideas using one of the four available categories:
* Features (136)
* Design (14)
* Information (33)
* Other (20)

The bank did a good job with only 20 ideas in the "Other" section.
 
Equally critical for a user is the ability to find the relevant piece of information and display the result in an easy, interactive and relevant way. Here the bank gives four options to sort the ideas already submitted:
* Most popular
* Most commented
* Most recent
* Ideas from my friends (my favourite option!)

Activity & Usage
In its first few weeks, Idebank has generated a good level of activity and usage. It is a good experiment which already generated a good level of involvement.
 
Please find below a few stats:
* 9,950+ monthly active users
* 2,000+ votes
* 169 ideas
* 128 comments
 
 
Urging Facebook Users to Contribute & Share their Ideas
The best element of this initiative is that Danske Bank gives the power to its customers and offers a platform to share their thoughts and opinions in a very open way.
 
Again, from About and Terms & Conditions:
"Come with your idea: What do mobile bank could?
Danske Idebank is your opportunity to come up with good ideas for improvements to our mobile banking. Is there anything we can do better, or if you miss a certain function?" 
 
Here, the REWARD for the contributors consists essentially of: 
* getting some visibility on the Danske Bank facebook page (for the top 3 contributors, cf left handside), and
* getting to influence product development.
Top 3 ideas so far:
* easy access to balance 
* registration for PBS
* GPS tagging of my expenses
 
Questions to the Top Contributor
I'd like to focus on the contributor with the top rated idea so far, Jacob Høffer Larsen.
 
Last week, I contacted Jacob who accepted to answer a few questions on Idebank.

* how did you hear about idebank?
I heard about it from "offline" friends, but also there have been banners on facebook and in the newspapers. Also I can see that friends on facebook is using idebank.
 
 
* are you a Danske Bank customer?
Yes I have been a customer my entire life

* would such an initiative increase your propensity to become client or recommend the bank to your friends?
The idebank is about new ideas for the mobile app, which Im very satisfied with. That app would be a reason for me to recommend the bank to my friends. Also I think that idebank makes Danske Bank look more transparent and honest. Instead of making nonsense push marketing, they here connect with me in a more intelligent way. This means that the balance of power between them and me is more equal. I get the feeling that I help them, and humans like to help other, so I get a positive feeling about Danske Bank.
I feel that they listen and are innovative.
 
* what do you think of the facebook application?
I think the facebook application is very professional and have a good user interface. 

* what compelled you to take part and spend time sharing your ideas on the platform?
The reason I participated with an Idea is that Im very pleased with the mobile app that Danske Bank has, and therefore have a positive feeling about Danske Bank. Also I think it is a very good idea to involve the users in innovation generally, so I wanted to take part. Some I also have a competitive feeling about it, and wanted to see if I could come up with an good idea that others would like.

* how happy are you to do that on facebook?
Im happy to do this on Facebook because Im used to facebook. Some people might not see facebook as a serious platform for a Bank, but I think it is a good think to meet the customers in there natural surroundings. 
 
* any suggestions to improve the interface / initiative?
I think it would be even better if "Danske Bank" also commented on the ideas. They could tell us if the ideas are possible from their view. The might do that when the time has ran out - if not it is a big mistake and the project might lose some of its credibility!
 
A big thanks again to Jacob for taking the time to contribute. Jacob (@jhlarsen on twitter) is currently writing his master thesis on "how to implement crowdsourcing/open innovation" with Socialsquare.dk which is a danish consultancy firm that focus on how to make businesses social.  
 
YouTube Video Introducing Idebank
Danske Idebank: Mød udviklerne

 
I like the simple, clear, video description and call to action: "Meet the developers to work on ideas from Danish idea bank. See more at www.facebook.com/danskebank."
 
My Take
Leveraging social media, in this case Facebook, should be essentially about engaging  with your community and sustaining meaningful conversations with your members, not just launching a short term PR 2.0 campaign "a la NAB's the Break Up" with limited interaction with your customers, or limited relationship to your brand "a la BNP Paribas Net on facebook" where the French bank essentially give away cinema tickets on one of its main official page.
 
Danske Bank has chosen one of the best ways to leverage its page: mobile banking is still cool, innovative, and customers are enthusiastic. The feedback is not a concern because it doesn't involve products, and it gives the bank a unique opportunity to identify its key advocates, its most passionate and influential customers about mobile and innovation, and build relationships with them.

This is an excellent experiment, just like ASB Bank's Virtual Branch on facebook or Webank's crodwsourcing Wepad Project. I can't wait to find out more about the results and get hold of some of the insights from those three innovative initiatives.
 
Even though the Danish bank has generated a good volume of activity, it has also experienced first hand two key challenges which limitated its success: 
* too much visibility for the early contributors which made it difficult for new contributors to join the top 3,
* the lack of proper REWARD which impacted the propensity of the contributors to spread the word around them and urge their contacts to participate
   
As usual, the more visibility you give to the idea the more votes they'll get. There is a clear advantage to be one of the first contributors. It happens again and again, for instance to the passionate marathon runners who contributed to the Standard Chartered UAE "Go The Distance" story campaign, or to the new active members of Bank of America's smallbusiness online community.
   
I can't wait to see how the bank will leverage those input, how quickly they will implement some of the best recommendations, and explain why they can't implement some of those favourite ideas (after all, the bank has its limitation too). 
 
Also, once the initiative is closed I wonder what will happen to the tab. Will the tab disappear like Citibank US's Holiday tab which also contained some user content? Will the bank redesign the tab to focus on the key results like Chase Community Giving did with their "Chase Giving tab"?
 
I'd love to see them using the same approach to start gathering customer feedback on a financial product or a service such as online banking or e-statements. To be continued.
  
Don't hesitate to call me (0044 7736 446 357), send me an email (christophe.langlois@visible-banking.com), or DM me (@Visible_Banking).
   
Related articles on Visible-Banking.com
* Weekly News
* Twitter Activities covered on Visible Banking
* Facebook Activities covered on Visible Banking
* 2010's Top 10 Most Liked Financial Institutions on Facebook
* 2010's Top 10 Most Followed Financial Institutions on Twitter
* Visible Banking Directory: Social Media in Financial Services
* Visible Banking Social Media Watch Series (Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, YouTube)

first direct interactive

firstdirect interactive: video review on Visible Banking
In February/March 2007, fd launched their fd interactive platform which goal is to enhance the way they communicate with their clients; they want to create a community.

It is an excellent initiative, but even though they use some web 2.0 features such as video & audio podcasts and a RSS feed, the content of the site is still not user generated.

Please find below my video review of the platform.



first direct launched in 1989. It rapidly became the most recommended bank in the uk. It is a direct bank which belongs to the HSBC Group. It was the very first bank in the uk "to open" 24/7.
 
first direct's history of innovations
first direct (fd) is one of the most innovative banks in the UK. They were the first bank to launch a text banking service and they even tried a 3G/UMTS video banking service back in October 2006.

* October 1989 - launched as UK's first telephone bank
* May 1999 - launched the UK's first text banking service
* November 1999 - launched internet banking
* July 2001 - launched its offset mortgage
* April 2004 - launched internet banking plus, aggregation service
* August 2006 - launched webchat service
* October 2006 - tested video banking service with 3
* February 2007 - launched their fd interactive plaftorm


first direct interactive: 7 main categories
There are 7 main sections, from fd podcasts to fd decide.
Some sections cross reference each other such as fd energy & fd virtual forest which both direct to fd podcasts.


I was surprised by how much exposure fd give to their interactive service on their homepage. Based on my experience in online sales at Lloyds TSB, product visibility is critical. Indeed, the homepage, the logon and the logoff pages are the most valuable non-restricted areas of the website to drive sales. first direct allocate up to two tiles to promote its interactive service.

fd podcasts
To date (July 2007), they uploaded 12 podcasts between 28/08/06 and 04/06/07.


* 4 audio podcasts were produced by the Financial Times
* 2 video podcasts

* It is an average of only 1 podcast per month. Unfortunately, you can't leave a comment nor rate the podcasts. You can't see how many people listened or downloaded them.
* Like on YouTube, I would love to be able to recommend the podcasts to a friend. It lacks of "community features".

fd ask
This is a regular FAQ service. There are 4 sections:
* changes to internet banking
* charging information
* mortgages
* behind the scenes

* I don't see the need for flash here. It is simply a list of FAQ with answers. There is usually no call to action, it is simply informative.
* Please note that mortgages is the only product with a dedicated category (and check fd decide!).
* It is just an anecdote, but it is not up-to-date. In the "changes to internet banking" section, there is still a question entitled "why can't I access internet banking with Safari". Whereas fd are proud to advertise on the homepage their new compatibility with Safari...

fd clarity
Providing a few video interviews of satisfied customers is a good idea. I would rather listen to someone I can trust (someone like me or a wellknown expert) than visit a purely "brochureware" website.

 
But how am I supposed to choose from all the friendly faces? The most good looking man or woman?... They should at least add a title or give more information when your cursor is on the pictures: profile, product holding, customer since X years, switcher, credit cards customer?
I selected Jennifer, a first direct customer for 8 years...

* In the text only version of fd interactive, you have access to the list of testimonials per topic (personal loans, credit cards, mortgages, high interest, credit cards, account service, mortgages, firstdirectory, customer services and current account)
* I doubt there is no script: if you listen closely to Jennifer, you will hear "in terms of them not being a high street bank, that's not an issue"...

fd virtual forest
cf my video review.
It is a clever way to communicate a positive image of the company and urge their customers to register to internet banking and their e-statements service.
Online, most sales are coming from the internet banking customers...

fd magic bus
cf my video review.




fd energy
cf my video review.



 
fd decide
One of the most interesting services on fd interactive. It is a kind of "deep dive" approach.

Mortgages are traditionally products which are complex, it is a lot of money and a significant commitment for customers. They usually want to talk to a professional. But more and more banks are providing at least a partial online application process. In their search for value, and as part of their integrated channels strategy, banks want to convert more and more customers online.

Qo is a kind of virtual assistant/advisor or advanced product selector which guides the customers: it identifies the 2 most suitable products, it guides you to the right pages on the website and it provides the right telephone numbers.

After the first question (remortgaging or new mortgage), it is a 6 step process. Qo asks you a set of fairly generic questions. During the process, it gives you some info and advice.
 
Well done first direct. It is another very interesting experiment, even tough I didn't find it that useful. It merely lists the allegedly two most suitable products, and it directs you to the mortgages category page.
You still need to better understand the products, and I wouldn't start the online application process before speaking with an expert.

I can only assume what first direct goal was with this service. I would love to find out:
* How many people start the fd decide process?
* Of those, how many answer all the questions?
* What was the uplift in terms of start of online application or volume of calls to a dedicated number?
* What is the next level for fd decide?

Key stats about first direct (July 2007)
* first direct has 1.2 million customers
* 885,000 of them use internet banking
* 390,000 customers use SMS text message banking.
* 43% of first direct's sales are via e-channels
* 80% of customer contact with first direct is electronic
 
Find more about firstdirect.

Visible Banking News #7

On regular basis (ideally weekly), I will post a list of key news on web 2.0 & Banking.
As usual, please do not hesitate to get back to me with you remarks, or with any article I missed!

NEWS - 21 May 2007 to 27 May 2007

BLOGGING
* Wordpress grows beyond 1 million blogs - 24 May 2007
* New CU Blogs: Midwest Financial, Old Hickory, and Secure One Credit Unions - 21 May 2007

CUSTOMER COMMENTS
* Online banks hardly stuff of sword-and-sandals epic - 24 May 2007
* Making the Switch to Unadulterated Online Banking - 24 May 2007

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
* Wells' Web makeover woos punters and analysts - 25 May 2007
* Abbey in bank holiday meltdown - 25 May 2007

EVENTS
* Next MobileMonday Austin event: Mobile Banking and Payments, June 11 '07 - 26 May 2007

FRAUD
* A decade of online banking - and online fraud - 25 May 2007
* Anti-phishing filters bypassed in IE7? - 25 May 2007
* A first in Quebec's banking industry - Laurentian Bank innovates: 2 additional security barriers for online transactions - 24 May 2007
* Credit cards are still very vulnerable online - 24 May 2007
* Transaction hijacking - cheaper alternatives, at point of purchase - 24 May 2007
* Target 5 Warns Of 'Online Insecurity' - 24 May 2007
* House Passes Anti-Spyware Legislation - 23 May 2007
* Cyber fraudsters target accounts with 'one cent deposit' scam - 21 May 2007

INTERVIEWS
* Wells Fargo & Company at Lehman Brothers 10th Annual Financial Services Conference - Final - 23 May 2007

LAUNCHES
* Singapore's DBS Bank unveils plans for expansion in China - 25 May 2007
* ANZ and ING introduce direct access banking for pension funds - 25 May 2007
* Who launched the UK's first Internet bank? - 23 May 2007
* First National Bank of Omaha Launches Internet Bank - 22 May 2007
* Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank extends bill payments network - 22 May 2007

MARKETING
* Tenth anniversary of online banking - 27 May 2007
* Apacs marks 10 years of Web banking - 22 May 2007
* One-quarter of 50 Largest Online Advertisers are From Financial Services - 21 May 2007

MOBILE BANKING
* Mobile Phones Revolutionize African Banking - 24 May 2007
* ING Direct Adds Mobile Banking - 24 May 2007
* NY Times Reviews Citi Mobile - 24 May 2007
* Barclays introduces mobile banking services - 23 May 2007
* Bank of America completes m-banking roll out - 22 May 2007

PERSONAL FINANCE
* Mint.com Set to Freshen the Personal Finance Space* - 23 May 2007

REPORTS
* Traditional vs. online banking: Which one is for you? - 27 May 2007
* Case Study: Metrics Drive Wells Fargo's Home Page - 23 May 2007
* Online banking boosts direct debits - 23 May 2007

SOCIAL LENDING
* New Person-to-Person Lender, Lending Club, Hopes Facebook Linkage Allows it to Prosper - 25 May 2007
* Social lending goes red hot, as FaceBook enters the space with “LendingClub” - 25 May 2007
* Now there's big money in P2P - 22 May 2007
* Virgin enters the P2P loan market - 20 May 2007

SOCIAL NETWORKING
* Facebook | will people share their pictures, thoughts and information with commercial interests? - 26 May 2007
* Prosper and Forbes tap Facebook; Co-op Bank joins MySpace - 25 May 2007
* Social Networking to infinity and beyond - 25 May 2007
* Could FaceBook risk becoming another AOL? - 25 May 2007
* Social Network ad spending predicted to grow (eMarketer) - 24 May 2007
* Community ROI - a sensible view - 24 May 2007
* A sense of community - 23 May 2007

VENDORS
* Origo to develop XML standards for full mortgage applications - 24 May 2007
* Financial Objects ships mortgage module - 23 May 2007

Is online customer service usually poor?

I found a good article from an unsatisfied Barclays customer: Why do banks suck so badly at online customer service?

He wrote a long article about online support via email. Please find below Chris Lake's conclusion:
"So, to sum up:
1. I started out online.
2. I selected ‘email me a reply’.
3. Barclays ignored that and sent me a reply by post.
4. And then told me I had to to telephone them if I wasn’t happy.
This is a four-channel customer communication mess, folks.

And the morals of this sadsack story are about keeping it simple, about managing customer expectations, about encouraging communication (and thus satisfaction), about not throwing any curve balls, and about allowing the customer to exercise a little control (especially if you offer them control)."
 
There were only 4 comments, but they are as interesting as Chris's post: other customers faced the same problem with Barclays, HSBC and Cahoot online. On the other hand, they seem very pleased with Direct Line and Smile.