Virtual banking is nothing new. It started to gain recognition 20 years ago in the West and soon later in Asian countries like Japan and China. In late March 2019, Hong Kong issued the city’s first-ever virtual banking licenses. Still, we’ve got a lot of work to do to catch up with the rest of the world.

Competing with a time-proven traditional banking system, the advantage of virtual banking comes down to customer experience (CX). Imagine there is no more confusion over opening hours and waiting in line, with everything replaced by real-time consultation and online transactions over clicks and taps with your mobile devices anytime, anywhere. A smooth, seamless customer experience is what makes all the difference.

With our expertise in digital transformation and omnichannel marketing for financial institutions, we are presenting the ideal model to bridge the gap between agile virtual platforms and traditional financial services: VIBE.

Referring to Virtual Insurance and Banking Experience in its full form, VIBE is an all-in-one CX platform for digital banking and insurance services. From development to system maintenance, sales, and marketing, VIBE is a full package — covering customer experience, community management, and digital transformation.

Customer experience

A customer experience that involves any human-computer interaction (HCI) like mobile devices or kiosks is often associated with user experience (UX). Our UX approach follows a systemic process to understand needs and deliver the best possible experience for the end users.

Our 5 step UX approach:

1. Empathize and understand the needs of clients and users

2. Define our goals, customer journey, personas, etc.

3. Ideate solutions and strategies

4. Develop prototypes for testing

5. Conduct continuous test-and-learn to optimize usability and utility

To decide whether your business should invest in UX, one can consider the benefits and positive ROI generated by the methodology. A UX process focuses on improving usability, navigation, minimizing errors and load time. A user-friendly experience not only appeals to your customers, but also the search engine, which will likely result in a sustainable increase in organic search rankings and traffic.

Community management

The next step is to ensure our customers stay loyal and engaged. Supported by measurable analytics and management platforms, our team provides customized social media strategies catering to the brand’s unique positioning, values, and audience interests. The engagement channels available range from content marketing, email marketing to loyalty program.

Digital transformation

To optimize social media ROI, a business needs more than merely a Facebook page, but an omnichannel marketing strategy to re-align all marketing channels and digital touchpoints for a seamless experience, e.g. from social media to website, smartphone to tablet, etc. AI cognitive ads and marketing automation tools are some other useful tactics to engage customers and derive analytical data, while reducing wasted efforts and resources.

Case study

1.Blue, the 1st digital insurer in Hong Kong

We were honored to pull off an omnichannel debut campaign for Blue, with 360-degree touchpoints covering social media, video production, web/mobile production, SEO/SEM, as well as innovation such as cognitive ads, an AI chatbot capable of suggesting interest-based offers to engage users individually and generate sales leads.

2.Maxim’s Group

Working closely with our UX specialists, we have launched a loyalty program mobile app for Maxim’s group, one of Asia’s largest food and beverage companies. Upon completion of a series of user research, customer journey mapping, on-site observation, and competitive analysis, the app was designed to facilitate sustainability of a reward system, convenient reservation and search for restaurants.

While targeting at financial services, VIBE is a comprehensive model that can apply to any businesses aiming for a profound transformation and seamless user experience. Contact us today to explore the solutions available to your business.

The digital world is ever-booming in ways you never thought possible, but only to a certain extent — the following five trends are unstoppable and bound to happen in 2019!

1. Hyper-personalization

Anticipate more cross-industry collaborations that will prompt more personalised marketing. When companies partner up, they have access to more information about you, thus making it possible to market their products in ways that are particularly appropriate for and appealing to you in terms of ethnicity, age, gender and more.

2. Retail evolution

Brick and mortar retail stores may be struggling to keep their doors open, but that does not reflect on how much shoppers want to shop. For instance, Black Friday sales in 2018 saw a 24% year-on-year jump. While online sales are part of the reason, brands are reaching out to potential consumers in more ways than we ever imagined. Take startup Cargo as an example. Cargo provides rideshare drivers with boxes full of merchandises from snacks to phone chargers, which riders can purchase while they’re on-the-go.

3. Data debate rages on

Tension between the public, governments and tech firms will likely intensify in the coming year over how data collected should be used, protected, or made available to whom. While China is known to impose strict rules regarding data localisation, India also mandated in 2018 that all payment data be stored within the country. This is more than just a protectionism tactic. It also provides domestic companies with more leverage to compete with overseas companies.

4. China leading social network trends

China-based tech firms have been leading trends in social networking apps which impact the Western world considerably. For example, Facebook’s Lasso is seen as influenced by Shanghai-based Musical.ly. China is expected to continue taking a stronghold in the social network industry in 2019.

5. Digital gold mine

Digital goods, like in-game purchases, are seen to bring in massive dollars in 2019. Marketing tactics combined with the clout and personalisation that these digital goods bring have made them irresistible to buyers.

For the past decades, banking has long been an industry that has branded themselves on trust and stability, however with the rise of today’s demanding consumer taste, banks are facing a new paradigm centred around the need for convenience, customer experience and choice.

While physical banking will still hold a place for brand presence throughout the territory, consumers prefer to handle their banking online both on their computers and mobile devices.

In fact, Hong Kong has more than 5.53 million smartphone users in 2017 and a predicted 80.69% of Hong Kong’s population will be using a smartphone by 2021. Consumers today are demanding the exact same convenience they are enjoying in their daily lives and the banks that recognize and provide this will enjoy the fruits of today’s digital world.

With the rise of Hong Kong’s Banking Made Easy initiative, there is a commitment in the government to better facilitate virtual banking. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) will be issuing virtual banking licenses to applicants in the first quarter of 2019, marking a new era of banking as well as a golden opportunity for established banks to capture.

Why Virtual Banking?

Simply put, virtual banks are financial institutions without any physical branches where all transactions are done online. With the majority of banking today done either through digital transfers or through the use of cards, virtual banking opens up a whole new avenue where more emphasis can be paid to the customer and their needs instead of capital investment into expensive branches and their manpower.

Customers Are Changing & Banking Needs To Be Evolving

When it comes to charting a course for virtual banking success, the first step is to always step into the shoes of the consumers. As consumer demand and taste become more adapted to the fast-paced lifestyle we are used to, much more is expected from our banks, especially the 6 main challenges that affect customer experience today:

1) Onboarding & Opening Of New Accounts – A process that could take hours or even days depending on the traffic in the physical branch.

2) Poor Digital Navigation Systems – While many banks have taken steps to go digital with a website, the interfaces are outdated, causing browsers to have a frustrating time navigating to the product or service they desire.

3) Inconvenient Physical Locations / ATM Networks – Perhaps the biggest frustration faced by consumers today is difficult to locate their desired bank branch in their current location, leading to additional time wasted to travel to one.

4) Unsatisfactory In-Branch Resolution Of Issues – From long wait times to poor customer service, customers are facing inconsistent experience when it comes to physical banking.

5) Poor Omnichannel Experience – While an increasing number of banks have multiple channels to reach their customers such as website, emails and mobile apps, most information and preferences of individual customers are lost the moment they leave the channel.

6) Lack Of Real-Time Messaging – Customers desire to be updated when it comes to their personal banking situations, however many banks today either send updates through physical mail or none at all, leaving many consumers in the dark.

The Key Is Personalising The Customer Experience

One of the key strategies virtual banks have to successfully execute is the customer journey mapping to visualise and understand the customer’s experience as they browse, research and utilise the financial products and services on offer.

In virtual banks, the steps could originate from a varied number of channels and personalising the right channel with the most impactful content will win the loyalty and business of the audience.

Take for example, a prospect that discovers your virtual bank brand over social media page. He will be given a different customer experience (one that is more light-hearted and socially engaging) compared to the subsequent landing page that lays down a more constructive argument to sign-up for the service before receiving an email reminder to activate their new service for use. This personalisation of content and user experience is a key differentiating factor as price and product are no longer the sole considerations for the consumer.

In addition, there will also be a need to provide consumers with a seamless transition and connectivity between the different channels of the virtual bank. For example, a customer that consistently checks his credit card statements and bank balance through his browser will have this remember and when he uses the bank’s app, those two functions will be at the forefront of the app, saving him time in navigating around.

The Need For Agile User Experience (UX)

When a consumer first lands on your website the first impression they get will be determined by the UX of the site. From the navigation menus to the layout of the site and the various call-to-actions and offers, having a UX team that constantly iterates and conducts A/B testing is key to optimizing the user experience and maximising those conversions.

Take for an example, a customer that lands on a savings account enquiry page will likely require a UX that highlights all the necessary information, benefits and scenarios. From interest rate calculators to different projection charts and a clearly laid out feature and benefit showcase, the UX here has to guide and flow the reader through all the way to the call to action. However, the final account application page would require a much simpler UX that guides them to sign-up as soon as possible with minimal confusing information.

To take it a step further, dynamic UX coupled with big data and artificial intelligence would be helpful to help understand the browsing patterns of customers as a whole and individual browsing patterns. These allow for dynamic and on the go UX changes that tackles both individual needs and the website experience as a whole.

Embracing New Technologies From Websites To Apps For Better Customer Engagement

Today, a myriad of touch points will be needed by virtual banks to not only capture the attention of the consumer but to also provide flexibility for them to conduct their banking online. The staple of these touchpoints would be a website where maximum depth of banking services and transactions can take place, from account opening to credit card payments and beyond. This can then be adapted into the mobile and tablet browsing experience, allowing additional touchpoints for the consumer of today.

Another popular and highly effective touchpoint is the mobile app. While websites are fine for computer users, they do pose some UX difficulty when it comes to interacting with them over a mobile browser even if they are optimised for mobile. Mobile apps, however, give virtual banks a flexible and immersive touchpoint for their consumers to interact with, allowing for a combination of both functionality as a transaction portal and a hub for offers and new updates.

At New Digital Noise, we believe in helping virtual banks reach out to customers through the correct utilisation of digital touchpoints. One such project we undertook was helping Prime Credit (a local financial company) develop WeWa Card mobile app for millennials to apply for their credit card by cutting down the application process to only 5 simple steps in comparison to the lengthy forms of a traditional application. Today, this app is called OMYCard Mobile App. It retains most of the functions and user experience we designed.

From chatbots to mobile Apps, virtual banks today will have to utilise the right digital tools to not only cut through the noise and competition but also to provide the best user experience possible to gain the loyalty of the customer.

Utilising Holistic Digital Marketing Campaigns For Brand Awareness & Customer Acquisition

While traditional banks long have a heritage of brand awareness and a clientele that has been passed down from generations, a virtual bank will have to utilise every digital channel possible due to the lack of a physical presence.

The first step is to create and consolidate all the various digital touchpoints a virtual bank has. Most commonly, these will include their website, social media pages such as Facebook and mobile apps. Depending on the goal and demographics of the customers being targeted, holistic digital marketing campaigns will have to be created to focus on lead generation – namely signing up new customers (whether it be to open a savings account or a credit card for daily use).

From search engine marketing to social campaigns, virtual banks will also need to utilise the correct mixture of marketing channels to create buzz and awareness of their brand whether their target audience is doing a search on Google or browsing through Facebook.

One such campaign we have successfully launch is for Blue, a digital insurer partnership by Aviva, Hillhouse Capital and Tencent. We utilised the various digital marketing channels to not only generate awareness but also drive sign-ups. Here are a few examples:

• Google Paid Search Ads – Allowing consumers with buying intent to discover Blue’s offerings and direct hot traffic to the website.
• Facebook Page & Paid Ads – To create social awareness, build and engage an audience over time with content marketing for eventual conversions.
• Cognitive Ad – To understand consumers needs and interests by deploying the latest AI-enabled interactive advertising on websites and WeChat.

Becoming A Leader In Virtual Banking Means Embracing Digital

While becoming a virtual bank brings with it incredible benefits such as the absence of any physical branches and thus a lower threshold of capital investment, the challenge lies in acquiring customers and maintaining their loyalty for the long-term.

By understanding the customers’ unique needs and enhancing their customer experience through the correct adoption of digital marketing and technology, financial institutions today can take advantage of Hong Kong’s push in becoming a virtual banking hub and capture a slice of this very lucrative pie!

1) Blue

Starting from the second half of 2018, we have been assisting Blue, Hong Kong’s first digital life insurer in unfolding its first-ever digital branding campaign. It is a highly integrated campaign, with touchpoints spanning social media, video production, website SEO, media planning that covers display, programmatic and search, HTML5 banner ad as well as innovation such as Cognitive Ad, the latest AI-enabled interactive advertising. This comprehensive marketing strategy gives the brand an opportunity to engage with a broad spectrum of audiences, which in turn generates traffic, leads, and drive new sales.

2) Hang Seng Bank

Launching Hang Seng Credit Card Chat with DORI is another of our highlights in 2018. After a year of development with the client from concept to launch, DORI the AI chatbot went live on 11 January 2018. Short for Dining, Offers, Rewards and Interactive, DORI reshapes customer service by providing customers with a faster, simpler and more convenient service experience powered by artificial intelligence.

3) Hong Kong Broadband Network

In an effort to promote the Broadband Network’s expertise in the telecom sector and ultimately expand its fanbase, our team produced a tongue-in-cheek parody of Men On The Dragon. It is well-received with over 600 likes, 143 shares and 41K views to-date, fast becoming one of the most popular posts on the company’s Facebook page.

4) AJ Hackett

We built presence for the extreme sports pioneer’s Macau Tower centre on Weibo and WeChat. We first lined up local KOLs for endorsements and reviews, then worked on facilitating quick mobile payments like Alipay and WeChat Pay. Apart from improving customer experience with seamless transactions, WeChat Pay users will be prompted to follow the AJ Hackett WeChat account, allowing the brand to strengthen its connection with the customer.

5) Extra Mile

Extra Mile is a community investment project collaboratively run by the Airport Authority Hong Kong and Social Ventures Hong Kong. Making use of user-generated and sticky content, we fostered the project’s digital marketing goals of notifying target audience of programme updates, delivering positive social values, making noise and bringing together different communities.

6) Geo-targeting for Subway

We promoted Everyday Value, a combo launched earlier this year with Geo-targeting. This tool identifies potential customers and classifies them into different segments, allowing us to re-target ads on Google Display Network, Facebook, Line and Weibo accordingly with A/B testing. The campaign ran for three weeks and was a great success.

7) Carlo Rossi Wine

The posh lifestyle approach is quite common among wine brands. Our Shanghai team took a different approach with Carlo Rossi by infusing playfulness and humour into its WeChat content. This tongue-in-cheek execution has helped the brand to stand out from its competition.

8) Prince Jewellery and Watch

Inside the vibrant online social space, each platform/app boasts major differences in terms of culture, usage and user preference. It requires distinct knowledge to fully utilise them as effective promotional tools. Take Facebook, Instagram and Wechat as example, our Hong Kong and Shanghai team work seamlessly together to foster comprehensive marketing solutions for Prince Jewellery and Watch using these platforms. With localised content and format, we are able to help the jewellery brand make an impression to different target audiences.

9) Viral video for Subway

We supported the promotion of Subway’s Beef Pastrami Sandwich by commissioning a video production with Uncle Siu British English Club, which generated some 516,000 video views, 11,000 reactions, 1,500 comments and 3,400 shares to date.

10) BCT

We are thrilled to work with BCT Group this year, a major MPF product provider in Hong Kong that aims at raising brand awareness among young working adults online. We adopted an agile model, in which we identify and reinforce the type of feeds with the best engagement and performance based on Facebook generated figures. We plan as we go and fostered a series of exciting Facebook posts riding on the city’s hottest news and office-related tidbits. By identifying the right content for the right target audience with statistics, we are able to help BCT raise awareness and in turn, drive sales

Customers are well informed and increasingly expecting their relationship with brands to become a two-way street with a focus on value creation and personalisation. For a long time, marketing has always been a one-way push where brands aggressively promote their message to passive listeners. This is no longer the case with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain.

Brands can now have personalised two-way conversations with customers and obtain meaningful data on consumer behaviour. We call this interaction with customers through dialogue Conversational Marketing. Cognitive Ad is the platform where these conversations take place and being recorded. Blockchain is where we store the data.

Such personalised two-way dialogue between brands and customers is unprecedented. Through AI, customers can ask questions and get answers immediately. In the past, if customers want to obtain product information, it will take them at least 2 to 3 visits to the retail store and talk to different staff before they can make a purchase decision. This process is likely to span over 2 to 8 days.

Now with Cognitive Ad, brands can have the same conversation, but streamlined to 5 to 15 minutes. If customers like the offers they see on the Cognitive Ad, they can even pay instantly without being redirect to other pages or payment gateway. The entire marketing funnel is shortened and take place in a single contact point.

Let’s say you are an apparel brand. Here is one conversation you can have with your customer.

AI:  Good evening, welcome to Calvin Klein! Would you like to see our new Pre-Fall 2018 collection or sign up to visit the Calvin Klein Experience HK Tour?

User:  Sign up

AI:  Great, may I have your name?

User:  Charlotte Lee

AI:  Thanks, Charlotte. May I have your email or phone number?

User:  clz1j5@gmail.com

AI:  Thanks. When and what time are you planning to visit?

User:  Oct 10 at 2pm

AI:  How many friends will come with you?

User:  1

AI: Lovely, here’s your confirmation number N83HK71. To show our appreciation for your support, we would like to offer you a brand new perfume sample which will launch next month. Which shop would you like to pick up the sample from?

User:  Times Square

AI:  Fantastic, we will see you soon at our Times Square shop. Hope you will enjoy the Calvin Klein Experience HK Tour.

Brands can design different conversations for their business needs. Lead generation, brand engagement, e-commerce, and survey are just some examples. Gone are the days where brands just chase after the number of clicks, views, impressions, which has no context or target customers that are indifferent. With Cognitive Ad, brands can have access to meaningful customer data, create a better customer experience with real-time two-way conversation and drive ROI.

If you want to learn more about Cognitive Ad or blockchain, contact us and we are happy to share more details.

There is way more behind a digital campaign than creating a Facebook page and boosting posts, especially one that starts from nothing. It requires a focus on brand-building strategies across platforms implemented with significant technical expertise.

From September onwards, we have been assisting Blue, Hong Kong’s first digital life insurer, in unfolding its first-ever digital campaign in full-scale. Our project spans from designing an official webpage, making noise through social media platforms to developing the latest AI-enabled interactive advertising.

With a clear goal to build brand awareness, the project covers popular social media sites including Facebook, Instagram, Wechat and Youtube. We developed corresponding content strategies based on not only our expertise, but also objective data from AB testing, experimenting with two sets of formats such as layouts, tones of voice, headlines and graphic styles for various types of content, audience and social networking sites.

Video is one of the most effective ways to get viral on the internet today. Our creative team produced a fun, witty marketing video in collaboration with local comedy duo FAMA to deliver the key values of Blue — offering a simple and flexible insurance experience with no commission or hidden charges incurred.

A brand-new website is built after rounds of test and learn. It boasts an overall sleek and simple style that fits the brand best. With careful research, we adopted Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) strategies to bring traffic to the website and extend its reach to our target audience, ultimately generating leads for the business.

Aside from traditional display ads such as static and animated banner ads, our team has developed cognitive ads for Blue, widely understood as artificial intelligence chatbot which allows interactive engagement with potential customers through one-on-one dialogues.

New Digital Noise offers comprehensive strategies for digital campaigns from planning to execution. Any thoughts about extensive branding or rebranding? Reach out and chat with us.