Strong branch presence remains key in acquiring new customers, but maintaining them requires increasing capabilities in mobile and internet banking services, a sentiment analysis conducted by adSpread, a marketing research organization, has shown.
Using a platform that uses proprietary algorithms to scan the internet, TV and radio to discover what people are saying about brands, products and people adspread was able to come up with some trends among bank customers.
The platform checks for mentions of prescribed keywords/ topics and extracts sentimentality within which such keywords are mentioned anywhere and anytime. The frequency of mentions can portray popularity of a particular topic, whether it is for good or otherwise, depending on the sentimentality. Sentiments are then calculated on the basis of positive, negative and neutral by using natural language processing.
Based on the analysis, it was discovered that the major customer touchpoints (or factors which majority of customers
consider when choosing a bank) are bank proximity, ATM & Card services, Internet & mobile banking, and quality & accessibility of call centers.
Not all banks enjoy the same amount of conversations among the banking population of 28.6 million adults in Nigeria.
The most widely mentioned banks in terms of how well they have spread their branches to accommodate customers are UBA (30%), First Bank (30%), and GTB (10%). Conversations about customer proximity to certain bank branches also focus on key elements like account opening balances required from banks, behavior of staff at the branches and charges & fees for banking transactions.
ATM card services also receive wide mention across the three platforms (radio, the internet and television discussions).
When discussing about ATMs, Nigerians are particular about, location of the machines, fees and charges and how quickly disputes and problems are/were resolved. Banks like GTB, UBA, Zenith, FirstBank and Diamond bank were at the forefront of conversations about ATM and Card services, they mostly got positive sentiment from discussion forms across the platforms.
Across all banks, based on the data, the fastest rising product and most frequently mentioned bank product is GTB’s
Oneclick air time top up. Conversations about the product increased at an average of 128% weekly within the three months within which data was collected.
Positive sentiment about the product is higher than any other product in the banking sector.
In terms of internet and mobile banking, conversation drivers on both subjects include phrases like checking account
balance remotely, paying for bills remotely, and transferring money remotely. In carrying out such transactions, most individuals who made comments about such banking activities were favourably disposed towards GTB (22%), Zenith (16%), Diamond bank (15%), FirstBank (15%), and UBA (12%).
Typically, conversations about the Call Centers of Nigerian banks centered on phrases and mediums like phone conversation, Email, web chat, the most regularly mention banks in that direction include Diamond bank, GTB, Access Bank and Standard Chartered.
A 2012 banking sector survey conducted by BusinessDay’s Research and Intelligence Unit (BRIU) revealed that factors like long queues at banks, non functioning ATM machines, prohibitive charges, among other factors cause the greatest dissatisfaction among customers.
Specifically, among those surveyed, 57% were weary of long queues, 27% complained about non functioning ATM machines while 19% complained about prohibitive charges by banks. The research report by BRIU concludes that “there are prospect for banks which can distinguish themselves by solving most of the identified problems and offering competitive deposit rates, both for fixed and in saving deposits; though the constraints to banks in terms
of deposit rates are clear.”
What is clear from both adspread and BRIU’s analysis is that more than ever, the Nigerian bank customer is becoming more interested in performance, security, and quality service and. The customers demand better services.
Fortunately, most banks are in better positions to provide better services, given the tremendous improvement in technology and the wealth of research at their disposal.
The Nigerian financial system has undergone several years of critical reforms, designed to position it as Africa’s financial hub. These reforms have produced a financial landscape characterized by large and strong banks, an efficient payments system and improved financial infrastructure says a statement released by the Central Bank of Nigeria. The banking industry remains healthy, sound and resilience. At the Bankers’ Committee, we looked at the banks in terms of capital, the capital adequacy level, in terms of profitability, liquidity and in terms of the assets quality and we have come to the conclusion that the entire ratio remains satisfactory another statement released by the CBN said.
“Nigerian banks showed significant resilience in withstanding the much touted regulatory pressure last year, as they pulled in over N586 billion in pre-tax profit, evidenced in their recently released 2014 financials. Of note were the increased earnings from net interest income, an indication that the aggressive deposit mobilisation and risks asset creation, among others, are paying off, with positive impact on the financial inclusion policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)” a Business-Day news report released in early last week revealed.
