Customer Engagement Is Banking’s New Battleground

Banks' customer engagement opportunity

As products and digital experience improve, it’s hard for a bank to stand out. One exception: customer engagement. Proactively communicating and demonstrating care and interest in customers' financial well-being are the hallmark of engagement. But for many customers, that isn’t happening.

More interaction, more engagement

Across major US banks, regional banks, and digital challengers, frequent activity—such as weekly interaction with an app or website—strongly correlates with better engagement. Engagement is measured by customer satisfaction with a company’s proactive, relevant communications and customer care, among other dimensions.

Bank interactions climb

Digital challengers still interact with clients most often, but traditional banks are closing the frequency gap.

Not all of those interactions are equal. Transaction activity has a natural ceiling—customers only have so many deposits, withdrawals, or bills to pay. But check-ins are different. Customers can check balances, review transactions, and track rewards as often as they like, and that’s where traditional banks are building toward the higher penetration rates digital challengers have long enjoyed.

Closing the engagement gap

With helpful messages that arrive at the right moment, traditional banks can build interactions that don’t depend on a transaction to trigger engagement. That’s where the opportunity lies.

Adapting to the customer in real time

Instead of reactive, campaign-driven models, leaders are building AI-native approaches that help customers build new habits.