The Journey To Digital Maturity

The Journey to Digital Maturity:
How Financial Institutions Are

Leveraging the New Age of
Digital Solutions
A WBR Digital Industry Benchmark Whitepaper
Presented in Conjuction with Adobe
June 2014
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Executive Summary...............2
Key Findings.........................3
Research Findings
The Journey to
Digital Maturity.................4
Influencing the
Customer Experience.........7
The Next Generation
of Technologies
and Solutions....................9
Digital Payments &
the Future of the
Mobile Wallet..................12
Conclusions &
Recommendations..............14
Appendices.........................15
About NetFinance...............15
About Adobe......................16
About WBR/WBR Digital.....16
Register for Next Years
NetFinance Conference.......17
The expansion and evolution of the digital world has had a profound impact on the
way people bank, narrowing the gap between consumers and financial institutions
in ways never before possible. In an age where you can transfer your rent with the
click of a mouse and instantaneously deposit a check by simply taking a picture,
banking branches are becoming obsolete. In this brave new world of omnichannel
banking, touch points have multiplied, marketing channels have become more
diffuse, and the analytics required for campaign tracking have become highly
complex. With consumers increasingly controlling how, when, and where they
connect with their banks, financial institutions are working to uncover new
opportunities to improve their omnichannel capabilities and enhance the customer
experience. In other words, digital banking has become a top priority.
Financial services companies are adapting to this paradigm by adopting powerful
new digital solutions. Tools for customer relationship management, media listening,
marketing automation, and analytics have become essential to financial institutions
living in an omnichannel world. When embedded into business goals and processes,
these solutions form the core of a companys digital maturity.
Despite the proliferation of these dynamic digital tools, many financial services
companies lack the structures and strategies to drive their businesses digital
maturation. In fact, this report will show that organizational alignment is just as
important to a companys digital development. Furthermore, many marketers are
struggling to engage customers and prospects in more relevant channels like mobile
and authenticated sites, thereby missing high-quality opportunities.
The present study evaluates the digital maturity of financial services companies,
assessing the obstacles that are inhibiting their digital development, as well as the
solutions and capabilities that are enabling it. The study also evaluates how financial
institutions are impacting the customer experience and how they are leveraging
mobile. Although the majority of financial institutions surveyed indicated that they
are investing in their digital capabilities, only 3% of respondents believed that they
have reached full digital maturity. This underlines the fact that digital maturity is a
fluid process that often involves the transformation of organizational structures and
technology platforms. This study reflects data gathered at NetFinance 2014, the
premier digital conference for financial services.
2014 The Journey to Digital Maturity
Key Findings
services are lagging in their pursuit of
3 Financial
digital maturity, with 85% saying that they are
halfway there or further behind.

Reaching digital maturity takes more than just powerful new technologies. In
fact, 43% of respondents indicated that organizational alignment or executive
sponsorship are the most important factors to their advancement toward
digital maturity.
digital maturation of many financial

3 The
institutions is being impeded by the competition
for IT resources and fragmented data sources.

65% of respondents agreed that heavy reliance on IT resources is the main

challenge inhibiting their companies digital maturation. Fragmented data
sources and compliance requirements were also common obstacles.
financial services companies are missing

3 Many
out on significant opportunities for conversion
and engagement in the mobile space.

Marketers have enhanced their ability to target, analyze, and convert public
site traffic. But with web site traffic moving rapidly to mobile, very few
institutions have succeeded in extending their core capabilities to mobile
applications and mobile sites. Case in point, only 38% of survey respondents
are leveraging analytics on their mobile sites, while a mere 25% are applying
analytics to their mobile apps.
plays a critical role in digital

3 Technology
marketing. However, the proliferation of
solutions providers has made finding and
implementing the proper capabilities more
important than ever.

Faced with an abundance of choice, many companies are choosing to buy

digital marketing solutions or build them in partnership with a 3rd-party,
rather than build the solution in-house. Financial institutions are prioritizing
cross-channel campaign management and responsive design in the short
run, although 43% of respondents already describe their digital marketing
programs as excellent.
the mobile wallet presents a

3 Although
tremendous opportunity to better serve
consumers, most financial institutions are not
yet comfortable with the technology.

As a result, the majority of financial services companies only offer bill payment.
While many companies agree that a clear leading technology and improved
retailer support are necessary to make mobile wallet offerings more feasible,
82% believe that there is enough consumer interest to justify these investments.
The Journey To Digital Maturity

Financial institutions are lagging behind in
their pursuit of digital maturity
60
85%
of respondents
are halfway to
digital maturity,
or further behind.
Where is your company in its journey to digital maturity?
50
of respondents
are halfway to
digital maturity
40
30
20
10
0
1% Havent left the gate
12% We can see the finish line
31% Just getting started
3% We are at our end stage
53% Halfway there
[Im] surprised to see half of respondents say they are

halfway there since the space changes weekly/monthly in
terms of new ways to interact and engage with customers
through digital (even what we mean when we say digital
changes so frequently).
- Brad Leimer, VP Digital Strategy Mechanics Bank
The reliance on IT
resources (65%)
and fragmented
data (60%) were
clearly the two
most significant
barriers to digital
maturity cited by
respondents.
Technology and data constraints are inhibiting

digital development
What are the obstacles
slowing down your ability
to mature digitally?
65% Significant reliance on IT resources
28% Privacy and data security
60% Fragmented data sources
25% Lack of organizational comfort

with cloud-based solutions
48% Compliance
37% Inability to personalize

customer experiences
Despite the
growing emphasis
on analytics
and solutions,
organizational
alignment remains
the dominant
driver of digital
maturity.
12% Incompatible marketing solutions

5% No obstacles
Digital development requires organizational

transformation
43%
Which of the
following has the
biggest impact on
the advancement
of your companys
digital maturity?
said organizational
alignment and executive
sponsorship
43% Organizational alignment

and/or executive sponsorship
20% Single view of the customer /

unified customer profile
16% Multichannel analytics

combine online and offline data
8% Cross-channel campaign
management
6% Efficient content management

and deployment
5% Personalization / 1-to-1 targeted

messaging on web and mobile
sites
1% Solution functionality like

Personal Financial Management
There is little doubt that digital strategy has become a central goal for financial
institutions, but the corporate structures and technologies required for this paradigm
shift are often disruptive. The findings of this study suggest that organizational
alignment and company culture are just as important to digital transformation as new
technology platforms. Organizational enhancements, such as the consolidation of
digital functions under a single leader and the improved alignment of digital objectives
and performance metrics, will form the core of a digitally enabled business.
These results
contrast with last
years study, in
which respondents
cited new account
acquisition as their
top marketing
priority.
Digital marketers are focusing on retention and

account volume
Where will your company be focusing
its digital marketing activities in the
next 12 to 18 months?
55% Increase customer retention
40% Increase lead generation
53% Increase new account volume
31% Increase new account quality
47% Increase product penetration
30% Increase assets or deposits
An important shift is taking place from marketing as a pure direct response acquisition
engine to a more experiential tool aimed at deepening relationships with customers
and driving retention. More than half of those surveyed will be focusing their digital
marketing on increasing customer retention (55%) and increasing new account
volume (53%). Conversely, less than a third of respondents reported that their
businesses would be focusing their digital activities on increasing new account quality
(31%) or increasing assets or deposits (30%).
Influencing the Customer

Experience
Only 42% of
respondents
stated that their
companies have
full control over
the end-toend customer
experience.
Most respondents feel that their companies do

not have full control over end-to-end customer
experiences
100
42%
What level of
control does
your company
currently have
over the customer
experience?
of respondents
stated that their
companies have
full control
42% Control over the end-to

end customer experience
23% Control over the digital,

but not direct, customer
experience
18% Control over all direct

experiences (e.g. email,

direct mail, etc.)
9% None
8% Control over the prospect

experience only
Despite the fact that creating consistent, high-quality customer experiences is a

prime objective for the financial services industry, the majority of respondents report
they only have limited control over the customer experience. The fact that only 42%
of respondents stated that their companies have full control over the end-to-end
customer experience clearly indicates that the financial services sector must accelerate
its digital development.
More than half

or respondents
utilize at least
7 different
channels to
impact customer
experiences
Marketers relying on a multitude of channels to

impact customer experience
Which marketing channels
do you rely on to impact
the customer experience?
88% Public site
56% Search
77% Email and/or direct mail
56% Outbound and inbound calls to call center
68% Mobile sites and applications
55% Private or authenticated sites
58% Social
35% Third-party display ads
Given the plethora of channels through which people can interact with
their banks, marketers must understand where customers and prospects are
spending the most time. Many existing customers (especially of retail banks) are
primarily interacting with their banks through mobile applications or private or
authenticated sites. This in turn means that marketers and digital channel owners
should be emphasizing these channels, perhaps even more so than the public site.
Just like in last

years report,
company websites
were cited
as customers
primary source of
information.
Company websites continue to be the

dominant source of information for customers
What is the primary channel
through which customers are
receiving information from you?
54% Visiting our website
4% Direct mail
32% Email
1% Social media
6% Web search
1% Webinars
As in last years
report, CRM
systems were the
most common
solution. Email
service providers
jumped from third
in 2013 to the
second this year.
The Next Generation of

Marketing Technologies &
Solutions
Financial services companies are utilizing a wide variety
of digital solutions
What types of solutions and
partners are you currently using?
65% CRM
49% Free Google analytics
65% Email service provider
47% Social and media listening software
54% Paid analysis (not Google)
40% Sales/transactional database
51% Marketing database
34% Marketing automation
Cross-channel
campaign
management
topped the list
of marketing
technology
priorities.
Cross-channel campaign management is

becoming a priority
What are your technology priorities for marketing capabilities?
Cross-channel campaign
management including EM,
DM, Phone, Web and Social
Content management and
responsive design
26%
Integrating data for a single

view of the customer
22%
Personalization via
1-to-1 targeting across
digital channels
15%
Multichannel analytics for

attribution
10% 24%
11%
24%
8% 25%
20%
21%
17%
27%
23%
24%
24%
13%
18%
21%
27%
1 2
15%
19%
18%
19%
29%
3 4 5
1 Highest priority
5 Lowest priority
As this report has shown, consumers are interacting with financial institutions
across channels almost at will. Thus, it is no surprise that marketers top priority is
cross-channel campaign management, which enables them to engage consumers
consistently and relevantly across channels.
88% of
respondents are
looking to add
digital solutions,
with 38% planning
to buy them.
Most companies are looking to add digital

solutions, with many planning to buy those
solutions
38%
If your company
is looking to add
solutions to support
your digital marketing,
are you looking to
build or buy those
solutions?
plan to
buy digital
marketing
solutions
38% Buy
29% Build via 3rd-party
20% Build in-house
12% Not looking to add solutions
10
43% of
respondents
believe their
digital programs
are excellent.
That is a strong
improvement over
last year, when
only 27% labeled
their programs as
Excellent.
Most marketers are happy with their digital

programs
On a scale of 1 to 10, how
would you rate your online
marketing programs today?
15%
14%
34%
14%
9%
9%
3%
2%
0%
0%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Needs Improvement
Satisfactory
Excellent
Perfect
While the majority of respondents placed their companies in the middle ranges, a full
third (34%) rated their marketing programs as a 7. Notably, very few respondents
rated their digital marketing programs as either exceptional or particularly deficient.
11
Most financial
institutions are
missing significant
opportunities to
drive conversion
and engagement
on mobile, where
more customers are
spending their time.
Financial services must accelerate their

optimization of mobile and authenticated channels
Which public web / desktop capabilities are your company
able to extend to mobile platforms or the authenticated space?
44%
44%
43%
36%
35%
37%
38%
31%
25%
24%
21%
20%
Content Management
Authenticated Site
Targeting Segments
Testing/Optimization
Mobile Site
Analytics
Mobile App
In recent years, financial services marketers have been enhancing their capabilities
on desktop public websites, refining their ability to target, analyze, and convert
public site traffic. Unfortunately, this traffic has been shrinking, thanks primarily
to the ascension of mobile; prospects and customers are increasingly turning to
mobile sites and applications to research products and services, look up balances,
and pay bills. Since they are not extending their core digital capabilities to these
areas, most financial services marketers are missing the opportunity to convert and
engage customers where they are spending the majority of their time.
As a consumer facing organization and brand, we

need to be where consumers are. So we need to deliver
scenarios on devices which have become the most
frequently used items in our lives. Simple as that.
- Michal Panowicz, mBank, from The Financial Brand, June 9, 2014
12
Bill pay is the

only digital wallet
service offered
by most financial
institutions - only
10% have a full
digital wallet.
Digital Payments & the

Future of the Mobile Wallet
Bill pay is the most popular mobile wallet
feature
56%
Where is your
institution on the
road to digital
payments?
of respondents
currently offer bill
pay as their only
digital payment
capability
56% Bill pay only

22% Person 2 person payments
12% Other mobile payments

(NFC, BT, QR, etc.)
10% Digital wallet
Most banks
believe there is
enough consumer
interest in mobile
payments, but
no clear leading
technology.
Lack of a clear industry-leading technology is

impeding mobile wallet adoption
32%
What do you think
is the biggest hurdle
in mobile payments
adoption?
agreed that
the biggest
impediment has
been the lack of
a clear industryleading technology
32% Lack of a clear industry

leading technology
20% Risk in adopting too early
18% Lack of consumer interest
17% Too many solutions
available
13% Not enough retailer
support
13
The majority of financial institutions are offering mobile wallet capabilities, signaling
a slow march toward wider adoption of the technology. Significantly, less than onefifth of respondents believe that there is not enough consumer interest in mobile
payments, but only ten percent of those surveyed currently offer a full digital wallet.
These early adopters may have an advantage in the enhancement and expansion of
their mobile payments capabilities as the technology becomes more popular with
consumers. However, according to survey participants, that may take the emergence
of a clear industry-leading technology.
Weve been talking about mobile wallets for the last few
years, but are still yet to see mass consumer adoption
and no one clear winner. However, with the introduction
of iBeacons and HCE, mobile payments could be on the
brink of finally taking off. Im excited to see where we
are in December at the NetFinance Interactive show. This
could really be an absolute game-changer for banks.
- James Hodges, Director, NetFinance
14
Conclusions &
Recommendations
Financial services must accelerate their digital
maturation
While the challenges associated with digital maturity may be great, the benefits
are unmistakable. According to a 2014 Adobe survey of U.S. marketers, digital/
social marketers and data analysts are the top two roles that companies should
invest in over the next twelve months. Additionally, 76% of marketers believe that
they need to be more data-focused in order to succeed. These findings reinforce
the results of this study: the enhancement of digital programs is key to a companys
success both in the future and right now. Unfortunately, many financial services
firms trail behind in their journeys to digital maturity, impeded not only by their
need for advanced digital solutions, but also (and more significantly) by a lack of
organizational alignment and executive sponsorship. Although digital maturity
requires organizational transformation and the deployment of new technologies, it
will enable financial institutions to uncover new product offerings and novel ways of
improving the customer experience.
Mobile spaces represent the next frontier for

digital conversions
As customers continue to shift their attention away from public sites, mobile and
authenticated sites and apps are becoming central to the customer experience.
Unfortunately, many financial services companies are not extending core digital
capabilities like content management, segment targeting, and analytics into mobile
and authenticated spaces. Without those capabilities, those companies are missing
out on critical conversion opportunities in high-traffic channels.
Investment should shift toward digital

payments as confidence in mobile wallet
technology grows
As consumers increasingly turn to mobile for their banking needs, the possibility for
full mobile wallet services will continue to grow. Financial institutions seem to agree
that there is great potential in digital payments, although many see the lack of a
clear industry-leading technology as the major challenge facing adoption of mobile
wallets. As those technologies are improved upon and consumer confidence in
mobile payments grows, financial institutions should be ready to embrace this next
banking frontier.
15
Appendices
Appendix A: Methodology
For this study, Worldwide Business Research conducted in-person and online
surveys of 101 digital professionals in the financial services field. Survey participants
included decision makers and executives with responsibility for their firms
multichannel marketing capabilities and strategies. Professionals from companies
including JP Morgan Chase, BBVA Compass, Lincoln Financial Group, Accenture,
TD Bank contributed to the surveys results. In-person surveys and interviews were
conducted on-site at the 2014 NetFinance Conference in Miami, Fl. Responses were
collected in April and May of 2014.
Appendix B: Related Research

2013 Marketing Automation Trends: Marketing Executives at Major Financial
Institutions Weigh In On Evolving Technologies and Strategies, WBR Digital, July
2013.
Digital Roadblock: Marketers Struggle to Reinvent Themselves, Adobe Systems,
Incorporated, March 2014.
About NetFinance
Since its launch in 2007, NetFinance has become the industrys #1 multi-channel
marketing conference specially-designed for financial institutions. Featuring more
than 70 speakers and 350 attendees, NetFinance brings together the most seniorlevel speaking faculty, enabling attendees to hear from the people making real
decisions. In fact, 85% of speakers are at a VP level or above.
The conference has proven to be a rich industry resource for networking, strategy,
and cutting-edge information, with 93% of past attendees agreeing that they
would recommend the event to a colleague. In just three days, attendees will learn,
engage and discuss all aspects of mobile, tablets, responsive design, big data, multichannel restructuring, cross-selling, customer engagement and creating the branch
of the future. The complete agenda, list of speakers and registration details are
available at www.netfinanceus.com.
16
About Adobe
Contact Adobe
345 Park Avenue
San Jose, CA
95110-2704
Tel: 408-536-6000
Adobe Marketing
Cloud: 877-722-7088
Adobe is changing the world through digital experiences. We help our customers
develop and deliver high-impact experiences that differentiate brands, build
loyalty, and drive revenue across every screen, including smartphones, computers,
tablets and TVs. Adobe content solutions are used daily by millions of companies
worldwidefrom publishers and broadcasters, to enterprises, marketing agencies
and household-name brands. Building on our established design leadership, we
enable customers not only to make great content, but to manage, measure and
monetize it for maximum impact. For more information, visit adobe.com.
Contact Adobe
345 Park Avenue

San Jose, CA 95110-2704
Tel: 408-536-6000
Adobe Marketing Cloud support: 877-722-7088
About WBR/WBR Digital

Media Contact:
Andrew Cole
646-200-7541
Andrew.Cole@
wbresearch.com
WBR is the worlds biggest large-scale conference company and part of the PLS
group, one of the worlds leading providers of strategic business intelligence with 16
offices worldwide. Our conference divisions consistently out-perform their industry
sector competitors on the quality of the events we produce and the relationships we
nurture with both attendees and sponsors.
Every year, over 10,000 senior executives from Fortune 1,000 companies attend over
100 of our annual conferences a true Whos Who of todays corporate world.
From Automotive events in Bucharest to Logistics conferences in Arizona to Luxury
conferences in New York and Finance summits in Hong Kong, WBR is dedicated to
exceeding the needs of its customers around the world.
In addition to our industry leading conferences, our professional services marketing
division, WBR Digital, connects solution providers to their target audiences with
year-round online branding and engagement lead generation campaigns. WBRs
marketers act as an extension of your team, relieving strain on your internal
resources while promoting your brand and solutions to your prospects. Solution
providers can target identified accounts or relevant industry/function segments of
WBRs entire global database of over 500K senior-level decision makers.
17
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youre bound to come back with takeaways to move your business forward.
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The Journey to Digital Maturity:

How Financial Institutions Are

A WBR Digital Industry Benchmark Whitepaper

Presented in Conjuction with Adobe

2014 The Journey to Digital Maturity

digital maturation of many financial

65% of respondents agreed that heavy reliance on IT resources is the main

financial services companies are missing

plays a critical role in digital

Faced with an abundance of choice, many companies are choosing to buy

the mobile wallet presents a

2014 The Journey to Digital Maturity