Why your business needs a digital branch to stay relevant and survive future uncertainties
With the continuing disruption and uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic, many brands face significant challenges retaining their customers, let alone growing their businesses. The past few months have highlighted a pre-existing need for brands to maintain a strong online presence with digital branches to support constantly changing consumer preferences.
What is a digital branch?
A digital branch of business, available to customers from anywhere, is an increasingly important service channel fuelled by the fact that consumers are spending more time online than ever before. It’s a one-stop portal where customers can engage directly with the business by making transactions and interacting with business representatives. Effective digital branches prioritise community and customer engagement via online portals, which are designed to be readily available using any private digital channels.
The importance of adaptability in an age of constant change
While there’s no denying the disruption caused by Covid-19 and the looming global recession, these factors have largely highlighted pre-existing challenges. When it comes to technology and modern consumer behaviors, the only constant is change. The need for innovation has never been clearer, and brands which fail to keep up with the times risk becoming irrelevant very quickly.
Digital branches enable brands and customers to interact on a personal level, rather than solely through chatbots and email. This is more important than ever in a time when in-person contact is either restricted or undesirable. But current challenges aside, growing a digital branch gives brands the opportunity to adapt and scale with demand. Employees can manage customer engagements from anywhere, and customers have instant access right from their pockets.
Establishing virtual workspaces in the digital era
Working from home is already well established in many businesses, but as recent events have demonstrated, many others still have some catching up to do. Yet despite continuing pressure to let employees work from home, there are some important business benefits of enabling a freer working environment, which businesses can continue to enjoy in the long term too. Many people tend to work better from home, while businesses get to enjoy reduced costs associated with office space and equipment.
A digital branch isn’t just about convenience. It’s also a one-stop venue where you can run the business from anywhere. Add bank-grade security and a fully managed, branded environment into the mix and your team has everything they need to engage customers remotely without adding unnecessary operational risk. Moreover, since all interactions are recorded, you can maintain full auditability and visibility into your communications.
Empowering persistent relationships and customer engagement
A digital branch should provide a fully branded and personalised experience that people come to instantly associate with your business. Today’s websites and online portals are much more than just digital flyers – they offer community-driven experiences and a range of transactional services. Consumers should be able to do anything via your virtual branch that they would be able to in person.
One of the most important benefits of establishing a digital branch is that it lets you be there for your customers during their time of need. Features such as secure messaging and video meetings mean you can focus on persistent relationships and engage customers on a similar level as you would in-person. At the same time, the digital nature of activities which take place through virtual branches means you’ll always have a wealth of data-driven insights available.
Enabling seamless growth with a private digital portal in every customer’s pocket
Every company needs a roadmap for digital change. Those who have adopted temporary fixes in light of current challenges should now look towards long-term innovation. Strong customer relationships will always represent the foundations for success in any business, and growth depends on the ability to engage with customers no matter where they are. Adding a digital branch to your brand is the one thing that can make that happen.
Moxtra empowers persistent relationships and stronger customer engagement in an era of constant disruption. Tell us about your business today to start your digital transformation.