Vsaka neobanka svojo nišo (Joris Lochy)

In some of my previous blogs (cfr. “Is a new bank consolidation wave inevitable?” – https://bankloch.blogspot.com/2021/03/is-new-bank-consolidation-wave.html and “Neobanks
should find their niche to improve their profitability” – https://bankloch.blogspot.com/2020/12/neobanks-should-find-their-niche-to.html) I already shared my opinion
that it will be hard for neo-banks to survive as long as they focus on a too generic service offering and that they have more chance of success if they izberite dobro ciljni segment strank in se osredotočite nanj.

Medtem ko so se tradicionalni finančni igralci pogosto osredotočali na vse stranke, da bi dosegli največje učinke povečanja (z nekaj izjemami, kot so zasebne banke), so neobanke s svojim pure digital-footprint and ability to deliver interesting digital value-added
Storitve, so v idealnem položaju za segmentih storitvenih niš.
Additionally, it is almost impossible for incumbent banks to compete with neo-banks on those niches, due to their large operating cost structures and their limitations to deliver quickly and efficiently the specific value-added services requested by each customer
nišo.

Danes že po vsem svetu vidite vedno več tistih neobank, ki se osredotočajo na nišni segment strank (na podlagi značilnosti, kot so starost, spol, poreklo ...​), npr. neobanke, ki se osredotočajo na

• Ženske, npr. GoWomen, Sheroes, Elas ali Lucy

• LGBTQ + skupnost, npr. Daylight ali Pride Bank

• specifična etnične skupine, manjšine in/ali priseljencinpr

  • Za črno (in rjavo) skupnost je Kinly, MoCaFi, Greenwood, First Boulevard ali Paybby

  • Za latinsko in špansko skupnost je Fortú ali Valor

  • Za azijsko skupnost je na voljo Cheese

  • Za priseljence obstaja pošteno ali večina

  • Za indijske izseljence je Swadesh

• Islamsko bančništvo (po načelih šeriata), npr. Insha, Niyah, Fair, Rizq ali Fardows

• Specifični poklicinpr

  • Za taksiste je CabDost ali Uber Money

  • Za zdravnike je Panacea Financial, Laurel Road ali Cure

  • Za glasbenike (in vse, ki z glasbo služijo denar) je tu Nerve

  • Za lastnike malih podjetij so na voljo Lunar, Novo ali BlueVine

  • Za samostojne podjetnike so Lance, Lili ali Oxygen

  • Za delavce na koncertih je na voljo Gig Money ali Moves Financial

• Starejši, npr. Kartica dolgoživosti

• Mladoletne osebe (otroci in najstniki), npr. Copper, GoHenry, Greenlight, Kard, Yours ali Streak

• Mladoporočenca, npr. Pripet

• Invalidi, npr. Vijolična ali posebej za ljudi z demenco je Sibstar

Banka, ki se osredotoča na določen nišni segment, bo lahko zagotovila a popolnoma prilagojeno in visoko personalizirano uporabniško izkušnjo svojemu segmentu kupcev (ciljni skupini), tj.

• specifična lastnosti relevanten samo za ta segment strank

• specifična slog za videz in občutek (npr. slike in vodnik po slogu), uporabljen jezik in ton ter splošno blagovno znamko (npr. oglasi ali ustvarjanje vsebine)

Nekaj ​​primerov tako zelo specifičnih značilnost in slog je:

• LGBTQ+ neobanke will obviously distinguish themselves in their wording (e.g. gender-neutral terminology) and style (e.g. not the traditional husband-wife pictures you see at many incumbent banks), but also in specific features. E.g. an
  easy possibility to change gender in the bank systems (which can be a nightmare in traditional banking systems), allowing to use your true name and not your official name on all communication and on the bank cards (cfr. Mastercard’s True Name initiative) or
  a more adapted credit scoring and credit acceptance process for the LGBTQ+ community, but we could also think of deals (e.g. in the form of cashbacks) for businesses specifically allied to the LGBTQ+ community. Additionally specific advisory services can be
  offered for processes where the LGBTQ+ community typically deals with a lot of (legal, financial and administrative) complexity like surrogacy, adoption, inheritance, sex change…​

• za specifični poklici, there are obviously specific credits and leasing constructions associated to the specific profession, but the bank can also act as a reseller and service provider for specific tooling for the profession (e.g. equipment,
  software…​). Additionally there can also be specific insurances, like insurances against medical failures for docters, special car insurances for taxi drivers or bike insurances for bike couriers. Additionally features like automatic quarterly tax payment
  can be very interesting for this target group.

• za starejše this can consist in features and style elements, like the usage of bigger font size on all digital channels and communication, providing financial and technical education, more possibility for in-person contact, special services
  like succession planning or health-assistance (like Belfius Insurance spin-off Jane, which uses artificial intelligence and sensors to allow senior citizens to live longer in their own home)…​

• za mladoletniki this will consist in a very digital and social-media focused offering with a lot of gamification (to make financial services more attractive), collaboration with influencers, financial and social media education services (like
  e.g. saving goals learning minors to save from young age, but also educating minors to stay safe on social media), specific control mechanisms for parents (e.g. spending limits or control on MCC codes for spending, but also easy oversight of all financial
  actions done by the minor), access to specific events (e.g. concert ticket sale)…​

• Za neobanke, ki se osredotočajo na posebne etnične skupine, it can be important to have all digital channels and communication translated in specific languages and have customer care departments with a good knowledge of the language, culture and
  habits of the target customer segment. Additionally it can be important to support specific platforms (e.g. social media) which are popular within the targeted community, e.g. Cheese focusing on the Asian community has everything translated in Chinese, has
  a customer service fluently speaking Chinese and offers communication through WeChat.

Čeprav je lahko ta ciljana personalizacija zelo močna konkurenčna prednost, ni vse v redu.
A well personalized experience is easier said than done, as no single person fits perfectly within 1 niche-segment. If you’re a gay Asian doctor, do you bank with Cheese, Daylight, or Panacea? And what to do with customers moving out of the target niche segment,
e.g. if you change profession, get older in age…​
This mean every niche neo-bank should not exclusively focus on the target group, but also attract and retain customers with a strong affinity to the target niche segment. This can only be done by offering a sufficiently rich and generic product and service
ponudba.

Poleg tega taka nišna banka ne bo imela učinki skaliranja of an incumbent bank or even of more generic neo-banks. This means it can be difficult for niche neo-banks to compete on price. Niche neo-banks should therefore focus on making
a difference via the quality of their products and value-added services they bring and becoming really a trusted partner for the community they serve.

Ta zaupanja vreden položaj v ciljni skupnosti je lahko a močno, a tudi tvegano “weapon”. These niche banks can grow very fast thanks to word of mouth, as often the communities they serve are highly interconnected meaning
1 client will influence heavily another customer or prospect (thus also the need for effective member-get-member programs). On the other side of the coin, one small communication error or small issue with a specific customer, can have far-reaching impacts
due to the strong community feeling (shared on specific social media groups). A close monitoring of the relevant social media groups and influencers of the targeted community and a fast (pro-active) reaction to any potential issue is therefore extremely important
for these kind of niche neo-banks. Or like they say “trust takes years to build, seconds to break and forever to repair”.

Poleg tega lahko te vrste bank omejijo svojo strukturo stroškov z

• Zelo ciljano trženje, kar omogoča, da je z vidika trženja zelo stroškovno učinkovito

• Ker so skoraj vse razlikovalne značilnosti nišne banke usmerjene na sprednji del, je priporočljivo, da te vrste neo-bank gradijo svojo ponudbo na vrhu ponudbe Bančništvo kot storitev (like Solaris, …​) or in partnership with an incumbent
  bank or even one of the existing neo-banks (e.g. Starling bank wants to start offering their services more and more as a service to other banks). This means the neo-bank can also avoid having to obtain an expensive banking license, but can suffice with no
  license or a cheaper eMoney or payment license.

• Izgradnja a močan in učinkovit ekosistem dobro usmerjenih partnerjev, ki lahko obogatijo (dopolnijo) ponudbo neobanke in omogočijo hitro zagotavljanje novih konkurenčnih lastnosti.

Očitno v družbi hiperpersonalizacija (vse se nanaša na mene), the future is bright for well-targeted and efficient service offerings, as long as the bank can also evolve with its customers and keep its cost structures very well under
control. For a niche bank, profitability should be preferred over scaling.

Oglejte si vse moje bloge https://bankloch.blogspot.com/