Some 70% of negative mobile banking apps feedback relates to customer frustrations with a policy or procedure enacted by the financial institution and insufficient communication, according to the Austin, Texas-based Malauzai.
Mobile and internet banking provider Malauzai Software’s Monkey Memo, The Design X-Factor, provides in-depth analysis of mobile banking apps customer ratings, comments and feedback as published in Google Play and Apple’s App Store. The Monkey Memo, based on Little-Data factoids pulled from collection of actual digital-channel usage data, covers 10 million monthly logins from about 650,000 active users and 450 banks and credit unions.
Highlights from Malauzai’s primary research of Google Play and App Store ratings include:
- 60% of negative comments stemmed from something done on purpose by the financial institution, such as enforcing a policy or a procedure the customer does not like.
- 30% of negative comments are about legitimate bugs in the system.
- 15% of the overall comments are positive but negative comments far outweigh positive comments in the App Store by 500%.
- 10% of negative comments are about poor communications. The financial institutions are not telling their customers about changes until after they happen.
- 85% of comments traced back to an update within the past 15-20 days. The rate of comments increases by 350% when an update or major app change occurs.
The Malauzai report also suggested The Design X-Factor is not all about the screens. “Great design is also about the total customer experience. Increasingly, banks and credit unions are waking up to this. Aesthetically pleasing screens must be accompanied by a progressive approach to policies and procedures because those factors dramatically influence customer satisfaction,” Robb Gaynor, Malauzai’s chief product officer, said in the report.
Gaynor added great banking app design involved great graphics and imagery, user-friendly screens and uncluttered features that make basic banking seamless, and also the X-factor.
Malauzai started preliminary research on Google Play and App Store feedback, and suggested those App Store rating stars must reveal something but it’s debatable what is learned.
The Monkey Memo noted most star ratings are low. “In fact, the whole process of store reviews is somewhat suspect as a mechanism for rating a mobile banking app. Most happy users unfortunately don’t leave reviews. People take to review sites to air their frustrations. Overwhelmingly, people who are upset post comments.” Even worse, Apple’s App Store does not let a financial institutionrespond to comments.However, Google Play does allow responses, which allows credit unions and banks, the opportunity to turn negative reviews into feedback and solutions.
“App Store feedback can be synthesized and processed. What we find may be surprising but really not shocking,” Gaynor said. Most comments are insights into frustrations about the way the bank or credit union works. “The apps contribute with their share of bugs, but the Design X-Factor has a greater impact. Credit unions and banks must moderate. They must manage the tension between a great customer experience and staying safe and complaint. Not an easy task.”
