Business customers leaving the branch
(3 September 2008 – Australia) East & Partners’ latest Business Banking Customer Satisfaction Monitor (BBCSM) shows a decline in branch usage amongst business banking customers.
The downward trend in branch usage by businesses is mirrored in business customers’ satisfaction rating with branches, which has consistently fallen over the past six months.
The overall satisfaction rating for the branch channel is below average at just 4.01 (using a scale where 0 is ‘very dissatisfied and 10 is ‘very satisfied’).
The branch is currently being used by a mere 17.1 percent of business banking customers and of all the channels covered in the BBCSM the branch now receives the lowest rating.
East’s BBCSM is based on interviews with 850 business customers every month (10,200 annually) turning over between A$5 and 500 million per annum.
"Despite the much heralded re-investment in branches, business customers are clearly using other channels to interact with their business bank", East & Partners’ Head of Market Analysis, Robert Morgan said.
"In this context, the rise in Online Banking usage arguably reflects the fact that time is such a precious commodity nowadays and business customers simply do not have the time or inclination for branch visits", Morgan added.
"What is also interesting to note is the extremely close correlation between the sliding branch usage and the corresponding downward satisfaction rating, a trend that the banks will be keen to reverse." Morgan concluded.
The overall satisfaction rating for the branch channel is below average at just 4.01 (using a scale where 0 is ‘very dissatisfied and 10 is ‘very satisfied’).
The branch is currently being used by a mere 17.1 percent of business banking customers and of all the channels covered in the BBCSM the branch now receives the lowest rating.
East’s BBCSM is based on interviews with 850 business customers every month (10,200 annually) turning over between A$5 and 500 million per annum.
"Despite the much heralded re-investment in branches, business customers are clearly using other channels to interact with their business bank", East & Partners’ Head of Market Analysis, Robert Morgan said.
"In this context, the rise in Online Banking usage arguably reflects the fact that time is such a precious commodity nowadays and business customers simply do not have the time or inclination for branch visits", Morgan added.
"What is also interesting to note is the extremely close correlation between the sliding branch usage and the corresponding downward satisfaction rating, a trend that the banks will be keen to reverse." Morgan concluded.
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