KQ Article

Almost all of us have a personal story about an incredible retail encounter that engaged us, compelled us to buy, and left us eager to return. How can we achieve that perfect mixture of employee engagement and product knowledge to ensure such positive experiences for our own customers?

This was precisely the question the 2009 Deluxe Collaborative team set out to answer – as it relates to two of the most important customer segments to every financial institution: Baby Boomers and Millennials. Our mission sent us headlong into research involving all nuances of trust, generations, and sales.

One of our most surprising findings thus far involves preferences across different age groups. Specifically, we discovered that although each selling situation and generation is unique, there are as many similarities between the generations as there are differences. 

TRIED, BUT NOT TRUE ENOUGH
Replace the traditional training and sales approaches with something more authentic.
We began our foray into sales by reviewing sales training materials currently being used by banks and credit unions. We immediately discovered that a vast majority of financial institutions use roughly the same training materials. Our next step was to observe the bankers in action – using their training in sales situations with customers.  We found that although the sales material was intended to be only directional in nature, many front-line employees appeared to be taking the material far too literally. 

We were stunned by the scripted and stilted nature of most conversations between front-facing staff and their customers or members. When we surveyed these consumers about their interactions, their conclusions mirrored ours. They were well aware of the scripted discussion taking place. Many of the customers and members interviewed characterized the front-line bankers as patronizing, stiff and insincere, based on these employees’ obvious unwillingness to deviate from script and treat consumers as individuals. 

Many financial institutions also do business from strikingly similar business models. In fact, the common sales models are actually the same ones used across many other industries, so they’re quite generic. But their abundant use probably tells us that they’re somewhat effective. If they didn’t close sales, they wouldn’t be so popular.

However, these sales models do appear to have an Achilles’ heel: they may sufficiently generate sales, but they actually erode trust, which is a critical factor in achieving healthy sales growth over the long term.

What should we take away from these observations? Perhaps it is that it’s time to shift from standard and scripted to authentic and personalized – in both the way we serve customers and in how we approach sales opportunities. It’s the same in business as it is in life: we tend to want to be around people with whom we connect on a personal level. In today’s post-meltdown banking climate, forging real, one-to-one relationships with every customer and member is essential to both keeping the sales pipeline full while earning an enduring sense of trust among consumers.

A CAST OF FOUR CHARACTERS
Meet the Techie, the Game Player, the Patient and the Bottom-Liner.
While we were observing bankers using their sales skills, we immediately became aware of how similarly people in either demographic (Baby Boomers or Millennials) reacted in a sales situation. It became apparent that regardless of age, income level or degree of life experience, consumers tended to behave in one of four common characters in a selling situation.

While there is a greater concentration of a generation within certain types, it was clear that Boomers and Millennials could not be classified based on demographics alone. In fact, these individuals could change character from interaction to interaction, depending on the relationship or the product involved in the interaction. 

The first character we saw was the Techie. Techies primarily bank online, and they come into the branch for help only after they have exhausted their online research and resources. They seek fast, simple solutions. They are impatient and want information immediately. While this character lives primarily in the realm of Millennials, we also found plenty of Techies who are Baby Boomers.

Have you ever been in a sales situation where you feel like a customer is trying to outsmart you? Of course you have – and we’ve named this person the Game Player. These folks want to test your knowledge, and they view the sales interaction as just another contest with a clear winner at the end. Game Players are predominantly male Baby Boomers with lots of banking experience, but they, too, were found within all ages and genders.

Next we have Patients. As the name implies, these are customers and members who want to be taken care of. They want you to make recommendations. They want big-time customer service. Patients are primarily female customers, but there were a few exceptions, such as young Millennials.

The last character in this cast is the Bottom-Liner. For this type of customer or member, knowledge is key – and so is learning new things quickly. Bottom-Liners distrust process and often come across as negative. They want to be shown – not merely told – that they are valued and respected, by being shown due respect for their intelligence. The typical Bottom-Liner is a Boomer with lots of experience, and he or she is frequently also a business owner.

SEEING EVERY INTERACTION AS UNIQUE
Regardless of the similarities and differences between Boomers and Millennials, every employee-consumer interaction should be addressed individually.
We noticed that Baby Boomers and Millennials exhibit great similarity in how they want to be treated and the type of interactions they preferred at a general level. Everyone wanted to be shown respect. Everyone liked to be presented with options to give them choice and control. Everyone also reacted positively when a banker recapped the discussion and identified next steps, because it proved to them that the employee was listening.

And they all hated phrases such as, “You are a valued customer.” When else in life do we say something so passive and lifeless and really mean it? The reaction to such platitudes was always the same: “Don’t tell me that you value me. Show me.” You’re not getting off that easy.

So what were the differences between the customer segments? The most striking contrasts emerged in sales situations. Here are two. First, whereas Millennials liked to hear benefits because it helped them feel more informed about a product or service, Boomers were skeptical about benefits lists because they came off too much like a sales pitch. Second, if a Millennial had a problem and was presented with a different product as a solution, he or she was typically appreciative of the help. In contrast, Boomers became irritated with this approach, because they felt that this meant they were offered the wrong product in the first place.

The important lesson we learned is that when you enter a selling situation, you need to assess the customer based on insights and conversations, and then adjust your selling techniques to align with each consumer’s personality, background, situation, knowledge and desires. We can no longer get away with profiling people and placing them in groups. Every customer interaction should be treated for what it represents: the first and the last of its kind.

We have barely brushed the surface of all we learned about trust, selling and the generations.  Register now for the 2010 Deluxe Knowledge Expo, where you’ll get a chance to hear the complete findings of our 2009 Collaborative work, including new selling ideas that we shared with actual customers and members across the country.