Five signs you're ready for a digital banking upgrade
posted on Wednesday, September 10, 2025 in SHAZAM Blog
Article contributor / Terry Gore / Director of Sales (Digital Banking)
Digital banking isn’t merely a channel. It’s an extension of your brand, a virtual branch available to accountholders whenever they need to access their accounts. A strong digital presence is a must for financial institutions to stay relevant in today’s digital age.
Financial institutions are uniquely positioned to deliver the convenience and flexibility digital banking brings, but it can also negatively impact accountholder loyalty if your product doesn't meet expectations. Here are five signs that your digital presence is holding you back.
1. Poor user experience
Accountholders expect a seamless digital banking experience across all their devices. They want the flexibility to view their accounts, pay bills and deposit checks all at their fingertips. All these features must be an intuitive user experience to give your accountholders the flexibility to stay active in their busy lives while conveniently managing their finances.
If your current digital banking offering doesn’t offer these features or is difficult to use, it detracts from the overall user experience and negatively impacts your accountholder relationship.
2. Security vulnerabilities
While digital banking apps are generally secure, some may have vulnerabilities that could expose user data. Advanced security measures offer effortless and secure access for your users. Features such as single sign-on and biometric authentication add extra layers of security, making it harder for cybercriminals to gain access to someone’s account.
Real-time fraud detection and card controls give your cardholders additional security for their debit cards. Providing the ability to lock and unlock cards, replace a lost or stolen card and receive account notifications helps build trust and grow accountholder relationships.
3. Lack of communication and reporting
Several key internal operational inefficiencies can hinder the effectiveness of a mobile banking app, ultimately impacting customer satisfaction and potentially leading to a loss of business.
System limitations, such as no way to send messages to accountholders or users who have separate logins for personal and business accounts, prevent seamless secure communications with your accountholders and create additional headaches.
Another common concern with vendor-supported mobile banking applications is a lack of sufficient reporting and analytics capabilities. This can hinder a financial institution's ability to gain a comprehensive understanding of app performance, user behavior and potential risks. A digital banking offering that doesn’t provide activity summaries, user activity, money movement tracking and segmentation entitlements/limits for precise, actionable oversight is holding you back from truly understanding your accountholders.
4. Lacking vendor support
Accountholders still want to talk to a human when there’s an issue with their account or app. And when that time comes, you need to have answers fast. Any vendor who doesn’t deliver fast, personalized service isn’t supporting you when you need them most. Without proper support, resolving customer issues related to mobile app errors can be challenging, leading to frustration and damage to your reputation.
5. Lack of integration with your technology stack
Your digital banking product needs to work well with your core and debit card provider. Integrating existing systems with new offerings through APIs enables seamless data exchange and efficient communication between systems, enhancing customer experience and operational efficiency. Make sure your vendor is open and willing to work with vendors to ensure your product solutions are working as intended without frivolously charging you to provide what’s best for your accountholders.
Digital with a personal touch
For financial institutions, a digital transformation is not just about keeping up, it’s about unlocking new revenue streams, expanding reach and future-proofing the business. By integrating digital banking, financial institutions can extend their reach beyond their physical branch locations by offering around-the-clock convenience without sacrificing personal service.
DigiHive™ digital banking offers a hybrid approach that blends innovation and identity. Our product offers the features and functions consumers expect from digital banking while allowing financial institutions to service accounts, create and adjust settings, send messages and view reports and dashboards through an intuitive interface. And because DigiHive™ digital banking can integrate into any core, financial institutions have the flexibility to build the tech stack that fits their business best.
By embracing a tech-driven, people-centered model, community banks and credit unions can grow, compete and continue to serve their communities with purpose and impact, all while staying true to their mission. You can learn more about DigiHive™ digital banking on our website, or contact your client executive to schedule a live demo.
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