How to Pick the Best Online Scheduling Software for Your Bank or Credit Union
So you’re ready to take your appointment scheduling system online? That’s great—but now it’s time to figure out which solution works best for your financial institution. Not all online scheduling software for banks and credit unions are created equal, so it’s important to be informed about what’s out there. This decision can have a huge impact on your customers and members, and an even bigger impact on your financial institution. The best appointment-scheduling software should save your staff time, integrate seamlessly with existing applications, and improve management’s understanding of what’s happening on a day-to-day basis. This handy guide covers everything you need to know about how to find the best solution for your financial institution. What Is an Online Appointment Management System? First, what is an online appointment management system? Isn’t that just Google Calendar or Outlook? Why do I need a separate tool just to make appointments? An online appointment scheduling system is much more than a digital calendar and does so much more than just make appointments. Online scheduling software for banks and credit unions is an all-in-one solution that can optimize wait times, streamline scheduling, and drive overall growth and retention. The best online appointment booking system for your financial institution is a fully-integrated tool that is easy for everyone to use. Key features of online scheduling software for banks and credit unions include: Customer and Member Ability To Book Appointments OnlineWhether they’re using your institution’s app, website, or another channel, customers and members can see availability, make an appointment, and find out what documentation they need to bring to their meeting in just a few steps. Staff Schedule CoordinationWith an online appointment booking system in place, staff schedules are readily available in one big backend calendar, making it easier to book meetings quickly and efficiently. Management View Of Busy Times, Downtime, and Appointment EfficiencyBank appointment scheduling software allows managers and administrators to see clearly when their branches need more or less staffing, how long appointments take on average, and where things can improve. Data Collection to Improve Decision-MakingThe best online appointment management tools are able to collect helpful data like average wait times, conversion rates, and satisfaction scores to help make better decisions about implementing changes throughout various branches or locations. What Are the Benefits of Online Appointments? Online scheduling software for banks not only benefits customers and members—but also provides many advantages for staff and management. The top benefits of appointment scheduling software include: Improved Customer and Member SatisfactionDid you know that 40% of appointments are booked after office hours? Because so much of our time is spent online, people want the flexibility and convenience of online appointment scheduler tools. When a financial institution provides digital solutions, customers and members are more likely to follow through with appointments and report their satisfaction. Increased Operational EfficiencyWhen customers and members have an easier time making and keeping appointments, staff and advisors can do their jobs more efficiently. Team members are able to save time booking appointments, and managers can plan ahead for busy days, and adjust staffing accordingly. Better Data CollectionOnline appointment scheduling allows management to track events that may have seemed untrackable before. With the best appointment scheduling program, your financial institution can see average appointment lengths, conversion rates, traffic trends, and more—allowing you to make better decisions about staffing, preparation, and even marketing. More Growth and RetentionAs mentioned before, your customers and members want online bank appointment scheduling solutions and are more satisfied when they’re able to manage their schedules digitally. This satisfaction will make clients more likely to return, and will make cross-selling and upselling more natural for your advisors. The easier it is for your teams to do business, the better outcomes your financial institution will see. What Is the Best Online Appointment Scheduling Tool? The best appointment scheduling software for your bank or credit union will depend on your needs and resources. First, you must determine which path is right for you: building out a tool from scratch in-house or buying a pre-made solution. Both avenues can work, but there are some key differences to keep in mind. Building an In-House Tool Building online scheduling software for banks and credit unions might seem like the most straightforward solution, but this path can come with a lot of complications and hiccups along the way. Here are just a few factors to mull over when considering building an in-house application. CostBuilding a complex custom solution in-house may seem like a great way to save money, but with the resources needed, it may not turn out that way. You can usually estimate the cost of an in-house solution by multiplying the cost of an off-the-shelf tool by 10. This means a $10,000 pre-made software will typically cost $100,000 to build. Dedicated ResourcesIn order to build a custom tool, your financial institution will either need to take developers away from key projects or hire a new team of developers dedicated to this project. The software will be complex, and require a long-standing team—it’s not just a one-and-done scenario. MaintenanceAsk yourself: do you have the resources to fully implement a complex tool across multiple channels, fix bugs, and send out regular code patches? An enterprise-level appointment scheduling tool will require daily maintenance, so keep that in mind when considering dedicating in-house resources to a build. Inexperience building a tool that already existsEven with a great team of software developers, there will be a learning curve when it comes to creating online scheduling software for banks and credit unions. An in-house team won’t have the advantage of a SaaS company that has already dedicated all of its resources to building a tool specifically for financial institutions. Dependent on in-house teamImagine hiring a team to build out a custom tool, and then one or more of those team members leaves your institution for a different job. First, you’ll have to hire replacement developers (which is a hassle in and of itself), and those new employees may find the existing code to be very stylized, hard to replicate, or filled with problems—while