By: Daryl Tolliver
The switch from online and in-person financial transactions to those made on a mobile device remains slow, but steady. Many consumers expressed security concerns over mobile banking, which has been cited as a core reason that adoption has been relatively slow. However, this may change in the future as Americans become more optimistic about the convenience and efficiency of this type of banking.
A new study conducted by Verve Mobile reveals that 80 percent of Americans believe mobile applications are important. Currently, 63 percent use mobile banking to make fund-to-fund transfers, while 62 percent use it for bill pay. Another 40 percent rely on mobile banking to obtain alerts about their accounts.
Some respondents also touted the money management benefits of these applications. For example, 70 percent of consumers cited expense and budget tracking apps as the most important mobile tools.
"The results validate what our financial service clients have speculated for a while now, that their customers have come to expect a near full service banking experience on their mobile devices," says Greg Hallinan, chief marketing officer of Verve. "There is a great opportunity for additional growth and competitive distinction for those financial service institutions who address this pent-up demand in the market, by providing increasingly sophisticated mobile account services to consumers."
Financial institutions that implement mobile features into their banking strategies may gain a larger market share and increase their profitability over the years. Studies reveal that while many banks have already started to offer mobile channels, a large number have faltered on fully developing remote deposit capture features, which enable customers to deposit checks by texting images to their bank. As polls have shown that this feature is the most popular among consumers, financial institutions should also keep this in mind when growing their mobile base.