Having a coffee while surfing the Internet to complete a banking procedure is now a reality. And it is an increasingly frequent scenario in Argentina. Only a few years ago, it was impossible to think about making a transfer, opening a new account or requesting a loan through a smartphone, without going to a branch and interacting with an agent.
The new trends, the generational renewal, the unprecedented opportunities (and challenges) posed by the appearance of fintechs and an intrinsic need to modernize to continue leading the industry forced traditional banks to rethink the way of relating to the most valuable They have: the customers.Faced with this urgent need, the so-called digital transformation was deepened, a new generation of changes -both internal and external- that cover every corner of these structured institutions.
The search? To approach the consumer in the most natural way possible, with modern, flexible solutions according to the time. In this digital conjuncture appeared the Coffee Bankings or workcafes.A cut and a mortgage, please
Getting on board the innovation boat is part of the effort that banks face. And as a sign of this new era, branches refocus their focus on finding simpler and more agile solutions.
"We want to change the traditional banks, where we can get closer to the client and that he can count on the advice of a bank official," Diego Baccini, manager of the branch network of Galicia, assures iProup, adding that "there was a need for closeness "with consumers.
The entity is an example of this. At the beginning of October he launched his first Coffee Banking branch.
Unlike traditional stores, this hybrid model combines account officers - people specialized in attending to queries -, financial services (ATMs and self-service terminals), a Starbucks coffee shop, WiFi and a coworking office. This first space is located at the corner of Las Heras and Billinghurst, in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Palermo.With a millennial spirit, the model seeks "multichannel", with an online digital platform, a contact center (with personal and bots advice) and a physical network of branches.
"We started working so that the Argentinian see this proposal and find the connection he needs," adds Baccini.
But there are other examples. The BIND Banco Industrial has been working since 2015 together with Starbucks in its Central House. The idea is to generate a new experience.
"We seek to offer an excellent service for our current and potential clients," said Karina Yankillevic, the bank's private banking manager, explaining to iProUP, adding a cafeteria in the branch.
And it reaffirms: "Several years ago, since the BIND Group we began a digital transformation to develop more agile and efficient solutions, this, together with the new structure of the branch, represents our vision of being a reference in innovation and service in the financial system" .
The interesting thing is that this renewal also reached the state financial entities. So much so that Banco Nación recently opened its digital branch in Plaza Serrano (Borges 1660, more specifically), in Palermo "Soho".With an innovative design, this new headquarters is committed to a more relaxed service, similar to those of its peers: it has ATMs, telephone banking, WiFi, tablets and computers for customers to operate from the app.
"We understand that Plaza Serrano is an excellent location to offer this type of product, different from traditional banking, because it is situated in a gastronomic area and a promenade where it is located," explained the head of the company. the entity, Javier González Fraga.
"We are going to increase our institutional presence in urban centers, with dependencies where technological aspects predominate over traditional banking," the official added.
This format "generates an appropriate environment" for arranging work meetings and business meetings, as it has a large and comfortable space, in addition to the inevitable cafeteria service.
With personalized advice, in this branch the same procedures of the classic bank are carried out: reception of products and operations and request of loans, current accounts, savings accounts, cards, among others.Digitization begins with physical points
Beginning with the transition to a digitalized and flexible ecosystem is not a process suitable for short-term people. Also, all these innovative spaces offer Internet connection, since they do not have the traditional boxes lines.
"We understand that the branch model is being transformed and we must be prepared for this change, customers are increasingly operating from mobile devices, and by incorporating the cafeteria to the branch we want to provide users with all the services in one place", Yankillevic details.In all cases, this branch model was also accompanied by a range of digital solutions to make financial services more agile and efficient. Renewal and adaptation are the keys.
But also, in this way we begin to question the role of traditional models.
"We are going through a transformation, in which the physical network is based on advice for complex and instructive procedures to operate in the digital world, it works as a bridge, where we are already thinking about the possibility of converting traditional branches into more models. flexible ", completes the BIND executive.
With investments ranging between 15 and 20 million pesos to open a subsidiary (be it classic or modern), this model is replicated from other parts of the world. For example, Galicia already has strong operations in Spain and Chile, while Santander has a very mature format in trans-Andean lands.
"We have a model that works very successfully in Chile and we have plans to develop it in Argentina shortly," they assured from Santander to iProUP.
With a strategy already outlined, the players in the sector have already begun to move their chips. Everything indicates that the offensive against the banking bureaucracy will grow at a dizzying pace, with almost no time to rest and have a coffee.