How to Encourage Consumers to Use New Money Management Approaches

Our latest research shows 25% of U.S. consumers feel completely financially secure today. And, more than half (56%) of respondents say they will be financially secure someday. 

But, while they may feel optimistic for the future, they are still worried about the everyday costs of groceries, housing, and more continue to rise due to inflation. And, they may be stuck in old ways when it comes to solving these feelings of financial insecurity. 

“In today’s increasingly challenging economic environment, it’s interesting to see a majority of consumers still relying on manual processes — adding more burden and potentially stress to managing their finances,” shares Jane Barratt, Chief Advocacy Officer and Head of Global Public Policy, MX. 

Financial institutions and fintechs have an opportunity to play a bigger role in helping consumers achieve financial security by relieving the mental burden with proactive, personalized notifications and intuitive money management tools that can do the heavy lifting for them. 

Here’s 5 key insights from our latest survey of 1,000+ U.S. consumers that financial providers should consider in meeting this opportunity head on:

1. Consumers still turn to manual bill pay methods over automation.

When asked what most closely aligns with how they pay bills on a monthly basis, 40% of all respondents say they prefer to manually view and pay each bill every month to keep track of their finances. An additional 24% say they manually pay each bill to make sure they have the funds available. 

2. Incentives could drive consumers to change their payment habits.

While the majority of consumers (51%) prefer to keep their payment methods the same for convenience, more than one-third (36%) would consider switching if they received an incentive.

3. The keys to direct deposit switching are rates and rewards.

When asked if they have ever switched their direct deposit to a different financial institution, the majority (65%) say no. But, nearly half say the top factors that are most likely to make them switch are the ability to earn higher interest rates (22%) or receive cash back incentive or offer to earn rewards for switching (22%). 

4. Personalization is critical.

Consumers are looking for a financial provider that knows them and puts that knowledge into practice through personalized insights and tools. Forty-nine percent of consumers expect their financial provider to know them. And, 47% of consumers expect greater levels of personalization in banking than ever before.

5. Actionable intelligence drives higher engagement and even more data.

More than half expect their financial provider to leverage the data they have about them to personalize their experience (53%) and provide them with actionable and clear insights about their finances (56%). What’s more — consumers will share even more data if it results in a better experiences. 

To read the full report, please visit: https://www.mx.com/research/driving-engagement-for-consumers-research/