{"id":7576,"date":"2022-06-21T14:01:56","date_gmt":"2022-06-21T12:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.retarus.com\/blog\/us\/transactional-sms-email-quick-assistance-of-a-special-kind"},"modified":"2024-05-07T18:55:22","modified_gmt":"2024-05-07T16:55:22","slug":"quick-assistance-of-a-special-kind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.retarus.com\/blog\/us\/quick-assistance-of-a-special-kind\/","title":{"rendered":"Transactional SMS & email: Quick assistance of a special kind"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Recently, after a long hiatus, I decided that the time had come to once again visit one of the exquisite exhibitions of modern art at the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, Germany. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon, and the foyer was full of visitors. Tourists from all around the world seemed to be back in town and enjoying the city\u2019s attractions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSorry, that didn\u2019t go through. Could you please try again?\u201d the lady behind the ticket counter asked. I had mistakenly entered the wrong PIN for my credit card into the card reader. Just seconds later an SMS from my credit card provider arrived on my smart watch:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHave you forgotten your PIN for 36002? Please use your app or online account to check or change your PIN. You may continue to use your card.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The message took me by surprise. Luckily, I did have the right PIN at hand. Otherwise, it would have been very easy indeed to assign a new code by way of the credit card app on my smartphone. However, I\u2019m sure that I wouldn\u2019t have thought of that option myself in the heat of the moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is just one of my own personal examples of how companies in the financial sector have been successfully evolving their customer service, using digital channels to provide their end customers with the information they need \u2013 at the right place and time. Digital products for the financial and insurance industries represent a new array of challenges for providers. At the same time, a perfect customer experience throughout the whole digital customer journey is crucial. Banks, insurance companies, and other financial services providers have truly reconceived and redefined their digital customer service processes during the pandemic. Wide-ranging optimization has been carried out, improving both their commercial and sales procedures, as well as their digital customer service processes. In this regard, transactional email and SMS play a particularly critical role in designing innovative digital customer processes. Transactional messages, where transmission is often automated and system-based, attract the attention of their recipients \u2013 the end customers \u2013 immediately. They not only convey essential information, but also trigger customer interaction along the entire process chain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Banks provide their customers with best-in-class service by using personalized, automated SMS notifications to keep their customers updated about their bank balances, incoming transfers, transactions, upcoming payments, security alerts, etc. Especially for conducting identity checks and verification, transactional SMS has long been an established part of the process, for instance in 2FA procedures (Two-Factor Authentication).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many insurers too, have also opted to send a transactional email to customers when concluding a contract. This email contains the detailed offer as well as a link pointing to a web-based module, where the customer can digitally sign the contract (electronic signature). Depending on the device, this can be done using a mouse or even a finger. Following approval in the back-office system, another email is sent to the customer, including a welcome message for the customer and the insurance policy as an attachment.<\/p>\n\n\n\nTransactional emails and SMS facilitate digital process innovation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n