What is Interaction Experience Management (IXM) For Financial Services?

By Scott Draeger, SVP of Product Marketing and Vertical Solutions at Smart Communications 

In the financial services industry, customer expectations are evolving rapidly. Today’s customers demand more than just efficient policy management and claims processing—they seek a seamless, personalized experience at every touchpoint. As your organization strives to meet these new standards, the focus is shifting towards creating interactions that truly resonate with clients. This is where Interactions Experience Management (IXM) for financial services comes into play. 

IXM represents a transformative approach to managing customer interactions, leveraging advanced technologies to turn traditional, often cumbersome processes into streamlined, engaging conversations. For financial services companies, IXM is not just about enhancing communication; it's about redefining how they connect with customers throughout the entire lifecycle. 

Watch the video, ‘IXM and Financial services’ to hear more about this topic from Aspire’s Senior Research Analyst, Will Morgan.  

What is IXM?  

Interaction Experience Management (IXM) is an emerging technology category dedicated to enhancing customer interactions across multiple channels. Unlike conventional approaches that frequently depend on static, paper-based forms or fragmented digital tools, IXM facilitates dynamic, interactive communication. This method ensures that collecting and managing customer data is both efficient and tailored, leading to a more integrated customer experience. 

According to industry authorities like Aspire CCS and IDC, although many banks and financial service institutions have made progress in improving customer communication, they often neglect the essential task of updating their forms or data collection processes. This oversight leads to operational inefficiencies, missed opportunities for personalization, and a fragmented customer experience. Our Benchmark study revealed that 67% of financial services customers are likely to end their interactions with a company if the data collection process is overly cumbersome, a significant increase from 54% in 2023. 

Why IXM is Important for Financial Services Organizations 

The financial services sector is witnessing a significant shift in customer expectations. Customers now expect interactions to be as seamless and efficient as those they experience with leading digital platforms like Netflix and Amazon. They want fast, personalized, and convenient interactions across their preferred channels. 

Our 2024 Benchmark research found that 83% of customers value a mobile or web-friendly experience when completing forms. This shift underscores the need for organizations to move beyond outdated, manual processes and embrace technologies that facilitate smooth, interactive experiences.  

The unfortunate reality is that many organizations still gather and store customer data on multiple disconnected point solutions, forcing them to navigate the complexity of regulations across a web of different business units, systems, and channels. This increases compliance costs with regulatory frameworks like CPRA, GDPR, and other consumer-focused data handling and reporting regulations. 

Furthermore, in traditional forms processing, first-party data collection offers only low-quality data that businesses cannot easily share across silos or leverage to inform larger initiatives. Finally, your organization could likely still rely on paper-based, HTML, or fillable PDF files. This approach comes at a high cost: licensing fees, skyrocketing technical debt, compliance risk, overhead costs, rising employee frustration, and—as we’ve already noted—a slow and muddled customer experience. 

By leveraging cloud-based IXM solutions like SmartIQ™, financial services organizations can create innovative processes to manage key touchpoints throughout the customer journey, including:   

Digital Client Service Requests & Information Gathering 

Document Management 

Benefits of IXM For Financial Services Organizations 

Enhanced Customer Engagement: IXM enables banks and financial services institutions to seamlessly integrate various interaction channels, allowing customers to connect through their preferred platforms. This results in a more unified and engaging experience. 

Personalized Experiences: IXM provides financial services organizations with the ability to deliver customized, digital-first data collection experiences. This personalization aligns closely with customer needs, boosting overall satisfaction. 

Relevant, High-Quality Data: IXM streamlines the collection and management of data, ensuring that the information is well-structured and high-quality. Accurate data is essential for informed decision-making and improves the quality of customer interactions. Poor data quality, on the other hand, can lead to compliance issues and operational challenges.