Banks could take a page from Southwest Airlines when it comes to modeling their language and disclosures in a friendly way that doesn’t compromise on risk. Flight attendants often weave jokes into their safety briefings, as they demonstrate oxygen masks and point out the exits, but they still get the important messages across.
“There are serious safety precautions when you are on a flight but they are not taking away from that,” said Dylan Lerner, senior analyst in digital banking at Javelin Strategy & Research. “In fact, it might be more memorable to you.”
Challenger banks such as Chime and fintech apps with banklike products, such as Credit Karma, typically use language on their websites that’s simple and clear and suggests they are partners in their customers’ financial wellbeing rather than trying to sell them products. They also organize digital content differently, sometimes by centering the benefits of products over the products themselves.
In contrast, “Go to any of the top 20 banks’ home pages. They’re telling you about the great rate on a credit card, ‘lock in mortgage rates’ — it’s assuming you know what you want when you hit that page,” said Emmett Higdon, director of digital banking at Javelin.
These nuances can make a difference in how customers, especially young ones who value guidance in finding the right product, consider their financial institution.
“It’s not enough to have that deposit share. It’s a battle for mindshare,” said Lerner. “Where do I think about my finances? If I’m a young consumer, I may have an account at Bank of America that is strictly operational. But my mind might be with Credit Karma because I’m thinking about credit or Truebill because I’m trying to cut down on bills and I can aggregate my accounts there,” both of which offer some kind of deposit account.
Chime’s approach illustrates some of these practices.
“Our core guiding principle is helping everyday Americans achieve peace of mind,” said Chris Terschluse, director of brands and community at Chime. “We care deeply down to the last sentence about how we’re articulating that to our current and future members.”
He points to feature names as one example of that. The
The Benefits tab on the Chime homepage is listed first, before the Accounts tab. Chime also tries to communicate how features such as getting paid early will benefit the customer, said Terschluse.
For example, the website points out that getting one’s paycheck early means “up to two more days to do more with your money.” For SpotMe, “We’ve Got Your Back,” reads one header on the feature page. “Finally, you can have peace of mind if you overdraw your account to make a debit card purchase.”
The placement of products online also differs from traditional banks. In an August 2021 story, Alex Johnson, now the author of the Fintech Takes newsletter,
“It’s a subtle distinction, but it matters,” he said at the time.
Terschluse says this feature gets a prime place on the website because the company believes credit building is an important part of achieving financial stability and peace of mind. “It’s about making people understand that the product is to help you improve your score,” he said.
Chime also sends daily push notifications alerting customers to their balances, incorporating emojis and casual greetings like "howdy."
A fintech company’s website can be enticing even to noncustomers. “It’s hard to look at Credit Karma’s website without saying ‘ooh, I want to read that,’” said Mark Schwanhausser, director of digital banking at Javelin. He cites NerdWallet as another example of a fintech that uses plain language to teach financial literacy.
The Javelin analysts acknowledge that neobanks can sometimes get away with a tongue-in-cheek tone in a way that traditional institutions cannot, and conveying that banking is a serious endeavor is important.
But there are simple ways to make the process friendlier, such as breaking up the onboarding process into sections and explaining why the bank needs a particular piece of information, says Lerner. For example, Chime greets prospective applicants with “Hi, what’s your name?” when requesting basic information to get started.
Simmons First National Corp. in Little Rock, Arkansas, is one financial institution that recently reconsidered tone and language, specifically for its
“When you are in a technical role or profession, you tend to think everyone speaks like you,” said
When customers open a Coin Checking account on their mobile devices, the screen leading to electronic disclosures is titled “Let’s shake hands,” then says, “Help keep our lawyers happy and agree to these terms.”
“You are almost there! Review and agree to our legal terms and conditions,” enthuses the header on another screen.
“Wasn’t that easy? :)” the header says when the process is done.
The impact of these lighter touches was evident during testing at Simmons’ user experience lab in Little Rock. When testers read some of these phrases, “they light up,” said Carriles. “Like, ‘Oh, this is not your average experience.’ ” When writing the terms and conditions for Coin, Simmons aimed for everyday terminology and placed technical banking terms, such as ACH, in parentheses.
For inspiration, Simmons turned to its Generation Z-aged employees, as well as apps or websites where these target customers spend their time, such as social media, rather than what other challenger banks do.
“We like to see the tone and type of communication they are used to in spaces where these users feel comfortable,” said Carriles. “When I think about who our competition is in the digital space, I don’t look at other financial institutions. I look around and see what Apple, Google and other digital leaders are doing because they know how to do digital right.”
Still, that doesn’t mean every piece of copy on Simmons’s website or app will get the same treatment.
“The more playful tone of voice specific to the Coin Checking product and its targeted Gen Z audience is not always relevant to our more mature customers and the products they’re attracted to,” said Lindsey Ingram, senior vice president of marketing at Simmons. “The goal is to ensure that we’re speaking to the correct audience with the correct tone of voice, to garner trust and encourage action.”
