Switching Banks and Brand Loyalty in the Digital Age.

So I have a dilemma. I have become so dependent on my cell phone to integrate my online and my offline worlds that I have come to the point where I may switch banks. I have been with my current bank since I opened my first savings account at the age of 7 years old. After numerous mergers and acquisitions and name changes I’m still there. But as I work more and have less time at home to sit in front of my computer or make trips to my bank, I need to work with a bank that suits me. (This sounds like a tv spot doesn’t it?) The fact that my bank has no mobile application that allows me to check my balances, bill pay online, and receive account communications on my phone is really bothering me. I need a mobile banking application. But they don’t have an app for that.

With banks like “Bank of America” creating robust mobile smart phone applications, the thought occurs to me that it might be time to switch banks. This opinion comes as a shock to me as just a year and a half ago I was a skeptic on just how much “use” I would get out of a smart mobile device. But now I’m a smart phone advocate and brands need to be keenly aware that loyalty in the digital age means more than providing good deals and good product. You have to connect with your audience in the ways they wish to connect.

So as I wait a few more days to see if my bank will be introducing my mobile application, I am reminded that brand loyalty in the digital age is fickle, can occur or be broken quickly and is incredibly competitive. Modern consumers are complicated, demanding and can change their minds on a dime. Alarming thought for the modern marketer and the brands they serve.