We are excited to announce the release of our 2013 Consumer Recommendation & Loyalty Study for the financial industry.

The objective of the study was to determine if Australian customers are truly engaged with their financial institution. Essentially, it is a look into the elusive mind of the customer which is the ultimate tell-tale sign as to what a bank is doing right… or what it may be doing horribly wrong.

As existing customers of their respective banks, the 3365 respondents to the survey were in the perfect position to give the inside scoop. The study uses the internationally renowned Net Promoter Score® (NPS®) as a measure to determine whether banks are doing enough to earn their customers’ recommendation.

The study reveals that the comparison between the second-tier and big banks is akin to the age-old tale of David and Goliath. Australia’s big four banks are among the most profitable in the developed world and hold dominion over the market (Bank for International Settlements, 2013).

However, in terms of customer loyalty and recommendation, the second tier banks outperform the big four, achieving a NPS of 6.32% compared with -15.51%. In addition, credit unions are a mile ahead of the popular banking brands, scoring 28.57%. A number of the second tier banks were neck and neck, yet Bendigo Bank just scraped in to be the most recommended Australian banking brand with a score of 11.57%.

These exciting insights only just scrape the surface. Australian banking customers have a lot to say. To get in on the conversation or to find out more about the 2013 Consumer Recommendation and Loyalty Studies for the financial industry click here.

Net Promoter, Net Promoter Score & NPS are registered trademarks of Bain & co, Fred Reichheld and Satmetrix

References:
Bank for International Settlements. (2013). 83rd Annual Report. Retrieved from http://www.bis.org/publ/arpdf/ar2013e.pdf