This Week in Engagement Banking we bring you an article on the ’10 Best Banking Brands’. These are the ones you need to follow like a hawk if you truly want to know how to change your bank for the better. There’s also a tasty tidbit on what Google Wallet actually changed in its latest update, along with a TechCrunch Opinion with an intriguing metaphor in the title, and finally, an article about the lessons to be learned about engaging users with mobile design experience.
The Financial Brand
10 Of the Best Banking Brands To Watch
There are some banks that consistently pop onto The Financial Brand’s radar, those that bang out new ideas in financial marketing — many of which are successful — on a regular basis. These are the brands you want to study. Whenever you hear their names, you should pay attention. Take every opportunity to read articles, review case studies and attend presentations focused on these brands. This isn’t a list of “The Best Bank Brands.” There are at least a half dozen different research organizations with models ranking financial brands. Most of these rank banks according to their estimated brand valuation using proprietary (and arbitrary) formulas. This is not one of those lists.
TechCrunch: Guest post written by Uzi Shmilovici
UX and poison on the tip of the arrow
I used Path twice. None of the people that I know are using Path. I even checked with an early adopter of social media recently and one of Path’s earliest users. She told me that she doesn’t see a lot of people using it. Generally, this is not a good indication. Maybe there are millions of secret Path users (or users in another geography that I don’t know about) but it seems that Path just doesn’t pick up. Sure, Path 2.0 design is amazing. However, amazing design is not enough. It is like fashion. Everybody is excited about it at the beginning, but then people are getting used to it and eventually it wears out. After it does, the user is left with the essence of the user experience and what Path misses most is a compelling and unique user experience that will make using it worthwhile. “Amazing” design won’t get you anywhere.
Android Central
Google Wallet updated with improvements and enhancements across the board
Google Wallet has seen another update, and this time Google has made all sorts of improvements and enhancements to the app. Per the change log in the Google Play store: Prepaid Card top up forms more flexible; Citi Mastercard management improvements; UI improvements; Privacy enhancements; Bug fixes; and Updated Terms of Service. The most interesting, on the surface anyway, would be the UI improvements. They must be very subtle, because we’re not really seeing any. It’s the same fluid and simple UI that has been there for a while, and while we’re not complaining, we just don’t see any improvements. We’re pretty sure that some of this change log is just leftover from the last update. It’s OK, Google. We all slip. We can certainly get on board with improvements, though. Bug fixes are always welcome, as are privacy enhancements. Anything to keep our money safer is a good thing. You’ll also be faced with the new terms when you update, and we suggest you read them carefully. There’s nothing there you wouldn’t expect, but it’s always wise to stay informed.
The Telegraph
Orange turns Android phones into credit cards
Although the company has yet to announce which Android handsets will be compatible, only the latest models include the required ‘near-field communications’ technology. ‘Quick tap’ is a system that allows transactions of up to £15 each to take place simply by waving a phone near a reader, which can also be used for contactless credit cards. The maximum amount will rise to £20 in June, and more than 15 million such contactless cards are already in circulation in the UK. Retailers including Subway, McDonalds and Prêt a Manger are among the 70,000 outlets that accept the technology. Data about their use, however, is not public. By 2013 there is expected to be over 130,000 places across the UK where people can make contactless payments as the technology extends into brands such as Tesco, Waitrose, Boots and Co-Op. Other similar applications, such as Barclays’ PingIt, link bank accounts directly to handsets, and are expected to also drive the adoption of ‘mobile banking’.
Mobile Commerce Daily
Back to basics: Lessons learned from the mobile Web
Let us talk about the way that mobile devices are changing every user interface from tablets to digital music services, and more. . . .To illustrate this point, I would like to share a personal experience. My wife is a stay-at-home mom who drives our toddlers to various activities, chases them around the house and barely has any time for anything else. When she finally has a chance to breathe, her interaction with the world begins through her mobile phone. With a few simple taps, Facebook provides her what she needs—the ability to quickly and easily catch up with friends, family and maybe even a few brands. All of the content she wants is readily available to her in a simple format.
Yes, she used to log in to Facebook on her computer, but after being bombarded with ads, event notifications, birthday alerts, game requests and even Spotify telling her what music I listen to, she decided she did not need any of the “extras” Facebook offered outside of the mobile platform. And why should she when it is easier and faster to get exactly what she wants through her mobile device? It is important to remember that giving someone everything is not always best. Mobile devices are shaping and helping to create a new set of (old) interface best practice, not just for the small screen, but across all interfaces.
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