Credit unions have established lasting member relationships over the telephone for decades. So introducing video technology to employees who’ve exclusively been using the phone is, as one Vidyo credit union client put it, “certainly a different interaction.” This raises the question: How can you help your employees use video most effectively when it’s a new style of member interaction?
One credit union client realized that it was taking behind-the-scenes personnel and putting them in a face-to-face situation. According to this client, the institution had to get phone-ready staff comfortable engaging with members via video technology.
Engaging face-to-face with video is different from using the phone: Facial expressions matter, eye contact matters. Employees have to learn that they can’t glance down at the member on the screen; they have to look at the camera at the top of the screen. So this credit union purchased mirrors and placed them behind the monitors so that employees can see themselves, make sure they’re smiling, and make appropriate eye contact with the video camera.
The credit union also cited the importance of using Vidyo’s “Record” function, noting that once they began recording video calls, member experience scores increased significantly. The client attributed this to managers’ ability to use recorded sessions as coaching opportunities to improve employees’ performance and enhance the member experience.
“Video interactions are not for everyone, but no employee left their back-room positions because they had to interact with members. It was just a different expectation,” the client said.
Derek Williams, chief operating officer for BluCurrent Credit Union in Springfield, Missouri, admitted that video technology is a new way to interact for employees. “We had some employees who we didn’t think would transition well because they were incredibly shy, but once they got in front of the camera, it was like they flicked a switch and became a totally different person,” he said. “We had to get rid of our bias and give people a chance because everyone reacts differently.”
This blog post’s content is derived from Vidyo’s Financial Services Online Forum and is the third in a series of three. For more valuable insights from credit unions and their use of video technology, read Credit Unions Reveal Video Technology Lessons Learned and Video Banking Services Differentiate Credit Unions In Competitive Environments posts in the series.
