How Can Transactional Print and Mail Companies Help Banks Streamline Their Statement Processes?
Financial institutions, from the smallest banks to the largest ones, use various communication approaches to reach their customers daily. These efforts are vital for sharing priorities, updating critical issues, and conveying an institution’s culture to its customers. However, some financial institutions undervalue the necessity of clear communication for customer attrition. In-house communication attempts might make providing clear, compassionate, and open interactions harder.
Customers need banking statements to check their monthly transactions. However, compliance and security are significant concerns. Only 75% of consumers believe their bank’s communication methods are secure.
Automation technology could be a viable solution for financial institutions' communication and marketing campaigns. A HubSpot report suggests that 76% of businesses use some form of marketing automation in their operations.
In-house printing and mailing bank statements could be inefficient, prone to errors, and time-consuming. Customers rely on these statements for reconciliation and expect them to be accurate and timely.
Outsourcing is a better option. Twenty-four percent of small and medium businesses consider outsourcing to improve their operations. Let’s learn how to rely on a trustworthy company to print and mail bank statements.
Key Takeaways
- Financial institutions have to comply with various strict regulatory requirements.
- In-house processing of bank statements could be inefficient and more prone to errors.
- Outsourcing becomes necessary to meet compliance and provide timely communication.
- Third-party vendors provide personalization and tracking features for physical bank statements.
- The environmental impact of an in-house printing and mailing system is severe.
- Outsourcing partners help in improving the customer experience.
What Compliance Regulations Do Banks Need to Adhere to When Sending Out Statements?
A bank statement has sensitive account information. Any security issue may lead to substantial financial losses, data breaches, or identity theft. Most banks offer their customers the choice of paper or electronic statements. Irrespective of their customers' preferences, financial institutions must maintain compliance with regulatory requirements. Here are some of the compliance regulations in the U.S.:
- General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): Financial institutions must protect personal data when processing and sending banking statements. Customers consent and have transparency in learning how their information is used.
- Payment Card Industry Data Security (PCI DSS): Banks and financial institutions must comply with this regulation for statements with credit or debit card information. They must have robust encryption and access controls.
- Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA): Protects Nonpublic Personal Information (NPI) from unauthorized access and regulates how financial institutions handle customer data.
- Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Regulations: Banks and financial institutions in the U.S. must monitor and report suspicious activities to the authorities. Any irregularities are flagged and investigated.
- International Information Security Standard (ISO/IEC 27001): It is a global standard for managing financial and data security risks. This regulation works as best practice to protect sensitive customer data.
FYI: Non-compliance may lead to hefty fines and even lawsuits. According to an IBM report, organizations with significant non-compliance may need to bear an average cost of $5.05 million. These regulations may include laws governing data protection, consumer rights, and financial reporting standards.
Benefits of Outsourcing Statement Printing and Mailing Services to a Transactional Print & Mail Company
Meet Compliance and Regulatory Standards
Financial institutions must hire dedicated compliance and risk management specialists to monitor everything from printing to mailing bank statements. Still, almost 35% of risk executives report that compliance and regulatory risk significantly threaten a company’s ability to achieve growth. Only three out of five corporate risk professionals feel confident about their ability to fix compliance risks.
A print and mail company prioritizes compliance and regulatory standards as it works with multiple clients. Its employees often have years of expertise in managing financial data securely while adhering to GDPR, SOC-2, PCI DSS, etc.
Financial institutions can also request audit trails to track and document every process step. Working with outsourcing partners makes it easier to demonstrate compliance with regulatory standards.
FYI: A Deloitte report suggests that banks and financial institutions must comply with 200 new or updated regulations daily!
Cost Savings and Risk Mitigation
Customers don’t care how a finance business generates bank statements. However, they care about accuracy and timely delivery. In-house processes require investment in a dedicated mailroom staff, expensive printing equipment, stationary, maintenance, storage, and postage. An outsourcing partner cuts down on repetitive marketing and communication actions. It can save time and money on:
- Data collection
- Statement generation
- Printing
- Sorting and folding
- Envelope stuffing
- Sealing and stamping
- Address labelling
- Mailing
According to a survey, 38% of companies reported cost savings of as high as 40% by outsourcing one of their operations. To reduce time and labor, businesses must quickly transition from traditional document processing to automation.
Higher Efficiency and Scalability
Most transactional print and mail companies use automation technology to scale their operations according to different demands. This gives banks and financial institutions the flexibility to adjust the volume of their bank statements without stressing their internal teams. Over 90% of businesses say demand for automation has drastically increased over the past two years.
These companies are also more proactive in adapting to evolving regulations. Thus, business owners don’t need to stress about ensuring ongoing compliance while working with them.
Branding Personalization Capabilities
Banking statements don’t need to be plain and boring. In addition to serving their core purpose, they can be used for marketing and brand awareness. However, in-house printing and mailing limit the capability of customizing individual bank statements with recipient-specific data.
How is Personalization Possible?
- Variable Data Printing (VDP): Transactional print and mail companies use this technology to allow finance businesses to pull data from CRMs and accounting systems to customize individual statements with tailored messages, offers, or notices. It makes the bank statements more customer-centric with a good personalized experience.
- Designing Tools: Some vendors also allow businesses to personalize the look and feel of their bank statements. They can quickly incorporate their branding elements, such as logos, fonts, layouts, colors, etc.
Effective personalization can grab attention and engage the audience with appropriate content at the right time. It leads to better brand recognition and impact on customers.
According to a Deloitte study, 90% of customers find personalized marketing highly appealing. At the same time, McKinsey’s research says that 76% of customers show frustration when personalization is absent. It is the need of the hour, especially in the age of stiff competition in the finance industry.
Track Precision Location of Statements
Finance businesses need to monitor their communication to gather critical insights. Traditional in-house approaches to bank statements make it almost impossible to track the precise location.
Outsourcing to a reliable transactional print and mail company provides better tracking capabilities, enabling real-time visibility and efficiency throughout the mailing journey. These companies use advanced technologies to track every step of the production and delivery of statements.
Businesses can even integrate their mailings with postal services, such as USPS Informed Delivery or equivalents, to receive real-time tracking updates.
How Can Businesses Track the Statements?
- QR Codes or Personalized URLs (PURLs): These interactive elements can be added to each statement. It would give updates while being scanned at multiple states of the mailing journey. QR codes and PURLs can also drive recipients to online channels for advanced insights.
- USPS Intelligent Mail Barcode (IMB): The United States Postal Service (USPS) provides a comprehensive tracking service to provide data insights throughout the mail delivery process. Finance businesses can use this service to get information about delivery status and delivery confirmation.
- Personalized Phone Numbers: These dynamic or customized phone numbers for each recipient allow easy tracking of customer engagement. By tracking the source of the lead, you can understand which mailpiece led to a phone call.
More Time for Core Banking Activities
In-house bank statement printing and mailing require considerable resources and time. They directly impact a financial institution’s internal team and core activities. An outsourcing partner relieves banks of these time-consuming operations.
They can concentrate on higher-value activities instead. It improves overall customer satisfaction and innovation and provides a competitive advantage. Also, outsourcing printing and mailing operations supports a bank’s response time, product development, and strategic initiatives and reduces compliance burdens. Core banking activities include:
- Account management
- Handling deposits and withdrawals
- Loan management
- Payment and transfer management
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
- Calculating interest rates
- Transaction processing
- Providing customer support
FYI: The labor productivity for the finance sector has shown immense growth. The productivity index for commercial banking was 105.7 in 2023, up from 100 in 2019.
Low Environmental Impact
In-house printing and mailing are highly prone to increasing environmental impact and carbon footprint. It is hard to implement eco-friendly practices to make their operations carbon-neutral. These in-house processes may lead to the following:
- Higher paper consumption
- Energy usage
- Water usage
- Waste generation
- Carbon emissions
Outsourcing to transactional print and mail companies is compelling. These companies have robust green initiatives and waste reduction strategies without compromising efficiency.
FYI: Around 67.4 million tons of paper and paperboard are generated annually in the US.
How Do Transactional Print and Mail Companies Use Eco-Friendly Options?
- Recycled Paper: This involves reprocessing paper materials to reuse in direct mail. These companies reduce wastage and save energy compared to traditional paper production methods.
- Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified Paper: This paper is more than 60% sourced from sustainably managed forests. These vendors use FSC-certified paper to make their processes environmentally friendly, socially responsible, and economically viable. It is the first step towards the protection of forests.
- Alternative Fibre Paper: This paper is made from non-traditional materials, such as bamboo, hemp, and agricultural waste. Financial institutions that promote environmentally friendly practices should consider this creative innovation to create a unique feel for their banking statements.
- Vegetable-Based Inks: These inks use soy or linseed oil instead of harmful chemicals that degrade our soil. Petroleum-based inks take longer to break down during the recycling process.
- Water-Based Dyes: Many companies use water-based dyes free from Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Traditional dyes could threaten the ozone layer and health. Financial institutions should consider using this dye to reduce their environmental impact.
- Digital Printing: Transactional print and mail companies prefer using digital printing over traditional lithography. It requires minimal setup and cleanup.
💡Also Read: Protecting Online Payments from Cyber Threats
How Can Transactional Print & Mail Companies Improve Customer Experience With Bank Statements?
Personalized Communication
These companies help banking and finance businesses to personalize statements and offers based on the customer’s account activity. They implement Variable Data Printing (VDP) to customize each statement element to provide individualized insights and relevant messaging. Research by Epsilon suggests that 80% of customers say that they prefer businesses that deliver tailored experiences.
Higher Data Security and Privacy
Nowadays, customers are highly concerned about the security of their financial information. Reliable transactional print and mail companies maintain customer trust by using tamper-evident envelopes, secure printing processes, encrypted data storage, and clear communication. 94% of organizations believe their customers would not buy from them if they did not adequately protect data.
Accurate Data With No Human Errors
A single mistake in the banking statement could lead to catastrophic consequences. Transactional printing and mailing companies use automation technology to streamline everything from data handling to printing, minimizing incorrect data, wrong addresses, or formatting errors. A study by Gartner shows that 27% of businesses reported that inaccurate data cost their firm over $10 million annually.
💡Also Read: Strategic Partnerships in Pharmacy Tech
How PostGrid Automates Your Bank Statements for Higher Efficiency
PostGrid automates the entire process, from creation to mailing. Our Print & Mail API simplifies data segmentation, batch processing, and event-based mailing. Native integrations and custom workflows help financial institutions synchronize their statements across all channels. Customers receive both mailed and digital copies of their statements on time. Automation reduces labor, equipment, and postage costs associated with manual processing. Talk to sales now to get started.
