tracking for business is innovating to meet the evolving needs of its small business customers. John FrerichsHead of Global SMB Payments, JP Morgan Chasesaid Bank automation news.
“One of the biggest changes in small businesses that we continue to adapt to is the need for a digital-centric ecosystem of payment products,” Frerichs said. “Customers want to be able to onboard Chase once and access multiple payment products across mobile, web browsers and physical hardware, as seamlessly as possible.”
To meet customers’ digital demands, the bank deployed data-driven business decision-making tools. customer insightswith approximately 5 million small and medium-sized business customers as of the end of October.
In an interview with bank automation news, Frerichs talked about how the company approaches demand for innovation through customer feedback and what payment trends it closely monitors. Below is an edited version of that conversation.
Bank automation news: Looking ahead to 2025, what digital payment trends are you paying attention to?
John Frerichs: As we look ahead to 2025, the financial sector continues to go digital, with digital payments becoming a staple of business. I’m paying attention to the following:
- safety. Biometric authentication is increasingly becoming the go-to solution for small business owners to address security and fraud concerns.
- love. Small business owners are both curious and cautious about AI. Chase’s mid-year Business Leader Outlook survey found that 47% of small business owners have some concerns about AI, while 48% are prepared to integrate AI into their operations within the next year. It turns out that it is possible.
- Omnichannel payments. More and more businesses are adopting omnichannel payments, whether offline, online, or a combination of both. The launch of Tap to Pay on mobile is a great example of new payments use cases taking off.
- software. Small businesses find payment providers through the software they already use, such as point-of-sale software, scheduling software, and accounting tools. This makes managing your small business more seamless.
Prohibited: What are Chase for Business’ small business customers most concerned about when it comes to payments?
JF: Every month, we closely track what small business owners are thinking and the big economic factors that influence this. This year, their biggest concerns were cash flow, staffing, and revenue growth. That’s why Chase has introduced a new service to make payments easier. We have tools to help businesses create and send invoices electronically and get paid faster., Gain valuable, actionable insights from your payment data.
Running a small business means juggling a lot of things, from managing operations to paying employees to tracking inventory. Understanding your customers’ needs is important, but making sense of all their payment data can be difficult. Deciding where, when, and how to collect insights can be time-consuming and costly.
Prohibited: Chase for Business recently launched several new digital solutions. Is there a standout product that you helped bring to market?
JF: Over the past year, we’ve rolled out a series of new product innovations, including Tap to Pay, a new Chase card reader, a range of new Chase POS terminals, digital billing tools, faster payment capabilities and payroll partnerships. Gust.
Recently, Chase for Business expanded access to the Customer Insights tool, now available at no additional cost to nearly 5 million business checking clients. This powerful platform provides simple, actionable insights that help business owners connect with customers, run their businesses more efficiently, and make smarter strategic decisions.
Provide data-backed intelligence to enhance marketing, optimize staffing during peak periods, and make expansion recommendations based on customer location.
Prohibited: How does Chase for Business stay ahead of the changing needs and expectations of small business owners? Where does innovation fit in?
JF: We are always thinking about our customers and interacting with them. For example, we regularly survey small business owners and use their input to design business solutions that address their biggest pain points.
We also spend a lot of time talking directly with our customers. Chase for Business hosts several events throughout the year that give you the opportunity to hear from hundreds, if not thousands, of small business customers at once. Also, invite your small business customers to an all-hands meeting. We talk with owners about their business stories, what makes Chase great as a banking partner, and what we can do better.
All these inputs, along with our unique design and product thinking, serve as the foundation of our innovation agenda.
Prohibited: As the needs of small business owners change, how do you lead your team to adapt to changing needs?
JF: Change is constant, both in the operating environment of small businesses and in the internal environment of Chase for Business. We’re always thinking about how we can adapt and evolve to better serve our customers.
Leading change is not a perfect science, but there are some principles I consistently use to be as effective as possible. The first principle is to gather facts in a changing environment and be aware of the facts, whether they are disturbing or not. Next, try to create a limited set of priorities around which your team can rally. Simplifying your focus increases your chances of delivery. Finally, we aim to provide maximum transparency into how your team is doing through quantifiable metrics. With clear metrics, we know where we are achieving our goals for our customers and where we need to change course.
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