Bridging the gap
New Zealand’s teenagers are among the world’s biggest internet users, and now the general population is catching up.
Figures from Statistics NZ reveal about 94 per cent of Kiwis are active internet users in 2021 - inline with global trends following Covid-19.
And it’s unlikely New Zealand will be logging off anytime soon.
Covid-19 has digitised all aspects of our lives, from banking and grocery shopping to video-calling loved ones and working from home or remotely.
A surge of consumers are browsing shops online from the comfort of their couch and indulging in “e-tail therapy”, with the words “add to cart” coming to encapsulate the post-Covid world we live in.
So, where to next?
Smarter-thinking companies like ASB have set in place a series of tools to help Kiwis move forward with global online trends and into the digital future...
Building digital confidence
In 15 years, over 65s will soon make up one quarter of the New Zealand population, according to the Ministry of Social Development. But for much of our older population, digital technology has not been a way of life.
“Seniors will soon be a quarter of our population. Yet they are among the most digitally disadvantaged in New Zealand,” Digital Seniors - a trust set up to help older Kiwis with technology skills - says on its website.
Most haven’t had many opportunities to learn or use technologies. For them, and for those with loss of mobility, the internet can be an intimidating place where the digitally disadvantaged can fall victim to fraud or simply become so overwhelmed they log off.
“Technology helps with many common issues for seniors, including loneliness, lack of mobility, and deteriorating health,” Digital Seniors continues.
Some forward-thinking institutions have already begun the journey with their customers.
ASB is helping its members avoid digital isolation by equipping them with the right tools so they too can become digital dynamos and have confidence to embrace the digital revolution.
Re-programming a “technophobe”
Stella Clarke has banked with ASB for 55 years and counting, opening her first school account when she was eight years old. A recovering self-confessed “technophobe,” Stella downloaded the ASB Mobile Banking app to her smartphone a year ago and has never looked back.
"I use the app for everything, to check my account, to check my investments, and to pay bills. I use that app for everything really,” Clarke says.
But it wasn’t always that way. Clarke was once like a lot of other Kiwis her age: lacking in knowledge and confidence about online banking and worried about the safety of her money if she banked online.
“When I downloaded the app I was a total newbie,” she says. “I did have safety concerns because I didn’t grow up with technology and it was all new to me.”
Then Stella attended one of ASB’s Better Banking Workshops, where she learned all the ins and outs of online banking and left feeling confident and digitally self-assured about using the Mobile Banking app.
“I used to think I was a technophobe but since I started using this app I have grown a lot more confident, and the workshop really helped,” Stella says.
“It was good to be made aware of the different ways people can scam you and for us to be careful.
“They helped us with our smartphone security and showed us how to put in a PIN code on our phone so people can’t access our phones.”
A bridge to a bright future
Supporting customers to confidently use technology with their banking is the key motivator behind the Better Banking Workshops, says Karina Marsh, ASB’s Wellsford branch manager.
“We understand there are some vulnerable customers in our community who really lack confidence and knowledge (about banking online).
“We want to help our customers stay safe online because the number of scams and digital fraud is absolutely crazy,” she says.
A good portion of the workshop is dedicated to giving real-life examples of different types of fraud and scams, Marsh says, and reiterating to customers that under no circumstances should a PIN code or password be given out over the phone.
“We really want to stress to our customers in the workshops that ASB will never ask for that type of information over the phone, and we stress that because digital fraud and scams are targeted at older people.”
"It’s encouraged customers to say: ‘Hey, look, it’s time I need your help.’ And we are like: ‘Absolutely, welcome’.”
Rising demand for services to enable seniors
The workshops cater for up to 10 customers at a time and since their introduction 12 months ago each workshop has been full, Marsh says.
“The uptake is spreading through word-of-mouth.”
Alongside the workshops, ASB has set up several services to help its customers make the transition to online banking:
- The FastPhone service is for customers who are not online or who can’t make the transition to online, Marsh says, giving them access to their accounts 24/7.
- The How-to Hub is an online service providing customers with step-by-step videos on how to do the most common online banking transactions. “We find that there are some things that take our customers a bit of time to get the hang of, so the videos really help,” Marsh says.
- An over-65s priority phone line was also set up, after last year’s lockdown and is manned by specially trained staff to answer any banking questions, Marsh says.
“ASB still needed to be able to support our customers, particularly our vulnerable customers, and when we go into lockdown it gets really hard to get through to our general number.”
All four services have experienced good uptake among ASB’s older customers, Marsh says, and play a key part in instilling trust in online services.
“Customers have daily visibility of what’s going on in their accounts, and they are immediately able to spot if something isn’t right,” she says.
The number of customers making the switch to online banking continues to rise.
“The trend is still going up,” Marsh says.
“The reality is by the end of June pretty much all banks are no longer accepting cheques.
“It’s encouraged anyone who was a little bit more resistant.
“It’s encouraged them to say: ‘Hey, look, it’s time I need your help.’ And we are like: ‘Absolutely, welcome’."
"My only regret is I didn’t make the switch sooner."
For Stella Clarke, the switch to digital banking has been life-changing.
“I love that I can now just log onto the Mobile Banking app and I can see all my accounts listed.
“I can see if there has been any change, without actually having to go into a bank branch,” she says.
“My only regret is that I didn’t make the switch sooner.”
ASB is here to help make banking as easy as possible.
Register for a Better Banking Workshop near you, or simply talk to an ASB staff member.
Call: 65+ priority phoneline - 0800 272 119
ASB Fastphone 24/7 line – 0800 272 272
Find out more about online and digital banking at www.asb.co.nz/how-to
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