What We Learned About Finance Apps from Millions of Installs

By Vanessa Bagnato, Director of Product Marketing, Alchemer

Alchemer just released the 2023 Mobile Customer Engagement Benchmark Report, and customers in Fintech (credit score, mortgage, stocks and bonds, and loan consolidation.), Banking (banks and credit unions), and Insurance (auto, home, life, renters, and pet) have vastly different motivations and usage patterns.

The Report compiles data from the past year on more than 1.2 billion app installs from Alchemer Mobile customers and the people who use their apps. As it does every year, the report provides unique insights into mobile customer behavior and what gets people to act.

Customer Retention 

Finance apps typically have high retention rates, and this held true in 2022. Collectively, the category had 30-day retention rates of 71% (compared to 67% across all categories), 90-day retention rates of 63% (58% overall), and annual retention rates of 45% (42% overall). However, when a brand engaged with customers asking for reviews (the “Do you love our app?” feature in Alchemer Mobile used to gauge customer satisfaction), 90-day retention rates grew to 85% in Fintech, 75% in Insurance, and 91% in Banking.

Customer Sentiment

Positive Customer Sentiment for all of Finance was 76%, above the overall benchmark of 64%: Fintech was 78%, Banking was 79%, and Insurance was 73%. The high cost of switching contributes to good customer retention, but it doesn’t ensure that sentiment will remain high. Mobile teams that proactively ask for in-app feedback on a regular cadence are better able to keep customers active and engaged in their mobile channels, extending their reach and deepening their brand relationships.

In-app Surveys

Finance brands have room for improvement when conducting in-app surveys. Finance apps’ average survey response rate was only 11%, lower than the overall benchmark of 13%. It was significantly subpar in the Fintech subcategory at only 4%. When mobile teams used surveys presented with a Note – an in-app message or invitation from the brand – to ensure customers were bought into the survey before presenting it, the results were fantastic: the average response rate to Note-linked surveys was 59%. Finance brands should experiment with various engagement strategies across target segments this year. Additionally, these brands will want to close the loop with people, by responding personally, so customers know their feedback has been heard and acted on.

Engaging customers appears to be the key to success in 2023 and beyond. The average interaction rate (the percentage of people who respond to a request for feedback) is 36% for all of Finance, but only 29% of customers are prompted for surveys. When Notes are used to invite consumers to participate in a survey, the response rate jumps to 59% overall and as high as 87% in Fintech. Engaging customers through surveys is one of the easiest ways to improve ratings and reviews because you can ask for feedback from the right customer as the precisely right time.

Differences Between iOS and Android Customers

Across all industries, iOS customers were generally happier with apps than Android users. In the Finance industry, iOS customers gave apps an average of 4.8 stars in the App Store, while Android customers gave an average of 4.63 stars in Google Play. Fintech scored the highest at 4.81 stars, but Banking and Insurance were not far behind at 4.73 and 4.72, respectively. Finance apps received an average of 182 reviews, with Android customers leaving on average six times as many reviews. In general, Android users tend to be less generous with stars than iOS users but more willing to spend the time to write reviews.

The Value of Customers at Risk

Tracking customers and their feedback over time, through in-app feedback, provides businesses with the opportunity to retain customers at risk of churning. Even though customers categorized as Risks (those who answered “No” to the question, “Do you love our app?”) are unhappy with an app, in the Finance category, customer retention is just a couple of percentage points better for customers categorized as Fans (those who answer “Yes” to the question “Do you love our app?”) than Risks (86% Fans versus 82% Risks after 30 days). This means that even though customers at Risk are unhappy with the app, they’re invested in making the app work better for them. Consequently, closing the loop with these customers not only lets them know you heard them, but when you make changes based on their feedback, they are much more likely to convert from Risks to Fans.

Remain Focused on Keeping Customers

Mobile app retention will remain an essential metric for mobile product owners and managers across the Finance industry. Since acquiring new customers can cost five times more than retaining existing ones, many mobile product owners are shifting their focus to keeping the customers they have. Additionally, the success rate of selling to a customer you already have is 60-70% versus 5-20% for new customers.

Product owners and managers will likely seek out tools in 2023 to better understand why customers churn and develop programs to improve app adoption and customer retention. Mobile product managers need to drive the successful acquisition, adoption and retention of their mobile apps. Collecting feedback and customer sentiment over time, helps with customer adoption. However, smart mobile product owners in the Finance sector will take the next step to to respond with messages, promotions, and surveys to improve or better seize the opportunity and drive ongoing customer retention.