Adaptive Customer Education–Development of a Customer-Responsive E-Learning System to Improve Online Banking Skills

In view of the strong pressure on margins, almost all banks are pursuing the goal of increasingly serving retail customers via online banking (Swiss Bankers Association, 2019). However, the frequency/rate of use of online banking (e-banking, mobile banking) is stagnating at many banks. Approximately 53% of the Swiss population between the ages of 16 and 74 use online banking marginally or not at all 7/50 (Eurostat, 2020; Moneyland, 2019). These people are by no means general Internet refusers (Eurostat, 2020). Rather, studies show that customers reduce/do not use online banking because they have too little knowledge with regard to its security and use (Dietrich, 2017; von Walter, 2020). In most cases, there is even a strong interest in expanding their own online banking expertise. A preliminary study conducted for the project found that 65% of low-users and 56% of non-users of online banking show a high willingness to use electronic learning content on online banking (von Walter, 2020).
With this in mind, our research and business idea is to develop an adaptive e-learning system that can be used to offer customers personalized learning content about online banking (e.g., videos, simulations) at different touchpoints. In contrast to existing e-learning offerings, the system should be able to recognize learning needs based on customer behavior variables and offer tailored learning content in real time - immediately when a learning need arises - by means of overlay insertions, without customers having to search for it or log into an e-learning system at a later time. The aim is to establish a specific system for customer learning on the market for the first time. Several leading e-learning specialists independently confirmed the innovative content of this approach.