Do ATMs need more features?

Picture this, you are pulling into the drive-thru of your branch on the way home from work to withdraw some cash. You have likely had a long day and want to get home quickly, but when you pull up to the ATM and try to withdraw cash, the ATM begins sending you a wave of advertisements.

The machine makes you push through several buttons to get off these advertisements about loan offers, accounts, credit cards and other products just to get your cash. Meanwhile, you are likely starting to get nervous being at the ATM this long. You have probably heard multiple news reports about people getting robbed at gunpoint at ATMs, so you want to get out of there quickly, but the machine isn't make the process easy.

This may go against traditional wisdom, but sometimes adding more features to an ATM can make customers less satisfied, not more. This is a point that Matt Snow, head of cash and ATM operations at Regions Bank, raised during a webinar covering the 2023 ATM and Self-service Software Trends guide.

He said during the webinar that customers want a speedy transaction at ATMs, and they don't want to be stuck there having to do complex transactions or make big decisions such as applying for a loan. "Customers feel vulnerable at an ATM," he said.

Snow also said he would sit down with anyone who disagreed with him to argue this point.

At ATM Marketplace, we have consistently talked about how ATMs are no longer just cash dispensing machines, they also provide other services, but should points like what Snow raised give us pause? Are we rushing too quickly to add new features that dilute the true purpose of ATMs?

To answer this question, we need to consider whether any new feature enhances the customer experience or makes it more difficult.

For certain features, the answer is obvious. Being able to deposit cash or checks at ATMs makes sense. For one, it saves the customer time, as they can simply deposit the cash themselves rather than having to go through a bank teller line. As long as the process is quick and easy, this tool will improve the customer experience.

The same can be said of contactless tap for ATMs. By skipping the step of inserting a card, this feature saves the customer time.

When it comes to advertisements, most customers will probably not appreciate them. It is tempting to use every vertical you have to push products, but if it irritates the customer or works against the central function of the vertical (i.e., a quick and easy cash withdrawal), then banks should likely reconsider their strategy here.

What about video banking? This is a trickier question, as it depends on the location and role of the ATM. If the video ATM is at a dedicated space in the drive-thru or inside the branch, then customers may be more likely to use it, as long as they feel safe. However, many customers may not want to have a long conversation about personal banking information out in the public space.

Overall, this is part of a tension within the ATM space. On the one hand, many financial institutions are adding advanced features, while others are relying on ATMs in a more traditional sense.

Ultimately, ATM operators and vendors will need to look at innovation on a case-by-case basis. Technology should serve the customer, not the other way around.