Banks only care about millennials, right? Not really, though marketing about digital efforts may make it appear that way.
Yesterday Capital One, a leader in digital banking, joined OATS (Older Adults Technology Services) in launching‘“Ready, Set, Bank: Online Banking Made Easy,’” an educational tool designed to increase online banking usage among older adults, enabling them older adults with the basic skills they need for online banking and money management.
While the online banking world is growing larger by the second, and directing much of its energy towards millennials and the younger generations, older adults are at risk of falling behind, which can make it more difficult for them to stay on top of their lives, security, and most importantly, their money.
“We work with hundreds of older adults who want to learn how to do online [and mobile] banking, but are afraid,” said Tom Kamber, OATS Executive Director, at the launch. “Seniors want to learn these tools but there’s no resources, no one helping them.”
Ready, Set, Bank was created in partnership with Grovo, an innovative company aimed at developing exceptional workplace training tools, as well as Capital One Financial Corp, which hopes the tool will aid with security and “financial peace of mind”, according to Ken Kido, Capital One Executive Vice President, Retail Bank.
“Our belief is that all customers matter. The millennial generation grew up with technology, but older customers can be fearful of it, we believe from a lack of understanding,” said Kido, speaking at today’s launch in the NYC Senior Planet Exploration Center. “This [tool] will really benefit them, by dispelling the fear and making sure they are not put at a disadvantage.”
A year in the making, Ready, Set, Bank is designed to help older adults learn about online banking in manageable steps, consisting of 40+ short videos no longer than 120 seconds. This kind of microlearning, according to Grovo Cofounder and CEO Jeff Fernandez, really allows learners to feel that they’ve achieved results at the very beginning.
“Grovo is a technology company, at its heart,” said Fernandez, who also spoke at the launch and whose company also partnered with Capital One for their $150 million Future Edge initiative. “We wanted to take that innovation and apply it to what is really an overlooked group.”
The tool piloted last month with a group of about 15 participants, who used the educational tool’s video-based “mini lessons” to put together the pieces of the online banking world, skills that will allow them to remain in control of their own lives, rather than relying on others.
“Older people are always at risk of losing their agency. Financially, seniors are targeted for fraud, and on the other side you have the fear of fraud,” says Kamber, who also stated that dispelling that fear is exactly what the tool is designed for, “The fear of participating in online or mobile banking becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy for them.”
The tool will be available throughout the fall, and a series of classes will be available at NYC locations including Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, as well as in Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston and Washington, D.C.