Innovation in retail banking: changing the university students perspective of banking

Abstract

Banking related topics have always been out of interest for the Portuguese university students segment. This segment has very limited need for traditional bank offers and therefore has always been disconnected from the industry. Banks have been trying to reach the segment, by providing short-term benefits and marketing campaigns focused on creating new accounts. This approach has proved unfruitful, as students see the lack of customer-centered offers and do not identify with banking as a whole. Thus, they close their accounts shortly after they open them, roughly half closing the accounts before they are finished with higher education. Banks need to, therefore, change its image and offer on the university students’ segment in order to become more relevant. The aim of this Work Project is to design a long-term customer-centered product which is connected to the real needs of university students, while providing value to the Bank.