The best way financial institutions can deliver a fully customized and personalized experience to customers is from the very beginning, starting with the onboarding process. After all, there's never a second opportunity to make a great first impression. But whether it's a new checking account, credit card or mortgage, every customer journey is different.

An essential component to good digital relationship-building and getting to relevance and trust is personalization.

Banks of all stripes desperately need more marketing and product interactions that evoke a sense of connection. In time, profits will follow.

What are the roadblocks to cultivating digital empathy?

The quality of customers originated through digital channels is of growing concern to traditional banks, particularly as the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the shift to digital by three to five years in just a few months. Although many banks have found success driving more customer acquisition to digital channels, the quality of these new customers is typically poor – from the time of funding through to retention.