Empowering customer-facing finance teams to drive customer loyalty

For decades, financial services have competed based on products, rates, and efficiency. But today, those factors are no longer enough to secure lasting customer relationships. Trust in financial institutions in the U.S. is at historic lows, according to Gallup data. Combine that with the fact that switching providers has never been easier, and fintech disruptors are reshaping expectations for speed, personalization, and accessibility. It’s understandable why customer loyalty has emerged as the way to win.

What’s often overlooked is that the real driver of loyalty isn’t a flashy app or the lowest interest rate, it’s the human interactions customers have with the people representing your brand. Whether it’s a loan officer guiding someone through their first mortgage, a call center agent resolving a payment issue, or a branch advisor helping a family plan for the future, these frontline moments define the customer experience.

In the AskNicely 2025 state of customer experience report, 97% of finance leaders agreed that there is a direct link between customer experience (CX) measurements and their business growth objectives. However, in that same report, we found that only 25% of companies were collecting real-time customer feedback after each interaction, and only 40% of companies were acting on feedback fast enough. 

Finance leaders who empower their customer-facing teams with real-time insights and give them the authority, recognition, and tools to act quickly are not only improving satisfaction scores, they’re unlocking the kind of loyalty that drives long-term growth.

The loyalty challenge in finance

Earning loyalty in financial services has never been more complex. Customers expect speed, transparency, and personalization from every interaction, standards set by fintechs and also by tech leaders like Apple, Amazon, and Uber. At the same time, financial decisions remain deeply personal and emotionally charged, requiring trust that goes far beyond a seamless app interface.

The challenge is that trust in the sector remains fragile. The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer ranks financial services near the bottom of all industries, with global trust at just 64%. In a landscape where switching providers can happen with a few taps, the cost of a single poor interaction has never been higher.

Meanwhile, competition is heating up. Fintech startups are peeling off younger demographics with digital-first offerings, while traditional players are struggling to meet rising expectations across both digital and in-person channels. For many institutions, this has created a dangerous gap between customer expectations and the experience being delivered.

The loyalty challenge, then, isn’t just about launching new products or chasing the latest digital trend. It’s about consistently delivering experiences that combine speed and personalization with the human connection that customers crave. And that responsibility lies squarely with the customer-facing teams who interact with clients every day.

Why customer-facing finance teams hold the key

In finance, loyalty isn’t built in the boardroom or the back office; it’s forged in the daily interactions between customers and the people who serve them. Customer-facing teams are the front line of trust, often handling the most stressful and emotional moments in a customer’s financial life.

Think about it: 

• A loan officer who takes the time to explain repayment options can turn a daunting process into a moment of relief.
• A branch advisor who celebrates with a family as they secure their first mortgage transforms a transaction into a milestone memory.
• A call center agent who resolves a billing issue quickly can prevent frustration from spiraling into lost business.

These small but powerful moments accumulate to define the entire customer experience. They’re the reason why two banks offering nearly identical products can deliver vastly different levels of loyalty.

When finance teams feel empowered, with the insights, recognition, and autonomy to act in the customer’s best interest, they create a ripple effect. Employees feel proud of the impact they’re making, customers feel valued and understood, and institutions build the trust and loyalty needed to thrive in an increasingly competitive market.

What empowerment looks like

Empowerment in financial services extends beyond giving employees a script or a smile. It’s about equipping customer-facing teams with the clarity, confidence, and tools they need to deliver meaningful experiences, every single time.

In practice, this means:

• Real-time customer feedback: Teams need immediate visibility into how customers feel after interactions, not quarterly reports that arrive too late to act.
• ‍The ability to act fast: Feedback only drives loyalty if frontline staff are trusted to resolve issues on the spot, without waiting for layers of approval.
• ‍Coaching and recognition: Empowerment isn’t just about fixing problems, it’s about celebrating wins. Recognizing and sharing examples of great service builds pride and consistency across the organization.
• ‍Connecting effort to impact: When employees can see how their actions affect customer loyalty and business growth, they’re more motivated to go the extra mile.

When empowerment is woven into daily operations, teams no longer feel like cogs in a compliance machine. They become active participants in building loyalty, advocates for the brand, and, ultimately, growth drivers for the business.

Stories from AskNicely finance customers

The most powerful proof of empowerment comes from seeing how real financial institutions are transforming loyalty through their frontline teams. Across geographies and business models, these organizations show what’s possible when feedback, coaching, and recognition are embedded into daily operations.

Debit Success: Coaching the lowest performers to match the best

With 22 million transactions annually for more than 3,000 businesses, Debit Success faced a major challenge: inconsistent service across its global offices. A “happy customer” in Auckland might mean something different than in Brisbane, and the lack of a common standard was costing repeat business and referrals.

By implementing AskNicely, Debit Success gave frontline staff personal scorecards showing their customer experience scores, shoutouts, and areas for improvement. This enabled managers to coach with real examples rather than vague directives, creating a culture of evidence-based improvement. The results were dramatic: bottom-ranked agents improved their net promoter score (NPS) by an average of 21.5 points, overall NPS rose by 20.8 points, and morale soared as employees finally had clarity on what great service looked like.

Read the full Debit Success story here. 

First Commonwealth: Turning feedback into ‘love letters’

As Pennsylvania’s largest credit union in the Lehigh Valley, First Commonwealth prides itself on improving members’ financial lives. But inconsistent service across its 11 centers was leading to churn and missed opportunities for referrals.

AskNicely gave frontline staff real-time member feedback delivered straight to their phones, along with coaching and incentives tied to member experience scores. Within five months, NPS jumped 11 points to over 70, and members began sending unsolicited testimonials, which the team now calls “love letters.” These heartfelt stories not only validated the impact of great service but also gave staff a blueprint for consistently delighting members.
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Read the full Firstcommonwealth story here. 

Lendmark Financial Services: Building a team obsessed with customer experience

With more than 2,000 employees across 455 branches, Lendmark knew customer experience was its main differentiator. Yet without consistent, real-time insights, branch staff lacked the guidance and recognition they needed to deliver at scale.

Enter AskNicely. Loan consultants began receiving instant customer feedback, automated shoutouts for excellent service, and coaching tips personalized to their interactions. The cultural shift was immediate. Employees embraced the platform, with one branch manager admitting he was “obsessed” with checking results and striving for a new PB. During the pilot, 80% of locations saw NPS gains, averaging a 15-point increase. Today, with AskNicely rolled out to 450 branches, half have improved NPS with an average 39-point increase. The obsession with customer experience is now fueling both employee pride and business growth.

Read the full Lendmark story here. 

NZ Home Loans: Turning happy customers into a referral engine

Competing in a commoditized mortgage market, NZHL needed a way to ensure consistently great service across its 75+ locations. Using AskNicely, local managers began reviewing feedback weekly, while frontline loan consultants received personal scorecards and coaching tied to actual customer comments.

The result was not just happier customers but a powerful new growth channel. NZHL automated a referral workflow where promoters were prompted to recommend the brand, and location managers immediately followed up. This supercharged pipeline delivered a 7x increase in referrals in just one year, worth more than $530,000 in revenue. At the same time, bottom-tier locations improved NPS by 13 points, proving that consistency and coaching drive both satisfaction and financial outcomes.

Read the full NZHL story here. 

Best practices to empower finance teams

The success stories from Debit Success, First Commonwealth, Lendmark, and NZHL reveal a consistent pattern. Empowerment isn’t about one-off initiatives or top-down directives. It’s about building systems where customer-facing teams are informed, trusted, and recognized every day. 

Here are the best practices every financial institution can apply:

1. Make feedback real-time and personal: Quarterly reports don’t change behavior, instant insights do. Deliver customer feedback directly to frontline staff so they can see the impact of their actions and adjust in the moment.

2. Coach with evidence, not anecdotes: Generic training sessions rarely stick. Use actual customer comments and performance data to help employees understand what great service looks like in practice.

3. Recognize and celebrate wins: Positive reinforcement drives consistency. Shoutouts, scoreboards, and recognition programs turn great service into a source of pride and motivation across teams.

4. Give local teams ownership: Branch managers and consultants know their customers best. Equip them with the tools and autonomy to act quickly, without waiting for approval from headquarters.

5. Connect experience to growth: Show employees how their daily interactions directly affect loyalty, referrals, and revenue. When staff see the bigger picture, they understand that delivering great service isn’t just “nice to have”—it’s central to business success.

Together, these practices turn customer-facing finance teams into the engine of loyalty and growth.

The AskNicely advantage

All of these examples, Debit Success, First Commonwealth, Lendmark, and NZHL, show what’s possible when customer-facing teams are empowered with the right tools. AskNicely isn’t just a feedback platform; it’s the engine that connects frontline performance to customer loyalty and business growth.

Why AskNicely works for finance teams:

• Real-time insights: Employees see immediate customer feedback tied to their interactions, enabling on-the-spot improvements and coaching.

• Actionable coaching: Managers can provide evidence-based guidance, helping every team member understand exactly what “great service” looks like.

• Recognition and motivation: Automated shoutouts, leaderboards, and personalized praise celebrate wins and build a culture of excellence.

• Holistic view of CX: Leadership gains visibility across locations, teams, and individuals, allowing them to identify trends, gaps, and opportunities to optimize the entire customer journey.

• Revenue impact: By closing feedback loops and empowering teams, organizations can see measurable improvements in NPS, customer retention, referrals, and ultimately, growth.

AskNicely transforms frontline feedback from a data point into a competitive advantage. Finance teams no longer operate in the dark - they are informed, motivated, and empowered to consistently deliver experiences that turn customers into loyal advocates.

Learn more about the success finance teams have had using AskNicely here.