The mass affluent account for more than 16% of households, more than 48% of global assets under management, and represent a key battleground for growth. But it is time for the industry to question its assumptions about the needs and behaviors of this important segment.
Understanding the mass affluent is about more than wealth. Our data shows that there is much variation in the mass affluent segment. Their wants, needs, and behaviors are variable, and the segment itself is a changing shape. One area where variation is particularly evident is around channel usage patterns.
As the pie chart shows, mass affluent customers are evenly distributed across channels. We also know that channel usage is not accidental – it corresponds to specific financial outlooks, attitudes, and expectations. Banks should not presume that any single channel will serve the mass affluent effectively, or that the segment requires one channel over the other. Our data shows that how you engage with the mass affluent depends of which type of mass affluent sub-segment you want to court.
Channel usage is just one example of variation within this segment. We will explore other characteristics of the mass affluent and discuss the 6 profiles of the mass affluent financial experience at our upcoming conference.
Join us for our annual financial services conference Resolve in Uncertainty.
Learn more about the Mass Affluent Mindset by reading our recent research brief.
Access our research brief, “Channel Strategy: Replacing Consistency with Quality” to understand customer channel usage patterns and profiles
on January 24, 2012
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[...] current work focuses on how to manage customer relationships outside the branch–from understanding customer channel preferences, to designing powerful remote experiences, to building products that capture attention and increase [...]