It's a "blip", a "total load of bollocks" and a bandwagon
that cannot be missed all in one.
The successes of websites like Facebook are mere blips, but what
comes after them will define how businesses are run in the future,
according to finance experts.
A behind closed-doors meeting of bankers,
social media experts and technologists at
The Financial Services
Club last night revealed how the sector which traditionally
leads technology innovation views social media technology.
The event, held at the Lloyds building in London, delivered a
clear message that banks must embrace social media. But work needs
to be done by banks to work out how and where to use it.
"Websites like Twitter and Facebook are just blips but it's what
comes after that matters," said one attendant.
But banks know that what follows the likes of Twitter and
Facebook will depend on how businesses develop the technology.
This is what financial services experts, who wished to remain
anonymous, think about social media:
- "Social media is the plumbing of collaboration."
- "Twitter is interesting but I do not know why. It is
interesting because people are using it."
- "If you want to adopt social media you need to listen to what
people are saying about it by monitoring online discussions."
- "Businesses can facilitate customer services through social
media but it is not the answer to everything."
- "Most businesses in this country are one-man bands and most of
these are online. They would like to be able to run their
businesses online including dealing with banks and the tax office
for example."
- "Banks will have to get used to the idea that there will be
some customers will want to use the web."
- "In 1923 the head of the Post Office said he could not see any
uses for a telephone apart form calling servants."
- "Corporates are already monitoring data feeds to see what
people are talking about through mechanical scanning of social
media feeds."
- "In financial services we are still in the educational
phase."
- "There will be a bonus for banks that experiment early with
social media."
- "Banks can't experimented because of heavy regulations."
- "Social media is a good way of engaging with employees as well
as customers."
- "How does social media transfer to the corporate context is
what banks are trying to understand. There has to be a new way
found for doing this."
- "I am not certain [banks] are in a position to use social media
credible."
- "A lot of it is total bollocks."
- "Once a customer question has been answered by a corporate
through a social media site it doesn't have to be re-answered again
and again."
- "We do not deny that this technology will be used by us but to
do this will require things we do not know."
- "Banks could start working with third parties for technology
because it is hard to change legacy systems."
- "Two banks ask me to build a community for them every
week."
- "If the way to make money out of social media was obvious
Facebook would be doing it."
- "The designed for purpose of technology in banks is never the
purpose it is put to."
- "We might make a product designed for loans and it could end up
being used for payments."