ID Proofing for Better Business
October 2022
Businesses, both small and large, have faced significant change over the last two years. Operations and customer experience departments have had to move online to survive. And while going digital has had its benefits, it has also introduced serious concerns for security and user experience.
Banking, retail, and health services are only some of the many industries that have made colossal strides towards digitization. These sectors, especially, deal with sensitive data, like PII (personally identifiable information). The way organizations in these markets operate is also complex and constantly challenged by high customer volume. No business wants their customers to feel unimportant—they want their customers’ demands to have resolutions that are secure and effective.
The need for efficient digital onboarding and digital identity proofing has never been greater. Here’s how these practices are contributing to a better future for all businesses.
What is Digital Onboarding?
Digital onboarding is the process businesses take to register a customer’s account through a digital platform. The platform stores all the necessary security information and essential details about the customer to facilitate a better experience. This practice is replacing the painfully slow process of in-person onboarding; it’s faster, more meticulous, and more secure.
Why is Digital Onboarding Important Now?
Online customer experiences and secure registration processes are more significant than ever before. Since the “great migration” online in 2020 due to the pandemic, fraudsters have been taking advantage of the online increase in users’ sensitive data. Combined with how competitive the eCommerce and online business landscapes have become, it’s critical for businesses to be able to verify and activate a new customer from anywhere, at any time, with a high degree of confidence and minimal friction. Today’s onboarding experiences need to be fast, reliable, and secure for businesses to both retain their customers and gain new ones.
Digital Identity Proofing is Integral to Customer Experience
Identity proofing is now part of the customer account registration process for most reputable companies. Digital identity proofing platforms specializing in biometric authentication requests will prompt the customer to present their ID documents and a unique trait, like their face or fingerprint. These data points are safely gathered through a customer’s mobile device and serve as account access factors that are nearly impossible to hack or spoof.
The digital onboarding process can be completed in minutes, as opposed to in-person, highly-human-involved onboarding processes, which often take much, much longer and leave more room for errors. With digital onboarding, customer data does not need to be reviewed by anyone overseas, nor is it subject to breach from fraudsters. And, going forward, access to a customer’s account is easy and gives any required agent a wealth of workable information. Businesses can ‘know their customer’ almost instantly.
Taking KYC to a New Level
Digital platforms that specialize in onboarding and identify proofing use KYC, or Know Your Customer, as the basis for development. The more personalized an experience is with a business, the more likely a customer will interact with the entity. Digital onboarding and identity proofing build a level of trust that cannot even be replicated with traditional face-to-face services. With the acceleration of digitization, KYC has become a business need—not a want. KYC removes the burden of human involvement and, therefore, human error. Digitization is here to stay, especially if cutting-edge AI/ML-powered engines and happy online customers have anything to say about it.
Digital Onboarding and Identity Proofing are the Foundation of Better Business
Using a digital onboarding platform is not just about choosing ease and convenience; it’s about choosing to build a better business experience for all parties involved. Customers will feel welcome and secure with identity proofing. Contact center agents will have customer information available at their fingertips to quickly verify identities and solve queries in a fraction of the traditional time. Organizations and their leaders can revel in how operations and conversions are much more efficient than they ever were. Digitization, and the technology it has brought and will continue to bring, fosters better business for all.