Knowing Your Consumer: What Are Their Expectations From An Investment App?

Up until a decade ago, making any investment – be it Mutual Funds, Stocks, Gold, etc., FD required one to visit 3 apps to invest in Stocks and Mutual Funds alone. This was due to one app being a research platform for customers to understand the fundamentals before investing, one app to keep track of events and analyst predictions, and a third broker app to place orders. However, the advent of technology has led to increased digitisation, and today, there are new-age investment platforms that have made the investment process a seamless and ultra-convenient one for the customer.

In this day and age, we can simply install the app, complete a simple KYC registration process, and begin our wealth creation journey as today’s apps offer an array of services such as Stocks, Mutual Funds, Gold, FDs, and even US stocks under a single umbrella. Now, speaking of apps and user expectations that are constantly changing, what exactly do users expect from investment apps? Let’s see.

Relevant Search Results

One of the foremost concerns for customers in an app is that when they search for a term or keyword, the results shown need to be relevant. Quite the opposite of online shopping in e-commerce platforms where they browse through the categories of items and then shop, most users come with a clear idea for which Stock, Mutual Fund, or Asset, and hence, the search tab is crucial. Search relevance is one of the trickiest parts where investment apps need to meet user expectations.

For instance, ICICI Bank, ICICI ETF (Exchange Traded Fund), and ICICI Prudential short-term fund, all have the same brand name ICICI. The key is to help users find the right results with the least number of words or searches. 

Efficient Portfolio Tracking

Observations show that most users open investment apps several times a day just to track their portfolio, especially customers dealing with Stocks. Investment apps need to ensure that daily Profit and Loss (P&L) stats are necessary for a seamless and impeccable user experience. Enabling efficient portfolio tracking will ultimately result in customer retention and acquisition. 

Research Requirements

One of the foremost distinctions between day-trader tools and all-encompassing online investment platforms is the focus on long-term value investors. While trader tools primarily focus on charts and watchlists, all-inclusive investment platforms focus on the screeners, calculators, fundamental data, events, and analyst reports to further enhance the customer’s journey. This kind of prioritization ensures that all the research data is streamlined on the research page before the customer places the order, thereby enabling them to make informed decisions.

Content: The Key To Building Trust 

Quality content lays the foundation for trust. Investment apps need to focus on offering Daily Digest or Weekly Updates to help customers along in their journey. This not only helps build trust but also allows them to stay updated on the latest news. Besides, video-based content such as IPO videos is also a huge hit and helps customers to evaluate a stock from different angles. For newbie customers who are curious and eager to learn, the content on investment apps can go a long way in helping them learn about the nuances of the market and establish excellent customer relations.

Without a doubt, finance can be daunting, and reducing the clutter on the app by structuring topics and creating focus will help users navigate through the app with ease. In short, the simplicity of the interface is crucial to customer satisfaction. Furthermore, investment apps also need to ensure transparency of processes along with robust infrastructure and the usage of cutting-edge technology to augment the experience.

Last but not least, strong support systems to solve any technical glitches are integral to seamlessness as users will require easy redressal paths and accountability by the platform, without which the trust built begins to diminish. Offering an all-encompassing, frictionless experience to customers will build a strong customer base and further drive growth, enabling investment apps to thrive in the market.

Note: We at Inc42 take our ethics very seriously. More information about it can be found here.