Banks are in danger of losing online customers unless they improve the levels of personalisation and communication offered, according to US and UK surveys from analyst house Gartner.
The company polled a total of 3988 UK and US adults on attitudes and behaviour related to retail payments, banking and investments services.
The survey shows people in both countries are heavy users of online banking and over 40% use at least two banking sites, meaning they are in a position to compare features.
Both US and UK consumers rank security the most important online feature, followed by single sign-on. They also rate highly the ability to deposit cheques online from home and set up a separate account to save up for a specific goal. Other top ranking features included the ability to set up alerts for account and credit card balances and to analyse spending and cash flow.
Younger respondents value features that enable customisation of their online banking experience, while older customers seek tools that let them use current services more effectively or communicate better.
In addition, older consumers want features that make the online banking channel itself easier to use, while younger people are looking for additional financial planning tools to help them manage their money more effectively.
Stessa Cohen, research director, Gartner, says the survey highlights the fact customers and banks want very different things on Web sites.
"Customers want to personalise their experiences, analyse their transaction and payment data, so they can better manage their money, pay bills and transfer funds. Banks want to sell customers more products. Banks that neglect personalisation trends now will sacrifice online - and possibly mobile - banking customers later," says Cohen.