Is ATM management weighing you down?

For financial institutions, managing the ATM channel to deliver high availability and the most modern user experience is a burden. From compliance to software updates to hardware to cash management to security, there’s too much to do and not enough resources, stretching teams and budgets thin. It can mean important requirements get overlooked and strategic thinking can fall by the wayside.

Meanwhile, there are a lot of opportunities to further innovate banking self-service. COVID-19 quickly revealed the value of self-service ATMs: enabling consumers to access and manage their finances when branch closures and lockdowns changed everything.

So, by choosing ATM as a Service—a model that outsources all elements of the day-to-day running of your ATM channel, to a trusted partner—you not only reduce the burden of making sure it’s compliant, available, modern and secure. You also open up the ability to explore new opportunities to expand your self-service offerings. 

What are the benefits of outsourcing your ATM management?    

Free up time and drive more efficiency.    

How much change can FIs handle? Between the already growing digital-first banking demands and pivoting during the pandemic, competition to keep up has never been so fierce. And that makes efficiency—and focus—a top priority for FIs.

When you don’t have to spend time and resources on all the various ATM management tasks—from making security updates to new installations—you can concentrate on ways to improve your core business.

For example, you can do a deep dive into how your ATM estate should strategically evolve—will it include more recycling ATMs and/or modernized enterprise software to bridge the physical and digital divide? How is your brand connecting with your customers? Are they getting the best experience at the ATM? With more available time, you can engage with your technology partners to launch new projects and focus on making your operations more efficient. 

Maximize digital to meet consumer demands.    

Consumer demands for digital banking have been changing the industry for years—and the pandemic has dramatically accelerated it. Now FIs not only have to provide seamless digital banking; they need their ATMs to be connected to the digital ecosystem so consumers can move transactions between channels without friction. Discover how Stockman Bank expanded their digital banking offerings to include more user-friendly and flexible innovations that improved the customer experience.

From contactless cards to video banking to biometrics that identify consumers through facial recognition or a fingerprint scan, FIs need the latest technologies to stay relevant and competitive. And especially amid the pandemic, consumers want brands to be innovative enough that they don’t need to use a debit or credit card—or to physically interact with the ATM at all.

Improve customer service.    

Having a trusted partner 100% dedicated to managing your ATM channel can boost your customer satisfaction in many ways. With eyes on your ATMs 24/7, it’s much less likely you’ll encounter availability issues—and, with the latest remote monitoring and diagnostics, many issues that do come up can be solved before they impact your ATM services or customer experience.

That means you can confidently count on your ATM to be available whenever your customers need it. And with technology that protects consumer data (and helps fight fraud like card skimming)—not to mention developing increasingly innovative ways to interact—ATM as a Service (ATMaaS) also helps improve customer loyalty.

Stay in compliance without the headache.    

FIs have to meet a variety of rules and regulations that change often (including making necessary upgrades like EMV), and that differ based on location. And many of those rules and regulations are complex. For instance, PCI compliance is a key part of a bank’s infrastructure. And while there are many elements to being PCI compliant, ensuring your ATMs are running the latest security patches is an important part of compliance.

Gain more security.    

ATMs are among thieves’ favorite targets. And while busting open a physical ATM with explosives or chemicals is still a problem, criminals are increasingly turning to other methods to commit fraud. That includes capturing consumers’ card information via skimming, which costs FIs billions each year.

But when you outsource your ATM management, your provider can focus on delivering solutions that protect against skimming (on the surface and deep within the ATM) and other fraud methods to increase security. Even better, your provider takes on the heavy lifting when it comes to pushing the latest updates to each and every ATM. So your network remains safe for the consumer...and your business.

Better manage costs.    

Outsourcing your ATM estate management can help you better control costs because those costs are all wrapped up into a simple monthly fee, so there are no expensive surprises. Instead of heavy capital expenditures that may put off innovation, with ATMaaS models, FIs can spread costs out over time, changing from capex to opex.

Handing off the stress.    

On top of the many responsibilities that come with managing an ATM channel, one-off events, such as meeting EMV compliance or the Windows 10 migration, put an unnecessary strain on FIs. And many of them, as reported by ATM Marketplace, say they’d rather not deal with the stress of trying to manage their ATMs at all. “It's a headache for the banks," Donna Embry, SVP of global payments strategy at Evolve Bank & Trust, told ATM Marketplace in explaining the cost and hassle of a major OS upgrade.

One size doesn’t fit all—how to choose a self-service management that’s right for you    

Depending on the amount of control you want to maintain with the management of your ATMs, your needs are different from those of other FIs. If you’re happy to have a partner who can take on every aspect of managing your ATM channel, then ATM as a Service is the way to go. But, if you’re hoping to still control the overall management or specific element, then you’ll want to choose from a menu of managed services—from software upgrades management to outsourcing maintenance.

When you’ve decided which parts of your ATM management you want to outsource—and perhaps consulted with an ATM management outsourcing company—there are a few capabilities to compare:

• Knowledge of the market. There are services experts and there are financial experts; the best ATMaaS partner offers both. Make sure your partner has the ability to be strategic and understands your business, even better than you do.
  
• Boots on the ground. Do they have the breadth of coverage to service your network? Ensure the provider that you choose has the ability to have engineers in place quickly and within the agreed SLAs to ensure your ATMs get back online, fast.
  
• Accountability is clear and in good hands. Ensure both sides understand who owns accountability. With ATM as a Service, your strategic partner is your single source of accountability, so you can trust your ATM estate is being expertly managed from end to end.

After you find the right partner, you might be amazed to realize you didn’t need to do it all on your own. While finding the right ATMaaS provider might take some diligence and time, the opportunities it will bring could be significant, and you’ll gain the freedom to focus on other priorities—finally.