Missed our customer understanding webinar? Here’s what you need to know
While our recent webinar focused on the financial services sector, the insights are relevant across industries - particularly as regulators beyond the FCA increasingly highlight the importance of customer understanding.
Whether you work in utilities, insurance, health, housing, or tech, the message is the same: clearer communication drives better outcomes.
We were joined by leaders from Nationwide Building Society, StepChange Debt Charity, and the Financial Conduct Authority, each sharing practical lessons on improving customer understanding.
Here are the key takeaways:
📊 Numbers-heavy comms can confuse customers
Percentages, APRs, comparison tables - financial and technical communications are often full of numbers. Yet almost half of working age adults in the UK have low numeracy skills - the equivalent to a primary school child. When numbers aren’t clear, customers can’t make confident decisions.
✍️ Even comms pros struggle with numbers
While comms professionals are typically confident with language and design, there’s often far less comfort - and training - around using numbers effectively. That’s why upskilling is essential, not just for writers, but for approvers and decision-makers too.
🌱 Customer understanding needs to be cultural
Quick fixes won’t cut it. The most effective organisations are embedding customer understanding into their culture. That means clear standards and a system-wide approach to how comms are created, tested, and approved.
📏 Measure what matters: outcomes
Forget asking customers “did you understand this?” Instead, look at whether they took the right action, made an informed decision, stayed on plan, or required fewer support interventions. Peer Lawther’s case study from StepChange showed how comms clarity led to higher engagement, better plan stability, and more confident customer behaviour.
🔁 Test, learn, iterate
Understanding must be monitored. From pilots to A/B testing, organisations are embracing refining their comms - and ensuring they track what’s actually working for real people in real situations.
🧭 Comms are a journey, not a message
Both StepChange and Nationwide are focusing on timing, sequencing, and layering of information - so customers get the right message at the right moment. Understanding the customers journey is crucial.
🤝 Partnerships fuel progress
Cross-functional collaboration is key. But so is working with knowledgeable third parties who bring tools, evidence, and training that help turn good intentions into measurable impact.
The bottom line? Customer understanding isn’t just a regulatory checkbox. It’s a strategic opportunity to build trust, improve decision-making, and support good outcomes for customers - no matter what sector you're in.