One of Turkey’s largest customers – Akbank – says that it is using analytics to to plan and prioritize customer communications, optimizing its engagement with them to ensure a flawless experience. This, according to the bank, is the secret to its competitive advantage.
 
Since 2008, communications between Akbank and its customers increased 15-fold to 3.2 million offers and 300,000 in-bound product sales per month. The bank needed to know which customers to contact with which product offers through which channels. They wanted to be able to evaluate multiple campaigns simultaneously across various mediums, including SMS, e-mail and telephone. They needed to define targets, develop different scenarios with different parameters, and produce reports with clear results.
 
Since implementing SAS Marketing Optimization the bank has cut its communication costs in half. At the same time, overall customer satisfaction is up. Akbank attributes this higher confidence to the fact that customers receive offers for products they need through channels they prefer. 
 
Every minute counts in a market as competitive as banking, according to Attila Bayrak, Akbank CRM Division Senior Vice President. Completing the SAS installment in half the time estimated provided the bank with a competitive advantage that was only amplified by the ability to accomplish tasks in just 2.5 hours that used to take 2.5 days. 
 
“We needed a vendor that understood our industry and our specific needs, who could address these in the most accurate and rapid way possible,” said Bayrak. “From the Turkish implementation team to the overseas staff supporting it, the SAS team provided all we were seeking. The number of iterations the solution can handle and the speed at which these iterations can be performed is paramount. Thanks to SAS Marketing Optimization, Akbank continues to display consistent growth; we’re improving customer satisfaction and adding new customers in spite of intense competition.”