Q&A: How Banks Can Use Technology to Strengthen SMB Relationships, Pt. 2

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are increasingly looking to digital banking tools to manage cash flow, accelerate payments and protect against fraud—especially as economic volatility and shifting customer expectations heighten the cost of slow, manual processes. For banks and credit unions, rolling out new financial technologies to this segment is no longer a differentiator; it’s becoming a baseline requirement to retain relationships and compete with fintech-led offerings. However, successful deployment hinges on more than product capability.

Following part 1 of this Q&A, Mary Kay Schneider, Founder of MK Insights2Action, LLC and Thomas Sebok, Chief Commercial Banking Officer at Citadel Credit Union, outline practical approaches for introducing new technologies to SMB clients. They also assess the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats associated with tech adoption in a disrupted market, highlighting where digital tools can unlock efficiency and resilience—and where elevated fraud risks, behavioral change and competitive pressure may impede uptake.

Jim Fuhrman: How can banks effectively roll out new financial technologies to SMBs to ensure adoption?

Mary Kay Schneider: Start by understanding the day in the life of a business owner. Do they personally handle the banking, or have they entrusted a staff member with it? Conduct focus groups to understand their current processes, likes and dislikes and their wish list to reduce time spent, ensure convenience, provide digestible information and ease of use. Asking questions like this can give a bank a fuller picture:

• What do you like about your personal and business online banking services? (especially if used at different financial institutions)
• What steps do you take to understand your true cash position?
• How do you currently handle excess cash and cash shortfalls?
• What are your customers and suppliers asking you to provide?
• What is it worth saving x amount of time per week and how would you use that?
• What would an improved cash position enable you to accomplish?

Asking them to rank their wish list can give you a roadmap of what’s most important and you can then match that to their business life cycle and type of business/industry. Once you have developed/purchased new tech, consider a pilot approach to gather valuable information about how it’s used and refine it as needed before full rollout. Next, track the outcomes through user surveys so that you can ensure satisfaction and address dissatisfaction. Finally, be sure your sales force and customer service team understand the basics of the new technology so that they can readily support customer questions and enroll new customers.

JF: What training strategies can banks implement to help SMBs utilize new banking technologies effectively?

MKS: Business owners will want several options including engaging on-demand videos/webinars, quick start guides, readily accessible FAQs, troubleshooting guides and live support. Offering a hotline with white glove service could help you understand common questions and top stressors. Relationship managers for those businesses should dedicate additional time to proactive contact to ensure that the customer experience is as promised and that the business is realizing the full benefits. Monitor implementation and usage and provide email reminders to accelerate onboarding.

Your website should prominently highlight the new technology and provide options for service along with training tools. Post a demo of the technology on your website and track interest and pull through. Post regularly on social media to engage both customers and prospects in the new technology and showcase customer experience successes. Testimonials are powerful ways to encourage purchase and usage. Provide education to accountants and business advisors so that they are aware of the technology and can support it and/or provide you with critical input. Business owners trust their advisors and look to them to provide insights about their business and ways to improve so if banks educate them, it can speed up tech adoption.

JF: What are the strengths and weaknesses of adopting banking technologies for SMBs facing market disruptions?

MKS: Strengths are faster information and money movement, time savings, fewer manual steps and mobility. These are important advantages for SMBs whose owners are often challenged to perform many activities each day. Less time spent on performing or confirming banking tasks opens time for customer acquisition, problem solving and planning. Applying for credit online and receiving funding quickly offers greater flexibility and speed. A major strength for SMBs is more quickly obtaining payments to boost working capital - paying employees, creditors and suppliers. Weaknesses could include moving forward with a new technology that perhaps has not been fully proven or may require customer behavior changes or specific employee expertise that needs to be developed over time. The business owner may have to dedicate time to learn how to use a new service effectively.

Tom Sebok: I agree, and I’ve seen firsthand how adopting technology can help a business owner better manage resources and reduce employee time. They can take the opportunity to delay hiring until it’s truly necessary, knowing that the next employee will be more productive with the right tools. It can improve records retention, accelerate payments collection and create convenience through using pcards for purchases. Solutions that identify and reduce fraud risk, like Positive Pay and ACH Debit Block, are a gamechanger for businesses. It’s not a matter of “if” but “when” a business could be compromised, so these protections are essential for SMBs. I’ve also seen businesses look not only for technology, but for someone knowledgeable who can help them use it. They value having someone who shows interest by visiting their business and offering ideas.

JF: What opportunities and threats do banking technologies present for SMBs in a challenging economic environment?

MKS: With respect to opportunities, if new reporting helps predict an SMB’s cash flow more reliably, they may be better able to address anticipated cash shortfalls by stretching out their payables or drawing on a line of credit for example. If accepting credit cards or Real Time Payments accelerates their customers’ purchases and importantly, the reliability of payment, the business may reduce debt faster or take advantage of trade discounts. By offering more payment types, they may add new customers who were limited by a competitor’s product set. They might be able to free up personnel to perform sales or customer service-oriented tasks. If they can more quickly start and finish a loan application online, faster approval and funding may allow them to take advantage of better terms or buy equipment that increases capacity or adds new capabilities. Boosting capital reserves is a smart strategy during market disruptions. Finally, offering a faster or more frequent method of paying employees could improve employee retention. 

TS: I’d like to weigh in on the threats. Customer expectations around speed continue to rise and at the same time, the volume of fraud is increasing rapidly. Attacks through compromised emails and phishing or smishing attempts are common and I’ve witnessed businesses suffer losses that could have been prevented. The challenge for financial institutions is to invest in strong detection tools and educate customers on the risks and the proper steps they need to take. There is also the competitive threat a rival institution may develop a new solution that makes your offering feel obsolete.  

MKS: Great points, Tom. I think for a business owner to look at making a change, they need to understand the risks they are presently taking with some of their manual processes, including physically using checks and cash to support their business. 

About the panelists

Mary Kay Schneider, Founder of MK Insights2Action, LLC

Mary Kay is a 35-plus year veteran in the banking industry. Having built a career at PNC with a range of groups like retail, private client, business banking, and then evolving into leadership positions, overseeing Underwriting Excellence at the Bank, as well as sales enablement. Working closely with banks and consulting on effective sales strategies, Mary Kay has since founded MK Insights2Action in 2023, which helps clients design and implement strategies to improve risk management, sales enablement, as well as client donor cultivation, and governance.  

Thomas Sebok, Chief Commercial Banking Officer at Citadel Credit Union

Thomas Sebok is the Chief Commercial Banking Officer for Citadel Credit Union. With a robust background in commercial banking, Tom brings over two decades of experience in financial services, specializing in fostering relationships and enhancing customer experiences across markets.