Banks play 'mind games' to woo customers
Pradipta Sarkar, 37, is saving Rs 10,000 every month, one-fifth of his take-home salary, in a fixed income-linked systematic investment fund (SIP) to build his retirement corpus. But being a soccer fan, his dream is to cheer for his favourite team, Germany, from stadia in the World Cup matches some day. Would Sarkar, an information technology sector employee, set aside Rs 3,000 in high-return investment schemes, and reduce his monthly retirement savings to Rs 7,000, to materialise his soccer dream? Banks now have a powerful tool — behavioural science — to figure that out. Lenders are of the opinion that by knowing short-term private dreams of their customers and giving personalised attention to achieve them, the stickiness of customers will improve. Psychologists say there is a science behind it. “Most people tend to choose short-term goals over long-term objectives, and the propensity for immediate gratification is very powerful in human psyche,” said Dr Jawaharlal Me...
