Increasingly, nonbank companies are warming to the idea of embedded finance experiences, offering banking-like services that provide a richer customer journey and one which also increases the lifetime value of their customers.
It has been shown that embedded finance experiences are a key monetization lever that many have already successfully weaved into their existing businesses.
The key is to offer a new approach for brands that harnesses the power of embedded finance experiences through a low cost turnkey platform that delivers the main finance elements into a brand's digital journey.
People set out to see a doctor at the clinic, or hospital, when they feel under the weather, or if required of any other medical and wellness services. In recent years, the medical industry has undergone a healthtech boom, especially in the APAC region. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the delivery and innovation of healthcare solutions are now guided by consumer needs, giving rise to digital health solutions that directly connect provider and patient.
Mobile-first region
As APAC is a mobile-first region, digital healthtech solutions are increasingly becoming a norm. In fact, digital native healthcare providers are challenging traditional ones by bringing solutions to consumers directly, giving them access to customised, patient-first healthcare experiences. Additionally, technology is also unlocking more efficient and effective medical intervention for healthcare providers.
While there was a low adoption rate when digital healthcare providers first burst onto the scene, the ongoing pandemic quickly changed that trend and adoption increased dramatically as patients sought to safely obtain outpatient care. This also means that consumers’ behaviour from the perspective of healthcare is expected to change and potentially converge to the expectations of how consumers are increasingly consuming products and services digitally.
As more and more people get used to the digital customer journey provided by the digital natives healthcare providers, it is imperative that traditional healthcare providers start exploring to optimise their customers’ experience. They do this by providing medical patients with richer embedded finance experiences.
But, exactly what does embedded finance potentially look like for both digital and traditional healthcare providers?
Ideally, the ease of making payment could be simply a “swipe” across a mobile device and payment has been made upon the end of the medical service provided. While no one wants to be sick, it is an inevitable part of life and with embedded finance, healthcare providers can now build up loyalty programmes centred around enriching finance experience such that if the need arises. The healthcare provider will be top of the consideration set when the need for healthcare services arise.
Embedded finance experiences
Also, there are increasing expectations that embedded finance experiences have to be richer for those of traditional health care providers as well, as the last thing patients will want to fret about when ill is the friction that payment can cause if finance is not embedded within the overall customer journey.
Ideally, patients will increasingly want to walk into a physical medical centre, consume the required medical and wellness service, make a seamless payment digitally and then walk out of the centre with the medications prepared by the nurses.
It has been observed that digital natives healthcare providers are already pivoting their operations to physical medical centres. And, because they started via the digital route first, it is usually easier for these providers to roll out optimised omni customer journeys which will also add on to the pressure for traditional healthcare providers to accelerate their digital transformation. This is why commercially, implementing embedded finance solutions to bring about richer experiences for customers should be ranked as important as the salience of the service providers.
Even though you are in the healthcare industry, it is possible to bring about richer embedded finance experiences for your customers. Check out our website to find out how some healthcare providers have successfully implemented embedded finance solutions into their businesses.
Darren Thang, Marketing Manager, APAC.