How carbon insights drive customer engagement

Customers expect more personalised solutions, and as many are becoming more environmentally conscious, they are looking to banks to provide information about the impact of their spending. Our research highlights this demand, revealing that 60% want their bank to provide carbon footprint information. And this figure was even higher for those under 25 (75%). This presents an opportunity for banks to foster engagement through sustainability. 

Financial institutions are uniquely positioned to help customers understand and reduce their carbon footprint. As emissions are often linked with spending, banks can estimate customers’ carbon footprint using transactional data. They can then use these insights to encourage more sustainable consumption. For example, Cogo uses customers’ banking transactions to calculate the carbon footprint of purchasing clothes, we then estimate how much lower the footprint would be for the equivalent second-hand purchase. Equipping people with this knowledge helps improve carbon literacy. Consequently, encouraging people to take positive steps to reduce their environmental impact. 

Notably, our data shows that 37% of users commit to recommended climate actions, resulting in an average saving of 65kg CO2e per month, culminating in a significant collective impact when amplified across a bank’s customer base. This not only benefits the climate, but banks also generate significant value by reducing their scope 3 emissions and improving the accuracy of their financed emissions reporting.

Once banks engage users and qualify their customer base, they can then seamlessly launch embedded, low-carbon financing products at the point of need. This could include EV loans, green mortgages or home energy retrofit propositions. 

In a recent study by McKinsey, 64% of customers said they were more likely to respond to an offer from a bank on installing solar panels compared to working directly with the supplier. Customers trust banks to provide them with advice, and banks can leverage this to promote more sustainable purchasing behaviour. 

When banks provide personalised carbon insights and green products, it transforms routine financial wellness checks into an engaging experience of awareness and sustainable behaviour change. This helps banks cement customer loyalty and progress towards achieving climate goals. 

Elevate engagement with Cogo

Cogo is more than a carbon calculator, our Personal Carbon Manager combines market-specific carbon data and behavioural science techniques, like nudges, cues, feedback and rewards, to drive real sustainable behaviour change and engagement.

Customers gain access to a live transaction feed that gives them information about their carbon footprint and their progress towards their set carbon budget. We also send push notifications to encourage users to check their carbon footprint throughout the month, helping to increase engagement.

Our banking partners have experienced significant increases in customer engagement, with dwell times per visit exceeding four minutes. Get in touch with our team to learn how our carbon insights solution can increase your customer engagement.