Here are three key ways in which ATM deployments can offer a tangible return on investment that can be measured on your bottom line.

1. A primary transaction interface

Many key interactions that consumers would have had to complete at the counter in the past can now be carried

out via ATMs. This offers banks an opportunity to create revenue through per-transaction fees. While these won't

be compulsory for customers – the option of speaking to a teller in-branch is not going away any time soon – a

small charge for the convenience of self-service is a price many people will be happy to pay.

Whether it's settling bills, depositing cash, foreign currency transactions or paying a fine, self-service ATMs are

fast, simple and can create revenue. For instance, Citibank Romania has adopted the latest ATM technology to

support a fully automated bill payment solution that is widely used by utilities companies in the country, which

processes some 2,000 bill payments a month, generating per-transaction fees each time.

2. Market to your customers

By now, we're all familiar with ATMs that carry advertising on their screens when not in use, which act as useful

ways for operators to make additional money. This is just the start of how the technology can be turned into a

powerful platform for marketing to customers.

With banks today collecting huge amounts of data on their customers and being able to process this data in real-

time, there's a great opportunity to deliver personalised offers, such as loan deals, at the ATM where consumers

are already thinking about their finances and would be more receptive to such offers.

This has already shown proven results. For example, OCBC Bank in Singapore has seen take-up rates for ATM-

delivered offers that are 50 percent higher than traditional direct mail campaigns and are half the cost.

3. Make the most of your staff

Another benefit of having an effective ATM solution is that, with more people turning to self-service, this can free

up staff in branch to spend more time dealing with revenue-generating activities.

Cash handling can take up to 50 percent of a teller's time and having large numbers of people wanting to deposit

cash at the counter leads to long lines, and a poorer experience for everyone.

But if consumers can feel confident about using self-service options, this leaves tellers free to offer customers who

need more personal service the right products to help create revenue for the bank, and make their customers happier.

Neill Harris