This thesis was commissioned by Tampereen Seudun Osuuspankki, which wanted to determine what the ultimate customer experience is for young people where bank and insurance services are concerned. Research was carried out with the main objective of finding out what customer service should be like in personal meetings, on the phone and in other service channels. The research also examined what kind of advertising is effec-tive with young people, and how a bank or an insurance company should present them-selves in social media. In addition, the aim was to find out how much personal recommendations and the quality of customer service affect purchasing decisions.

In the theoretical section, customer service is defined, and the factors which influence it are discussed. The primary research material consists of books and publications dealing with a range of customer experience and banking operations. The research was a qualitative study. The data collection methods used were group discussions and interviews. They were conducted in March 2013 in various educational institutions. The informants were people in the 13-27 age-group.

The study found that in customer service situations, young people value customer-centredness, simplicity, clarity, speed, friendliness, honesty, product knowledge, as well as equality. The customer premises must be clearly laid out, so that customers know immediately on entering the building where they should go to conduct their business. Conference facilities must be designed to protect each customer’s privacy; customer meetings must not be visible to others and areas must have good sound insulation so that customer conversations cannot be overheard.

Young people do not like banks or insurance companies calling clients unnecessarily, unless there is some benefit to be offered or some new service which is suitable for that particular customer. For young people, quality of customer service and personal rec-ommendations from friends influence the purchasing decision more than advertising. The study revealed the types of advertising which young people like. Excellent service would get them to recommend the service to others. Young people think that social media is not the best advertising channel for banking and insurance services.

Banks and insurance companies should develop the quality of their customer service and arrange on-going training for their employees, so that customers will recommend to others services. Investment should be made in the smooth functioning of the various service channels, and waiting and response times must be short.