ABA Banking Journal - June 2008 - (Page 63)

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION ABA Banking Journal’s White Paper for June 2008: Branch Design Trends EXECUTIVE SUMMARY For the full article go to http://www.ababj.com Creating the Customer Experience By William Bily Vice President of Design DEI Incorporated Phone: 513-825-5800 Email: bbily@dei-corp.com Web: www.dei-corp.com hink back to when you were a child. My parents often took me to “family-friendly” restaurants. Now when I take my children out for dinner, I can chose anywhere from Max & Erma’s to PF Changs. And yet just because its family-friendly doesn’t mean I lose the experience of a nice dinner or good customer-service. Odds are because it was such a positive experience, I’ll go back with or without my children. Now, consider your banking experience when you were younger. Most children often accompanied their parents to the bank just to get the lollipop. But anymore, do you even get the lollipop? The financial industry has been slow to catch on to the idea of retail banking – creating a destination where your staff can create relationships and cross-sell. Dialog Banking and the Customer Experience Dialog Banking is a current trend that meets the needs of most retail-driven financial institutions. This delivery system can be more traditional or stepped up to offer a “Super CSR,” a Customer Service Representative cross-trained to perform multiple functions. This moves away from the typical handoff from one employee to another, creates another level of trust, and allows more time for your CSR to connect with the customer. Today, banking isn’t just about quick and efficient service. It’s about building relationships. Why else would they come back? The bank down the street offers the same rates, hours, and online banking options. An abundance of research goes into designing a branch environment that appeals to your target market. Design inspiration is drawn from the brand, regional influences, demographics, and the subculture and personality of the financial institution. These variables, which are unique to each financial institution, leverage your brand and result in an individual proprietary look for each bank. In Athens, Ohio, Hocking Valley Bank renovated their main office. The design was inspired by the bank’s history while also incorporating Dialog Banking. In an over banked T community, Dialog Banking has helped differentiate them from the competition and has attracted new customers. Coupled with other marketing campaigns, deposits are up 13% from a year ago since the renovation. “We’ve created a destination. We have customers come in to do some quick transactions but stay to enjoy the environment,” says Bobo. “Customers have commented that this is something they expect to see in New York, but because the overall design incorporates elements from our history and community, they find it very comfortable.” The Effects of Real Estate Trends in real estate are changing. Not only has the market had a strong influence, but open air malls, or “lifestyle centers,” are becoming the new standard. With the trend increasing toward open air malls, banks can now occupy lease space, avoiding the investment of purchasing land. Becoming part of the “lifestyle center” atmosphere does increase the need to step up the customer retail experience. With your branch in line with brand focused stores like Crate & Barrel or Anthropologie, the traditional branch will not attract retail shoppers. Further, higher design expectations are being implemented in many of the new development guidelines for these centers. The developers themselves have discovered the power of the consumer experience. It is clear that over time, consumer expectations have reached an all–time high. With a thoughtful approach, retail strategies can be developed that will enhance any business plan. Retail, branding, and creating a destination should be a part of your plans. The transaction at the branch is becoming secondary while the connection with the customer is primary. Isn’t it time to connect? About the Author William Bily is the Vice President of Design for DEI Incorporated. He can be contacted at bbily@dei-corp.com or 513-825-5800. Subscribe at www.ababj.com ABA BANKING JOURNAL/JUNE 2008 63 http://www.ababj.com//index.php?option=com_content&task=category§ionid=11&id=21&Itemid=132 http://www.dei-corp.com http://www.ababj.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ABA Banking Journal - June 2008

ABA Banking Journal - June 2008 Contents Editor’s Column Do Fee-based Services Have an Edge? Snapshot: Net Interest Margins Vary Sharply with Size 100th Anniversary: Then & Now Letters ABA Resources ABA Chairman’s Position "What? No Annual Surprise Bonus?" Pass the Aspirin Cover Story: Top Community Banks: How They Did... ...And How They Did It Charter Bank First East Side Savings Bank Mackinac Financial Corp. The Peoples Bank Managing the E-mail Monster In Brief Handling PEPs in the Age of "L'affaire Spitzer" Mailbox Banker’s Mart To Advertise/Index of Advertisers The Economy

ABA Banking Journal - June 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.