ABA Banking Journal - September 2007 - (Page 8)

briefing To Geisel, the subprime debacle is a prime example. “Now we have state legislatures and Congress and our regulators who are all going to solve the problem,” says Geisel. The solutions, he adds, may saddle banks with additional restrictions and not address the real abuses. “I think one of the ways to combat issues like subprime is a more educated consumer,” he says. “If kids graduate high school with some basic financial literacy, then subprime issues are less likely.” One way to achieve that is for banks and their trade associations to partner with existing organizations, including schools. In Maryland, says Geisel, only five school systems have a financial literacy curriculum. Still, he says, that’s something to start with, and ABA’s Education Foundation is a resource for doing this. The Maryland Bankers Association, he says, is also looking at building a partnership with Junior Achievement. Provident Bank on its own works closely with Operation HOPE, the Los Angeles-based organization whose goal is inner-city empowerment. In terms of educating adult populations, an area on which less attention is focused, according to Geisel, Provident is working with the Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service in an annual financial literacy program for low-income residents, and with Healthy Neighborhoods, a local housing organization. “Part of our selling process is asking the right questions so that we match the product to the need. Every interaction we have with the customer is an educational opportunity,” Geisel continues. “If we’re asking the right questions, not only are we educating consumers, but we’re understanding their needs.” That sometimes means not selling a product, or selling a less profitable one. “We wouldn’t want to sell a consumer a product that isn’t right for them because we know that’s not going to be right for us in the long run,” says Geisel. “That’s why customer attrition rates are as important to us as cross-sell rates. Your long-term credibility is enhanced by the fact that you’re willing to say to the customer, ‘You don’t need that more expensive checking account. This is the right one for you.’” It is through this combination of bank efforts and better coordinated partnerships between banks, associations, and other organizations that Geisel believes financial literacy can be improved. BJ Selling is educating As mentioned earlier, Gary Geisel Geisel’s second reason to do a better job at building financial literacy is customer retention. The connection may not be obvious at first. Geisel uses the analogy of a doctor and patient. “A doctor could do a diagnosis without your help,” he says, “but chances are the doctor could complete the diagnosis more quickly and more accurately if you were an informed part of the dialog. Can a banker recommend the right product for a customer without the customer’s help?” Geisel asks. “Probably. But it’s more likely that they’ll find the right product if the customer” has some financial knowledge. But because many people don’t have such knowledge, Provident has, for years, been educating people in its sales efforts. Sleight of mind J By Lillian Nielsen Past solutions at ababj.com uly’s TRY, TRY AGAIN puzzle brought in a good return, and most of the answers were right. The correct answer was that the error occurred in step five as you can see in the table below. The first three to respond with the correct answer were: Mike Stewart, PMP, CBCP, vice-president project management, SunTrust Bank, Atlanta, Ga., David Ribar, vice-president, Bank of America, Charlotte, N.C., and Walter E. Fry, president, First State Bank, Kiowa, Kan. Step 7: combine a=2a A legal move Step 8: divide by a 1=2 Except for one move, you might have had a career developing tax forms. Step 5 cancel (b-a)? No Way! This month’s puzzle takes us back to a time when we published our own magazine, called Today’s Refinery, which, of course, included a puzzle feature. Refiners, like bankers, are a highly intelligent group, and they decided to come up with a puzzle which would stump Lillian, The Puzzle Lady. Below is their puzzle in its entirety—have fun with it! NUMBERS AND CUBES Find two numbers such that their sum is equal to the sum of their cubes. There are a lot of pairs of numbers that fit this requirement. But, if the two numbers are expressed as fractions with the denominators the same, and the number three separating the two numerators, and the number two separating the denominator from one of the numerators, there is only one answer. Send your replies to PUZZLES on our website: www.ababj.com. Be sure to include your name, title, company, city, and state as well as any comments you wish to make. Step 1: Given a=b No problem Step 2: multiply by b ab=b2 No problem Step 3: subtract a2 ab-a2=b2-a2 If you insist Step 4: factor a(b-a)=(b+a)(b-a) Makes sense Step 5: cancel (b-a) a=b+a This is not logical, Mr. Spock. Since (b-a)=0. Dividing both sides by 0 is not Kosher. Step 6: substitute a for b a=a+a Acceptable 8 SEPTEMBER 2007/ABA BANKING JOURNAL www.ababj.com/subscribe.html http://www.mdbankers.com http://web.provbank.com http://www.ababj.com/puzzle/winners.html http://www.ababj.com/puzzle/puzzle.html http://www.ababj.com/subscribe.html

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ABA Banking Journal - September 2007

Contents Editor's Column Briefing: Why Money Sense is a Top Priority Briefing: Sleight of Mind Briefing: Snapshot: What the First Half Tells Us About the Second Half Briefing: ABA Resources ABA Chairman’s Position Briefing: Get Away and Get Ahead: ABA's Banking Leaders Forum Community Banking: Trim the Fat: Winning the "Battle of the Buck" Community Banking: Pass the Aspirin Cover Story: Meeting the Challenge of the "Unbanked" Bank Marketing: Don't Miss the Boom! On the Job: Time to Power Up Your Presentations? Insurance Sales: The Art & Craft of Cross Selling Tech Topics: The Price is Right? Tech Topics: Security: Protect Information First Tech Topics: Hackers for Hire? You Bet'cha Tech Topics: Case in Point: Tellers Scan, Too, at First Federal Compliance Clinic: Adverse Action Clarified The Economy Banker’s Mart To Advertise/Index of Advertisers

ABA Banking Journal - September 2007

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