As a small business owner, I remember the days when deposits had to be made at my bank by 2:00 PM. The mailman would sometimes be late coming by my office, so I would always stress out over covering the checks I needed to pay or had already written.
I even kept a map of all the bank branches so that if a client called to pick up a check, I knew where I could make the deposit in time.
I remember the day when my bank’s ATM started allowing me to deposit checks as late as 8:00 PM and still make it into my account that day. Of course, by then the mailman wasn’t coming until 5:00. The good news was that deposits could go into my account the same day. The bad news was that checks I had written would also clear the same day.
No more float for small businesses.
But now there is exciting news for small businesses. Businesses can take a photo of checks with their smart phones and deposit them into their checking accounts within seconds. No need for ATMs. No need for computers. No need for the internet. No need for bank branches. And no need for bank employees.
Until recently, banks and bankers have always had a great reputation. In every small town in America everyone knew their local banker. These days are changing.
So what are banks suppose to do? They’ll also need to change. Banks will have to start promoting and marketing these new services before their competition does. And their competition isn’t just the bank across the street anymore – there’s competition coming from everywhere.
Banks can’t just sit back, offer free checking, and expect customers to come flocking in. They’ll need to aggressively promote their mobile banking, online banking, remote capture, and their local community support.
They’ll need to learn to use QR Codes in their ads and how to use text promotions and e-mail campaigns. They’ll need to learn to blog and provide their customers with useful information on how to budget, save, and how to pay for their child’s college education.
Make no mistake: the banking industry is changing. And for bankers who aren’t paying attention, it could mean their jobs.
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Neal Reynolds has worked with hundreds of banks and credit unions around the country helping them to grow core deposits and market share without growing their marketing budgets. Contact him at [email protected].
