What banks (and really, any industry) can learn from the current spike in layoffs is that former employees can be quite vocal about their last moments with a company. Consider mortgage company Better.com’s callous firing of 900 people via Zoom. [Continue]
BankBeat’s Greg McCurry discusses the importance of financial literacy and saving with Kathleen Craig, founder and CEO of Plinqit, and Roger Sundermeier, Jr., SVP/Chief Branding Officer with First Arkansas Bank & Trust, Jacksonville, Ark. [Continue]
If your bank is looking to grow niche products and services, how do you spread the word? Aggressive marketing is certainly one tactic, but word of mouth (especially within a community) can also expand your reach. [Continue]
During the pandemic, we saw a surge in app-based services that offered grocery delivery, food and retail products delivery, and services such as dog walking and even child care. Now that the pandemic has mostly dissipated, we are seeing a return to pre-pandemic usage levels of rideshare services such as Uber and Lyft. [Continue]
The March 2022 FDIC publication, “Supervisory Highlights,” included a warning to banks regarding recent lawsuits and examination findings wherein banks have charged more than one NSF fee for the same transaction. This was particularly happening on returned checks re-presented for payment. [Continue]
Over the last 40 years, prepaid cards were launched to meet rising payment needs of various customer segments and industry processes. Starting in the late 1980s, USTelecom adopted the single purpose (closed-loop) prepaid phone card. [Continue]
Building a bank today might require a refocus on resources as the country prepares for the post-pandemic future. In today’s climate, bankers might decide to double-down on offerings or explore creative ways to engage their communities through outreach and partnerships. [Continue]
Data on the FDIC website shows that 2,469 insured institutions were chartered in 1922 or earlier. These centenarians and other long established banks generally have a rich tradition. If you work in one of these banks, I think this is your moment. [Continue]
Just 15 percent of community banks have already deployed chatbots with another 19 percent planning to invest and/or implement this year. The trend is obvious. The effectiveness, perhaps, is yet to be determined. We’ve all been on the receiving end of a useless chatbot, and, let’s face it, there are a lot of useless chatbots in the world. Don’t implement a chatbot simply because “everyone else is doing it.” Think about what you hope to accomplish and examine a chatbot’s features before making a decision. [Continue]
Many industries will not hire a salesperson without an evaluation to determine the candidate’s skill level. While a robust resume or a smooth interview can easily impress, assessing actual skill levels can reveal critical tendencies and potential weaknesses that CEOs need to know before making a job offer. Banks realize that they need to know this same information about their current sales team. [Continue]