Ask HN: How can banks improve their branches?

15 points by mdoyle 15 years ago | 13 comments

Hi,

My colleague recently posted this article on HN http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1906251 regarding how banks could better use the internet to better serve their customers.

We were both really pleased with the level of response and Steve was well armed when going to his meeting. They agreed that almost everything that was said would be hugely beneficial to customers and our bank. Excitingly they are now looking into seeing what could be rolled out and are putting a plan together. Thanks for all your feedback - it was massively appreciated.

Steve and I have now been tasked to try and improve the customers experience when they actually go the branch (the physical bank). So I am hoping we may get the same level of response from the HN community again. Is there anything you would like to see in a branch that is currently not there, or does your branch do something particularly useful that others could copy?

An example would be rather than give a customer a printed receipt of the transaction that they did in the branch they could instead get an email or a text message.

anthonycerra 15 years ago |

Give a few branches reverse banking hours. Don't open until 3pm and close at 8 or 9pm.

The biggest complaint I repeatedly hear is that banks aren't open when people get out of work. Some banks try to solve this by staying open later, but that's taxing on the branch. If they open later then they won't have to stay open as long to serve that group of customers.

HeyLaughingBoy 15 years ago | |

Is this really still happening?

All the banks around here are open at least until 5pm and increasingly more of them have branches in supermarkets that are open until 7-8pm. I've so gotten used to it that I assumed the concept of "bankers hours" was a thing of the past!

I'm in the upper Midwest, is it just a regional thing?

sw1205 15 years ago | |

Yes great point - I have never understood why all branch's are only open whilst we are at work

RiderOfGiraffes 15 years ago | | |

I believe it used to be the case that a very large amount of processing was done when the bank wasn't "open". This was done after 3pm, but before 5pm, so the employees could go home. Any customer transactions done after 3pm were queued to be dealt with the following day.

Banks used to close their doors at 3pm - I remember this distinctly when I had my first job. Yes, things are different now, and the processing done is less batch-like, but there are still large amounts of regulation that need to be adhered to, and sometimes not taking transactions is the most efficient way to do that.

It's only sometimes the fault of the bank.

mooism2 15 years ago |

I switched to an online+phone-only bank because my local bank branch wasn't open when I wasn't at work, and the next nearest branch wasn't open after noon on Saturday. I figured, why (effectively) pay for the convenience of a building I can never use? So make sure your branches are open when people want to use them.

lylejohnson 15 years ago |

The only real complaint I have about bank branches is the long wait times, seemingly at all hours of the day. My credit union has recently started providing an express line in addition to the regular line. If you're there for a relatively quick transaction (e.g. simple deposits or withdrawals) you can jump in that line and get finished much more quickly.

nodata 15 years ago |

Let the customers know in advance if you're going to need something weird. Publish a list somewhere.

For example, if a customer wants a loan, publish a list of exactly what ID is accepted. Make sure the list is accurate otherwise it will be useless. Does a driving license count? Sometimes? Always? Never? Be specific.

iworkforthem 15 years ago |

clickable: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1906251

I'm from Asia, not sure if the bank and ATM operate the same. Here's my thoughts about what I like.

- We dun normally go to the bank. Most of the ATM serve us well with the deposit/withdrawal/application of services, etc. Think about the current offerings of the bank which can be moved to the ATMs, internet, etc.

- We do need to go to the bank when there is a sense of urgency to get things done. E.g. loans, lost of cards, etc. All the touch points if handled well by the bank can really improve the customer service level.

Think emotion = help = love.

But after last financial crisis, not sure if they do trust the bank this much now.

champman 15 years ago |

Enable me to do everything online. My bank is scared of letting me do things online like changing my address. Everything I can do in a branch I should be able to do in person-including talking to people (this can be achieved via webchat),

sachitgupta 15 years ago |

Eliminate the branch and let me do everything online / by phone. Reduce costs for the bank and give me better interest rates.

philwelch 15 years ago | |

ING Direct has been doing this for years.

eof 15 years ago |

This is small and sort of outside the context of what you were looking for; but especially for branches that generally have waits, having a queue/line in the middle of the room laid out by ropes is the slightest bit unsettling. It would be nice to have something to lean on.

A local branch of one of the banks around here has a coin counting machine that does not charge a fee; even for non-members. This is really really awesome.

I have done a couple largish transactions that make me feel uncomfortable; when the teller is counting out 'one thousand, two thousand..' It would be nice to have a separate queue for a more private consultation with a teller, even if it included longer wait times.

Beyond that; the very best thing to do, and it's hard or impossible for large banks and branches is just have a real emphasis on customer service. I do most of my banking online; but I have a small local bank I use for some things, and it is so so nice to walk in, have some beautiful girl smile at me, remember my name and not ask for ID.

rdl 15 years ago | |

A lot of banks actually do have private teller areas for big cash transactions, usually in the commercial area, which may have a separate entrance.