Your money at work?

[jimbur]

I read an article in "The Age" this morning about the NAB. In part it reads,

"banks were no longer purely financial institutions but also retail spaces competing for people's time and attention against a whole range of retailers.
The branches will also use scent, music and digital displays to improve customers' experience,....."

Is it just me getting old or is it an advertising consultant's fantasy trip put into practice at the expense of bank customers (or should I say clients)?
Cheers,
JIm

[Scribbly Gum]

I read an article in "The Age" this morning about the NAB. In part it reads,

"banks were no longer purely financial institutions but also retail spaces competing for people's time and attention against a whole range of retailers.
The branches will also use scent, music and digital displays to improve customers' experience,....."

Is it just me getting old or is it an advertiser's fantasy trip put into practice at the expense of bank customers (or should I say clients)?
Cheers,
JIm

Banks have not had clients or customers for years.

What they have now are statistics - everything depends on throughput and raw numbers. Everyone in the banks is paid on performance, and getting the money out of customers is the rule.
Gone are the days when poor schmucks like us trusted our savings to the bank so that we could earn some interest - and banks considered it a privilege and paid us a dividend - interest.
Now it costs us money to have our money in a bank - bank fees - and the interest is insignificant. These bank profits are paid to others - the shareholders and directors.
We are in a net loss position by using the banks.
The banks have taken the reverse position - that it is a service to us and that we should pay for it.

When the Commonwealth Bank was owned by the taxpayer before it was sold off - the other banks had a competitor that was there for the public good and they were forced to be competitive with it. Bank service was good. There is no longer this moderating influence on banking greed.

I believe that there is a strong case for the re-establishment of a People's Bank - to keep all of the others honest. It would not be designed to create ever higher profit, so that bigger dividends could be paid to shareholders and the CEO's receive obscene bonuses - instead, it would generate sufficient profit to actually minimise fees, and pay interest on savings that is a net plus to the customer. Interest charges would be in line with this policy - producing cheaper loans.
The other banks would have to fall into line or lose their customer base.

Rant off!

SG

[snafuspyramid]

It's not an entirely bad thing. Because the banks are now so busy grovelling to sell you things, they'll actually present some decent customer service. Another reason why increased competition is good, I think.

What annoys me about the increasingly aggressive corporatism of the banks is that they still provide ridiculous amounts of credit to people who, obviously, can never repay it.

It's not as bad as in the US, granted, but nonetheless, some of the sh*t I see at work beggars belief.

No job, single, five children? Sure, have a $30,000 credit card debt.

And people just think it's free money.

Credit cards are the devil.

[snafuspyramid]

Sorry, when I say credit, I actually mean DEBT.

I think everyone would behave a little better if the cashier had to ask: "will that be savings, or debt?"

[jimbur]

I'm with you SG.
Cheers,
Jim

[kiwigeo]

Gone are the days when poor schmucks like us trusted our savings to the bank so that we could earn some interest - and banks considered it a privilege and paid us a dividend - interest.

You can be a smart schmuck and buy shares in the bank. The dividend yield on my ANZ shares is around 6.5% at the moment and the dividend is fully franked.

[jimbur]

You can be a smart schmuck and buy shares in the bank. The dividend yield on my ANZ shares is around 6.5% at the moment and the dividend is fully franked.

Do they send you a scented, musical cheque or do you get it digitally the same as us poor schmucks
Cheers,
Jim

[kiwigeo]

Do they send you a scented, musical cheque or do you get it digitally the same as us poor schmucks
Cheers,
Jim

I get it digitally....straight into my super fund.

[damian]

Yes bank shares are a bargain right now.

As for your savings I've been with a small credit union for 20 years, and frankly get quite bored hearing people whinge about their banks.

The staff at my credit union know me by christian name. I have a cheque account, savings including quite a bit of money at a competitive rate and they have loaned me money in the past. They have always dealt with me fairly and gone well above in giving me information and advice when I needed it.

I pay a small monthly fee on my visa card and occasionally on other services I use, which I feel are fair. Apart from the visa I pay no regular fees. I am 100% happy with my credit union and they have had all my business for a couple of decades now.

So I'll ask you the question I ask every time I'm bombarded with the old boring bank bashing:

Why don't you take your business elsewhere ? I do every time a business mistreats me, why don't you ?

[Bushmiller]

So I'll ask you the question I ask every time I'm bombarded with the old boring bank bashing:

Why don't you take your business elsewhere ? I do every time a business mistreats me, why don't you ?

Damian

A good point, particularly now legislation has removed exit fees. I have heard it said that the customer drives business. By shopping around we could do just that.

Regards
Paul

[damian]

The mortgage is a tricky thing. It's expensive to change banks on that, but that doesn't mean you need to have any other account with them. With modern technology your other institution can make your payments automatically, so you can shop around your other business for an institution that looks after you.

Better yet get your loan with a good provider in the first place.

I had an account briefly with the crummywealth when I was young. Took me no time at all to figure out I was being shafted.

When I bought my home my CU couldn't lend to me as it was interstate, so I approached queensland teachers. Again I had a spectacular experience. The gentleman I dealt with worked hard with me to find a way I could borrow the money. Because of a pecularity in my situation I ended up with a mortgage and a personal loan. That got me past the "system" and I paid both back in 3 years. No penalties, no exit fees, just the contract honoured by both parties and no surprises.

I could not have been happier.

It is worth noting that while the interest rate on CU loans may appear higher they usually bundle the fees into it, whereas the major banks try to hide them in complex contracts. You have to run the numbers carefully.

I have heard the smaller banks are better with customer service and fees also, so they might be worth a look.

2c

[jimbur]

It's hardly a fair cross-section of the community but so far no-one seems attracted by the idea of scent and/or music with their banking/borrowing.
Cheers,
Jim

[Scribbly Gum]

It's hardly a fair cross-section of the community but so far no-one seems attracted by the idea of scent and/or music with their banking/borrowing.
Cheers,
Jim

There's a bakery in Beechworth run by Tom O'Toole. He owns a couple of others as well.
One of the things he does is to pipe the smell of cooking from the kitchens out to the footpath so that passers by have an olfactory moment as they approach.
He is very successful at selling bread - so it must work.
Gotta go, I smell something happening in our kitchen.
SG

[Bushmiller]

Scribbly

The Beechworth bakery, which I have never visited, is legendry. A marketing experience extraordinaire. I think he relies on many ploys not to mention a confluence of tourist trails.

Perhaps the banks could build at the front of a bakery so you had to walk through the smell of fresh baked bread and cakes. It might bring the bakery down, although it shouldn't be for a lack of dough.

I am in the process of re-negotiating a mortgage and despite Damian's scepticism regarding such loans, it is looking good so far. An attractive and helpful bank manager (female) is making the transition much easier to bear.

Regards
Paul

[Geoff Dean]

Don't believe all you read about the Beechworth Bakery. I have had a few experiences there that are not as wonderful as those stated in all his literature.