Five thin-slicing observations: Credit Unions
Posted by Trey Reeme on January 9th, 2007
Our friend Mike Wagner of Own Your Brand asked me to thin-slice credit unions. If you aren’t familiar with the concept, the term comes up in Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink, and as Mike explains,
“Thin-slicing” refers to the ability of our unconscious to find patterns in situations and behavior based on very narrow slices of experience. The goal of this meme is to get all of us to slow down this process to actually see some of the patterns we recognize long before we consciously know we see them.
What do I think without thinking – what do I “thin-slice” – during a credit union visit:
- Do you care that I’m here? I don’t walk into credit union lobbies daily, but when I do I usually enter as a vendor, a representative of Uncle Trabian. But the first person who greets me doesn’t know that; first off, I’m never in suit and tie. I can safely say I look like Joe Member, age 25-ish, on his lunch break. I walk in looking like the member you should be going after. Do I even get a “hello”?
- Smiles or frowns? They’re contagious, but I’m not talking about smiling fake stock photos plastered throughout posters of the American Dream afforded through a Jumbo CD. I’m talking about the last guy who walked away from the teller line. Is he smiling? Are you smiling? Did you just roll your eyes at him?
- Are you sophisticated? Specifically, are you sophisticated enough for me to trust you with my money? Look, I want friendly, but I don’t want unsophisticated. Think Fast Company vs. Reader’s Digest.
- What about the details? If you have a computer terminal up for public access, if it’s an old CRT monitor with a dirty keyboard, I will laugh at you. If it’s showing a Windows 95 error screen I will go to your restroom and vomit. Details, people!
- Who’s here? You’d be surprised at how many credit unions have unmanned receptionist stations during the middle of the business day. Usually a loan officer scrambles to cover. This irks me. If someone’s there, she is juggling a phone and she plays gatekeeper. It only gets worse when I say, “I’m here to see so-and-so.” I usually get the look: “What are you selling and do you even have an appointment with so-and-so?”
- Bonus: Are you behind glass? Even worse, did you hop on the kiosk trend a few years back and separate your tellers from everyone else? Let the comment backlash begin on this one.
Thanks, Mike, for asking me to participate! I’d love to see the thin-slicing of financial institution websites. What say you, Jim, Colin, and Robbie?
Very insightful thin-slice posting.
Climbing inside our patterns is so crucial for understanding how others understand or mis-understand us.
Thanks for adding your voice the the conversation.
Keep creating, Mike
More on the details / design: 1. Is it an old style stand up teller wicket, and I (the customer) am staring at the back of the monitor, deciphering the label to see make, manufacture date etc! is the monitor surrounded by papers. is your mouse running straight on the desk with no pad. [consider what the customer sees, not just what the employee sees]
2. Are you obviously segregating customers, with special parts of the same line for commercial customers, private banking, all in the same area? [That makes me feel really special about how much you care]
3. Why do you have to keep going to the back somewhere to ask something? Is there something wrong with my transaction – you didn’t tell me why you left. Don’t you have any authority?
4. Your web site says, “achieve my goals”, “freedom”, “security”, “fast and easy”. I really didn’t need to come in the branch, but I had to to do “X”. Yet you don’t seem to know me, or much about how I use your Bank?
Thank you guys for your words of wisdom. As in any job, we sometimes fall into a routine and don’t stop to evaluate our performance. Thank you for giving me things to stop and look at so that I make sure to provide the best in member service for our members. It’s a great way to start the year. :)
These are great things for us to keep in mind… Thanks for the fresh eyes!
Keep ‘em coming!
One of my all-time favorite things to do is to secret shop credit unions. People don’t hire me – I just do it. And if they care I’ll let them know what I experienced. I often take my digital camera with me and “snap” a photo of my first impression. Pictures don’t lie – and they pick up all those pesky details like scotch taped signs on teller row and badly stained chairs in the waiting area and disgruntled greeters with wet hair and Big Gulp cups.
We are in the business of managing moments of truth. Our product is SERVICE and it’s manufactured WITH the member present. You’ll never get a second chance at a first impression.
We manage the hell out of the bottom line – we measure everything about our widget (loan) but who’s responsibility is it to manage the member experience?
That’s why it generally sucks. No one owns it.
Good stuff guys…d
Great post.
I would suggest that to remain (and become even more) competitive, that CUs need to develop the ability to “thin-slice” their members and propsective members.
When someone walks in the door…can the CU rep quickly assess: 1) if they’re happy or sad? 2) sophisticated (based on the questions they ask, not by how they look)? 3) why they’re there? etc.
I’ve been calling this a “sense-and-respond” marketing capability, but thin-slicing is a much cooler term.
Colin: I’m with you – nothing says “upgrade me” like a CRT back with a manufacture date of ‘94.
Jessica and V: I hope my travels bring me your way in the next year, as I bet the rest of CU land could learn lots from how I’m assuming your staff treats your members!
Denise: I’m going to have to steal the camera idea and use it! No better way to capture the thin-slice moment than the initial snapshot.
Ron: Love the idea of applying thin-slicing to how MSRs react to members walking through the lobby doors. Thanks for commenting!
This is another A+ example of something that the marketing department should be handling with regular audits. Member experience is key when it come to single service migration for new members.
Like I have said in other posts. I am a member of several credit unions. Usually the service is at least comparable to the banks I use. But there is one…
The only account I have with this CU is a car loan (8 payments left WooHoo!). Now I will say that this CU was a client of ours until they went in-house with their marketing. Just to make full disclosure ;)
I do regularly visit my credit unions just to see what they are up to, marketing, branch merchandising, training, general cleanliness (I am an owner after all and I like to check on my investments).
This credit union has a branch that is a block away from another business I own so I like to make my car payment in the branch. It is an attractive yet small branch on a busy street. It is about 2500 square feet with beautiful painted murals in the lobby.
Here are my concerns. Every time I visit the branch, there is only 1 person working though there are 6 teller windows. THERE IS ONLY 1 PERSON WORKING! In the whole building there is only one person working. Normally that person is reading a book when I walk in and there is a small stack of novels near her (how many does she read in a day?). She has no idea of who I am or why I am there.
In the brochure holders there are statement inserts that are about 4 years old. I know this because I designed them 4 years ago. I don’t know if they are updated or no one has replaced them for 4 years. There are no pens at the deposit station. The teller reads until the second I touch the counter then feigns a smile and processes my payment. Usually without saying a word.
Needless to say, this branch gets robbed 3 or 4 times a year in a relatively low crime area. Even with a security guard outside.
This branch has been this way for almost 4 years. If your branch is doing so little business, close it. It is definitely not doing anything to enhance the member experience. It makes the CU look like it is in financial trouble. And the last thing you want to do is make your “investors” think you are mismanaging money. There are plenty of community credit unions in town and I only have 8 payments left to make before my account is closed. Give me a reason to give you my money. My wife wants a new car this year. You see I only have 8 months left on my loan. You haven’t told me anything about your low rates or pre-approving me for a new car loan.
I’m willing to listen. We have a relationship after all – don’t we?
Better late than never, right? I’m really not 4 months behind, this just slipped right past me!
Tony touched on a number of strong points. The next CU marketing VP you meet, ask them how often they audit. Chances are you’ll get a blank stare. The member experience buzzword is picking up steam so I think more CU’s are thinking in that direction, but don’t know what to do about it. Marketing has morphed into something more than mailings, so CU’s need to be on top of keeping their carpets updated, using modern pictures in their advertising, and upgrading from CRT’s.
Trey eluded to the sophistication aspect and he’s very right. The average 48 year old female credit union member may not know what CRT or LCD means, but she’ll certainly notice the room a CRT takes up, the outdated mouse that’s being used, or how long she’s waiting because the teller has to “get into the program”. Technology should be the easiest thing to use to impact the member experience. Even if members don’t understand the underlying technology, they understand the decreased wait time because they’re not waiting on network latency issues, the shorter new account time because all of your systems are integrated or the agility of your telephone banking because they can understand the menus.