High Touch - High Tech; A Community Bank Expands Client Services Through Technology

When do you bank?  Where do you bank?  When and where would you prefer to bank?

Your answer to these three questions offers insight into banking options that are currently available to you as a consumer.  A little more than two decades ago, all banking was done at what the industry refers to as a "bricks & mortar" facility.  You as the consumer were limited to banking between certain hours and at certain physical locations determined by your bank.  Access to your funds for any type of transaction closed when the bank shut its doors and tough luck if you hadn't made your weekend cash withdrawal before 4:00 pm on Friday!  Transferring funds between accounts required a physical trip to the bank that often became a mad dash first thing in the morning if you discovered that your account was accidentally overdrawn.

Banking became more convenient in the 1970's with the introduction of Automatic Teller Machines or ATMs.  The ability to make cash withdrawals or transfer funds between accounts during non-bank hours was a tremendous service to consumers though the public's initial acceptance of this new form of banking was coolly received at best.  Today, ATMs have become an integral part of our banking routine.

In the latter half of the 1980's, the personal computer enabled consumers to set up accounts and dictate instructions for paying bills on-line.  More often than not, a check was drafted by the on-line service and forwarded to the payee.  Total electronic transactions were rare.

Today, the Internet has become ubiquitous.  It has touched and become a part of our daily lives in a relatively short period of time.  It would be conservative to state that most people have at least one active or passive Internet experience a day.  Active experiences include sending or receiving e-mail, ordering products or information on-line, performing research for work or general web surfing for pleasure.  Even those who have never connected to the Internet (yes there still are a few!) have a passive Internet experience when they read articles in the paper or see URL's for company web sites on television or the print media.

As of late 1998, there were over 100 million Internet users worldwide with over 60 million users living in the United States.  These numbers increase daily as people log on to the Internet for the first time.  According to an Appen Newspaper survey, 85.4% of the homes in North Fulton County have a home computer and approximately 71.5% have Internet access.  Yet even with these numbers, the banking industry in general has been slow to add Internet Banking as a service.  In late 1998, The General Accounting Office predicted that 5,250 banks, nearly half of the 10,500 banks nationwide, were expected to have some type of presence on the Internet.  However, of the 5,250 banks with an Internet presence, only 300 actually let customers use the Net to transfer funds, check account activity, pay bills electronically and fill out a loan application.  Of the 7% of all national households that subscribe to some form of Web banking, only 4 to 5% use it regularly.

Why has the banking industry in general been slow to integrate Internet banking technology into their mix of products?  Who are today's leaders in Internet banking?  The answers are not really surprising after you debunk the myths about large and small banks.

First, one would think that the larger banks are leading the way.  The truth is that they are not!  Technology has leveled the playing field in the banking industry.  The larger banks are not the only ones with access to the computer technologies that enhance the customer's banking experience.  The sheer size of the larger banks and investment in older main frame computer technology prevented them from acquiring and developing newer technologies.  This is why while most of the large banks have an Internet site, only 10% offer interactive services.

The real leaders have been smaller regional and community banks.  The smaller banks have the ability to move quickly.  And thanks to lower prices for high performing computers, smaller banks have been able to economically purchase and quickly adopt banking technology that enhances the customer's banking experience.  The smaller banks have made technology a primary competitive advantage by implementing interactive banking web sites.  A networked PC environment can enable a small bank to deliver many of the same services as the larger banks, which lends truth to the expression, "everybody is the same size on the Internet."

Ben Dyer is CEO and President of Intellimedia Commerce, an Atlanta company that focuses on the use of the Internet to deliver customer service - including e-mail direct marketing and inbound e-mail response along with e-commerce.  He firmly believes that e-commerce is where the Internet reaches its highest calling.  Dyer observes that "smart companies use the Internet to engage their customers by delivering on-line sales propositions the customers are interested in, enabling them to get more information to make a decision, and then allowing them to act by making a purchase through e-commerce.  In particular, these smart companies recognize the power and efficiency of communicating via e-mail, which has become the real workhorse of the Internet.  They treat this medium with the same care and the same technology investment as any other communications channel - phone, fax, or postal mail."

Technology is only one part of the competitive equation though.  A niche bank should be able to use technology combined with first-hand knowledge of the local market to compete with the larger banks.  According to Dyer, "banking from the consumers' viewpoint involves trust and touch.  To be successful on the Internet, a bank must be able to translate these factors as they move from a physical address on Main Street to a URL address in cyber space."

Community banks are using the convenience of interactive Internet banking as a competitive strategy.  Typically, small community banks do not have as many branch offices as the larger banks.  The limited number of offices and time required to travel to these offices can put the community bank at a competitive disadvantage.  By offering services on the Internet, both time and distance become a moot point.

North Atlanta National Bank has integrated the Internet into its strategic plan.  At present, we have one office located at 10595 Old Alabama Road Connector in Alpharetta to serve our customers.  This office is open from 9:00am to 4:00pm, Monday through Friday.  We also provide full interactive service to our customers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at www.nanb.com on the Internet.

Our philosophy at NANB is to be a "High Touch - High Tech" bank in providing services to our clients, whether they are individuals or small businesses.  We offer a friendly face and voice to advise and answer our clients' banking questions when they visit or call our office.  This is "High Touch".  Our local staff knows our clients and takes a personal interest and pride in providing the highest level of banking services to them.  While larger banks also offer telephone services, talking to an out-of-state call center operator to resolve a question does not offer the same level of personal service.

One way that we have implemented High Tech is through our Internet site at www.nanb.com .  We look at our web site as one more time and place that we can be open to provide full banking service to our customers.  Our clients can view their account balances and transactions, transfer money between accounts and make payments on loans, order checks, issue a request to stop payment on a check and change their pin number.  Our clients can also pay their bills, view payments that are pending, view payment histories and add new payees.

At NANB, we implemented High Tech for the convenience of our clients while keeping in mind that our High Touch philosophy compliments these efforts.  We acknowledge that the Internet has shifted the balance of power from us the service provider to you, the consumer.  We understand that on the Internet you are in control.  This is why we provide fully interactive Internet banking services.  Your bank on the Internet is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  So if you prefer to pay your bills from the convenience of your home at 3:00 pm on Sunday, you can.  But as your local banker, you can also call us if you have any questions about your account.

On behalf of the staff at North Atlanta National Bank, we encourage you to call us or visit our bank in Alpharetta or on the Internet at www.nanb.com for more information.

Jimmy Walker is the Chairman and CEO of the North Atlanta National Bank and also serves on the Board of Directors for the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce.   North Atlanta National Bank is located at 10595 Old Alabama Road Connector, Suite 21, in Alpharetta, GA.  For more information, call 678.277.8400 or visit the bank's web site at www.nanb.com.

** This article was originally published on March 22nd, 1999 in the "North Fulton Insider", a publication of the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce.