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7 Deadly Sins of a Bad Branch Strategy – Part 2

Here we are again, naturally. The thrilling conclusion of the final 3 sins (Part 1 is Here). If this was a bad Jaws movie sequel, we’d call this part, “The Revenge,” but we’ll keep it hip and relevant and call this one, “End Game.”

So without further ado, here are the final 3 sins we’re all guilty of in some form:

5. OMNI-CHANNEL

SIN: For being too heavily weighted in one customer touch point.

It may sound like a fancy word, but omni-channel is really just the idea of ALL customer touch points not only existing, but existing harmoniously and purposefully with one another. What is born online, may very well terminate in a branch and vice versa. The right branch strategy will take the omni-channel elements into account, have equal weight at the table and understand how they all work together. The epitaph of brick and mortar has yet to be written. After all, 90% of sales still occur at a traditional store across general retail.

6. PEOPLE

SIN: For deploying poorly trained and disengaged employees.

Have you ever been to a restaurant where the food is “fine” but the service is great? You probably keep going back. Conversely, you’ve probably been to a restaurant where the food was really good, but the service lacked – and you probably haven’t been back. Why would your branch be any different? Before we even get to whether your staff has been properly and continually trained, were they even part of the original branch transformation strategy? Taking a step prior in this regard can really go a long way. Your great branch strategy and amazing design will all be for naught when your customers walk into a branch where the staff are disengaged, feel disassociated from the branch, feel that the “new” way of doing things is not their thing, more less, even understand why the technology is there in the first place. Train them well, but make them feel germane to the mission and you will have evangelists delivering amazing customer service.

7. EXPERIENCE

SIN: For not developing and delivering on a cohesive strategy and executing flawlessly to delight your customers.

When you take the right approach and blend of the six elements above, mix them together with purpose and execution, you have great customer experience. But don’t be confused here. “Customer Service” is NOT “Customer Experience.” A successfully executed transaction may not necessarily have a customer walking out the door, feeling delighted and ready to tell their friends and family it’s time to make the switch. Think big picture here. There’s more than completing the transactional circle of life from hello to goodbye. Remove barriers. Be intuitive. Enable a great flow through design, in the right part of town, with the right sized branch. Have technology enable, not scare. Have your people embody your mission and values, deliver on the promise and make every single customer who walks in want to come back, regardless of the online conveniences of some transactions. That’s a great experience.

For the sins above we have committed, there is not reason to dwell in the past.

Let’s do something about it. If you’re guilty, there’s no judgement here. All we ask is that you begin purging these sins, and that may very well start by you contacting the experts at LEVEL5.

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