West Gate Bank is a local community bank focused on Lincoln and Lincoln’s residents, and believes in the importance of banking relationships – understanding the entire customer relationship, and working hand-in-hand to help their customers achieve their dreams.
In 2009 West Gate Bank launched a new deposit strategy that focused on growing their checking accounts, and in changing the culture in their branches.
After working with Haberfeld Associates, a consulting company based in Lincoln, West Gate Bank set out to implement and execute their revised checking account strategy, to improve their customer experience, and to grow their checking account base.
The strategy has been successful in every aspect.
”We have increased our core accounts by 57.4% since launching our new strategy in 2009”, reports Doug Carey, Executive Vice President for Retail Banking at West Gate Bank. “Our strategy is so simple it is deceiving; treat every prospect and customer with dignity and respect, make sure they know we know how important they are to us, make rules for the 99% instead of the 1%, and be a nice bank. The key is to have every employee executing that strategy consistently.”
“We work with our front line employees constantly to make sure we execute our strategy with every opportunity we have, to insure we are consistent in presenting our account offerings to every prospect, including consultative selling of additional products – debit cards, on-line banking, on-line bill-pay, electronic statements, safe deposit boxes, mobile money, and other ancillary products we have available.”
Carey reports all retail staff members are trained to recognize sales opportunities and suggest solutions to customers and prospects, both during a new account session as well as throughout the day in normal casual conversations.
”Our employees are confident in our products, and are confident in selling them, as well as being trained to make professional referrals to other West Gate Bank business lines when those opportunities are uncovered” Carey states. “Our Branch Managers and Cash Management team are constantly out looking for new customers – business and consumer – who we can help, while our Assistant Managers, Bankers, and Tellers are executing our strategy to provide first-rate service to the people who are in our branch lobbies”.
West Gate Bank has doubled their core deposit balances since January of 2009, and recently opened their 10,000th new checking account since the new strategy was launched.
”Our employees understand their neighbors in Lincoln, and work hard to provide the best possible experience for them – in person, over the telephone, through email, or any other method of contact the customer or prospect chooses”, says Carey. “Every bank claims to provide the best customer service. At West Gate Bank, our employees embrace that attitude, and deliver it.”
More information about West Gate Bank and their services can be found online at www.westgatebank.com.