Banking on Quality?
Last month my lovely wife, Heidi, stepped in to write "Quality Curmudgeon" for me. Although "Mrs. Curmudgeon" wasn’t nearly as grouchy as I usually am, I believe that she did a great job (of course, I’m a little biased).
Heidi made an excellent point about how sometimes you’ve just got to pitch in and help out, like she did for me by writing the column. Now, you might think that I put my wife in a tight spot by having her write the column (actually, she volunteered to do it). After all, she’s taking care of three kids under the age of six. But Heidi actually enjoyed the task. She’s the one in the family with the degree in English, so she really does enjoy writing.
As I mentioned earlier, Heidi’s column was about pitching in to help your co-workers (or spouse -- perhaps the ultimate co-worker) and customers. Being the curmudgeon that I am, I have to take the more cynical angle: Organizations that seem to go out of their way not to help their customers, all in the name of increased profits. Don’t get me wrong; I’m as capitalist as it gets. I think that companies need to make money, and lots of it. I also believe that a key element of making a lot of money is satisfied customers, and you can’t have satisfied customers if they believe that they’re being ripped off.
One type of organization in particular seems to go out of its way to rip off its customers: banks (or perhaps you prefer the term "financial services organizations" -- the word "service" seems to be frequently forgotten).
Take, for example, the latest trend in credit card payment due dates: Saturdays and Sundays. Why on earth is a credit card payment due on a Sunday? The bank isn’t open on a Sunday. You can’t call the bank on a Sunday. The post office doesn’t deliver mail to the bank on Sunday. Yet, I’ve discovered that some of my credit cards have a Sunday due date. The bank hopes that you’ll wait until the last minute to send in your bill and then be unable to pay it because it isn’t open. That way, you’ll incur the $39 (or more) late fee and the bank can raise your interest rate.
Want to wait until the last minute and pay your credit card online? Watch out. Some banks are charging extra to post your payment the same day they receive it. Washington Mutual, for example, charges $14.95 to post your payment to your credit card account the same day you make it. Otherwise you have to wait three days for your payment to post. This is greed, pure and simple.
Need another example? Why should a bank be allowed to raise your interest rate because of something that didn’t affect it? Here’s an example of what happened to me. I received a credit card with a low interest rate. After a few months went by I discovered that my rate went from a reasonable 7.9 percent to a whopping 22 percent. I had never made a late payment, and I always paid more than the minimum payment due. I was told that because my credit status had changed (i.e., my credit rating) that they had the right to raise my interest rate. The reason for the change in my credit status? I went from being employed (at Quality Digest ) to being self-employed.
I could go on and on, but basically banks are allowed to nickel and dime their customers to death. From painful personal experience, here are a few things you can do to fight back:
• File a complaint with the federal government’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ( www.occ.treas.gov) whenever you believe that your bank is out of control. I’ve discovered that you get amazing results when you ask to speak to a manager and tell him or her that you’re going to file a complaint.
• Get rid of all but one credit card. Get the lowest-rate card you can and keep shopping around.
• Pay your bills on time and pay more than the minimum amount.
• Bank with a small local bank or credit union, not some super-colossal giant. You’ll get better service and better treatment when it’s time for loans and such. Don’t worry; your ATM card will work just about anywhere you are, no matter who issues it.
Of course, it’s easy to pick on banks and their evil, money-grubbing policies, but what does that have to do with us as quality professionals? Well, the next time you’re thinking about making a change in policy that affects your customers, ask yourself if it would pass the bank test. Ask yourself the following questions:
• Will this policy do nothing but line our coffers and annoy our customers?
• Are we being unreasonable jerks?
• Do we understand what our customers are going through, and can we help them grow their business so they can, in turn, help us grow ours?
What ticks you off? How has your bank offended you? How do you make sure that your company isn’t perceived as the First National Bank of Greed? Post your thoughts at www.qualitycurmudgeon.com. Also, don’t forget, post your time-saving quality hacks at www.qualityhacks.com.
Scott M. Paton is Quality Digest’s editor at large.
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