Aside from roadside deposits, Western National offers a courier service to pick up deposits from small-business customers and gives out toy safes for the children of the personal account holders.
It is touches like those that Mr. Hinz says will snare customers frustrated with the impersonal faces of the giants. Customers, he says, want to be greeted by name and treated as though their $2,000 savings accounts or $50,000 small-business loans really matter to Western National.
“We found that especially with small-business lending and banking, being able to know your customer is critical,” he said. “Being part of the community in which they work is critical. The big bank networks aren’t really built to take care of smaller loans.”
Sort of business 101…