BOSTON, April12, 2010: In a survey of nearly 4,000 US banking customers, ath Power Consulting, found that fewer than 50% of customers were highly satisfied or likely to recommend their primary bank.  

The bigger the bank, the less satisfied were the customers. The percentage of customers who were highly satisfied with their banking experience at the nation's largest banks was 31%, compared to 46% for small and regional banks. Credit unions received the highest ratings in the survey: 50% of those surveyed were highly satisfied with their credit union relationship, and 61% would definitely recommend their credit union to others.

The largest financial institutions are trying to replicate the positive experience most customers enjoy in smaller institutions," notes Frank Aloi, President of ath Power Consulting. Community banks and credit unions as a whole scored significantly higher than large banks on measures of customer satisfaction and likelihood to recommend. Aloi explains, "Customers are most interested in strong service, personal relationships and personal advice. This is where the smaller institutions have an edge."

General findings from the 2010 study include:

• Most interactions are still missing the defining elements of a high level Customer Experience

• Strong problem resolution remains a huge hurdle for banks (63%-75% never reach satisfaction in resolution)

• Customer service is enhanced by cross sell attempts

• Community banks and credit unions continue to show much better satisfaction and advocacy rates than larger regional or national banks

• Compared to a year earlier, trust and respect have declined in importance as factors in choosing a banking relationship

What Makes For An Ideal Banking Relationship?

While 45% of those surveyed listed personal relationships and service as the most important factor they want in a banking relationship, other elements of the ideal banking relationship include convenience, cited by 24% as most important, followed by rates and fees (23%) and trust in the institution(8%).

Compared to the survey results from one year earlier, Trust and Respect are declining in importance as contributors to a satisfactory relationship.  Trust and Respect was cited as most important by 17% of the respondents in 2008, but had fallen to just 8% in the current survey.

The survey also found that problem resolution is not being adequately addressed by most financial institutions. According to Aloi, problems themselves do not cause attrition, but lack of resolution does. Only 25% of customers who have experienced a problem felt that it was resolved to their satisfaction. Among those who did not receive an adequate resolution to their problem, 51% reported that they were likely to change banks. For those who were satisfied with problem resolution, just 12% would consider switching banks.

When a customer experiences a problem that is not resolved they are 4 times more likely to leave the bank than if the problem is resolved, and 6 times more likely had no problem occurred at all," summarized Aloi.

"When customer service expectations are met or exceeded, the outcome is a substantial increase in advocacy and referrals, additional product sales and long-term loyalty,"explains Aloi.  "This study shows that banks need to do a better job of meeting and exceeding customer expectations."

A summary of the survey results may be found at http://www.athpower.com/summaryrequest/

About ath Power Consulting: ath Power is a recognized leader in bank market research, audit and mystery shop study,employee development, and strategic planning. ath Power supports more than half of the nation's largest financial services institutions with customized customer experience research solutions and owns the largest database of financial services field reps in the nation.

SOURCE: ath Power Consulting