Harnessing the Branch Advantage
How Banking Meets the Unique Financial Needs of Veterans
Retail Banking Relies on Personalization and People-First Experiences
Leveraging Location with Branch Marketing
Bringing Branch Banking to Underbanked Communities & Consumers
Believe in Banking Podcast
In this episode of the Believe in Banking podcast, Gina and Juliet discuss the resurgence of investment in the bank branch and Adrenaline’s new report “The Branch Advantage: Essential Retail Strategies for Banking Industry Leaders.” Their conversation covers how major banks like PNC, Chase, Bank of America, and others are announcing significant investments in branch expansion and renovation, indicating a broader banking industry trend. They spotlight three examples of financial institutions featured in the report – VeraBank, Virginia Credit Union, and Guaranty Bank – and how successful branch transformation strategies helped each institution gain advantage out of this critical channel. Essential to this success was defining a “North Star” experience, which identifies a clear vision and purpose for the branches across the network. Finally, they discuss original industry data that finds that banks and credit unions that invest in branch transformation are seeing significant returns, including higher deposit growth relative to the market.
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From financial and credit counseling to fiscal education, the Veterans Benefits Banking Program and participating financial institutions help veterans make their...
New data from McKinsey’s “State of Retail Banking” finds financial institutions prioritizing deeper engagement and growing banking relationships Building better banking...
In this episode of the Believe in Banking podcast, Gina and Juliet spotlight news about how major banks like Chase, PNC,...
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Believe in Data
Sharing Successes
Service members and veterans face a number of financial challenges when they return stateside, including buying a home and opening a bank account. To help veterans get all of the advantages of joining the banking system, the foundation of the American Bankers Association (ABA) proudly supports the Veterans Benefits Banking Program (VBBP). “The program seeks to simplify banking choices for veterans by providing them with a list of participating financial institutions that understand the unique financial needs of veterans and meet requirements for account offerings and customer service,” according to ABA.
With a focus on banking services available to veterans to access their benefits, the VBBP wants to help veterans achieve greater “financial independence, resiliency and literacy.” Importantly, VBBP banks and credit unions “commit to no-minimum-balance, low-to-no-cost checking accounts for veterans with a qualifying direct deposit and help veterans become banked.”
Read more about how the VBBP and participating financial institutions help veterans make their most of their money.
Data You Can Use
Of new-to-bank sales happen at the branch
The Story:
Despite the upsurge of digital channels for banking transactions, branches remain the primary driver of new-to-bank sales for financial institutions. While consumers love efficiency tools for processing transactions, banks and credit unions won’t win over new customers with an awesome new website or slick mobile app. That’s because the primary purpose of digital channels is to support existing customers with their everyday transactions, not attract and acquire new ones ready to begin their banking relationships.
The Takeaway:
The branch is a powerful revenue generator for institutions and the way consumers prefer to open new accounts with new institutions. To maximize growth, banks and credit unions must focus on in-branch cross-sell potential. But there are functional considerations that could be holding financial institutions back. “The traditional branch sales model was based on cross-selling to customers who used the branch for transactions,” according to BAI Banking Strategies. “So it’s critical that branch managers establish and maintain disciplined processes” to deepen relationships and maximize cross-sell at the branch.
Source: McKinsey, “The State of Retail Banking,” October, 2024 and BAI Banking Strategies, “Improving the Branch Sales Process,” June, 2022
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