Banks make progress in many customer satisfaction Areas--with the exception of 'fees'.

• Position: MARKETING NEWS

CONSUMER SENTIMENT TOWARD RETAIL BANKS improved in 2011 for the first time since 2007, according to the J.D. Power and Associates, Westlake Village, Calif.

The company's "2011 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study shows that retail banking customer satisfaction has improved by four index points from 2010 to an average of 752 (on a 1,000 point sale) in 2011.

In particular, satisfaction with in-person branch interaction, product offerings, and account information have all improved significantly. In addition, customer perceptions regarding their bank's brand reputation and image have improved in 2011 for the first time since 2008.

Satisfaction with fees, however, has decreased considerably from 2010, even though the proportion of customers who report they were charged fees by their bank has declined from 53 percent in 2010 to 43 percent in 2011. The primary driver of the decline in fee satisfaction has been changes in how fees are assessed, with 18 percent of customers in 2011 saying their fee structure had changed during the past 12 months, compared with 16 percent in 2010. When fee structures are changed, overall satisfaction decreases by an average of 84 index points.

"While there has been a concerted effort made by the banking industry to get back to basics and provide customers with a satisfying retail bank experience overall, the well-publicized attempts by banks to recoup lost revenue due to Reg E debit card revisions by dropping free checking and repricing accounts has clearly had a negative effect," says Michael Beird, director of banking services at the company. "The good news for consumers, and the challenge for the industry, is that banks are being forced to clearly define the value they're...