Business-friendly banking in Alaska: from business gift cards, to rent-collection services, to desktop deposit, Alaska banks are finding creative ways to help their business customers.

• Author: Barbour, Tracy

This holiday season, First National Bank Alaska is making gift giving easier for Alaska businesses. Instead of hassling with picking out and purchasing specific items for employees, businesses can hand out decorative debit cards.

The gift cards are electronically loaded with cash and come in a variety of attractive designs. And they don't have to be gift wrapped, which makes them handy for the holidays.

First National's new gift cards--which are also ideal for personal gift giving--can be used at any place displaying a MasterCard logo. And this makes them a more user-friendly payment option than ordinary gift certificates, said Cheri Gillian, vice president/corporate marketing director. "It's something that you can offer, instead of giving a traditional gift," Gillian said.

BUSINESS-FRIENDLY BANKING AT FIRST NATIONAL

First National's gift card is one of its newest ways of offering business-friendly banking to customers. Business-friendly banking is an important concept at First National, and it equates to one thing: providing commercial customers with products and services that best suit their needs. "I think business-friendly banking happens when the people who operate the bank are tuned into what their customers want and need and make customer service their highest priority," Gillian said.

First National is always looking for ways to use its expertise and capital position to help Alaska businesses succeed," Gillian said. At any of the bank's 28 branches, businesses can expect to receive "very knowledgeable" services. That service might come from an officer, a customer service representative or a personal banker. Or customers can consult with commercial service representatives who are business specialists who work with more specialized and complex needs. "They know the breadth and depth of our services and how to apply them for business customers," Gillian explained.

When it comes to business banking, everyone has the same tools. But the difference, Gillian said, is in how you offer them. Take, for instance, First National's new rent-collection service. Customers sign up by providing their tenants' names, mailing addresses, property addresses, payment amounts, due dates and late-charge information. The bank handles the rest: payments, deposits, accounting and reports.

The funds can be dispersed directly to customers' First National deposit accounts, and the bank will even send late-payment reminders to tenants. "It's a great service for property managers, landlords or real estate agents, or anyone who...