Increase retention by adding value.

• Author: Triplett, Ted

With increased competition and saturated markets, banks are seen as interchangeable commodities. In commoditized situations, customers are easily swayed to leave by the free offers and special rates being offered by competitors.

Banks that can identify, create, and maintain a sustainable differential value advantage will be less vulnerable to competitive pressures. Therefore, one key to making your bank defection-proof, without lowering your prices, is delivering more value to your customers.

The following are five ways you can add value to increase retention, differentiate your bank and gain a competitive advantage:

* Providing information. Customers want more than just products. They want to feel they've made the right decision and they can only do this when they have enough information about your bank and the relationship it is offering. The more they know about your bank, the more they believe in its offerings and its people. Providing information also enables your customers to fully benefit from the products and services they receive from you. The better you educate and inform your customers, the more products and services they will purchase and the longer they will stay.

* Two-way communication. Another way to create value is to develop and build a dialogue with your customers. When a customer complains, "I never hear from you," he or she is really saying that there's not a consistent flow of communication between you and the customer. You don't have a dialogue when your customers feel that the only time they hear from you is when you're trying to sell them something, and the only time you hear from them is when they have a complaint.

* Continuity of message. To create a dialogue your communication needs to be consistent and there needs to be continuity between successive messages--it's important that each message builds upon the last message--no more random offers, at random times, through random channels. Otherwise, all it takes is a...