By Roy Urrico
Bancography has had an eventful September, so far. Most recently it captured “Best of Show” at FinovateFall 2024 for its Bancography Plan, its market analysis and branch planning tool. The event took place from Sept. 9-11 in New York City. Earlier in the month, the Birmingham, Ala.-based financial services consulting firm released the fall 2024 version of its journal Bancology.
Best of Show
Bancography Plan is a branch planning and market analysis software tool that assists with strategic planning, and location and expansion strategy for credit unions and banks. According to thee company, Bancography Plan provides bankers with every data point needed to reach optimal decisions regarding branch capital and noninterest expenses. Bancography Plan also provides demographic and competitive reports, customer and competitor maps, and full pro forma financial projections for any proposed branch site.
Bancography Plan also enables users to evaluate potential merger candidates, provides a prospective combination of any two institutions, identifies overlapping branches, forecasts probable attrition from closed branches and estimates the likely financial impact under an array of expense-reduction scenarios.
Bancography said it regularly releases enhancements to Bancography Plan. New features, announced during FinovateFall 2024, included:
Merger analysis. This allows financial institutions to evaluate potential merger candidates, recommending which branches to keep or close and the corresponding financial implications for those decisions.
County-level demographics. To compare new branch site’s demographics in relation to county averages/medians.
“We are honored to be awarded Best of Show by our peers at an industry-leading event,” said Bancography President and Co-Founder Steve Reider, who demoed at FinovateFall 2024. “This recognition underscores the importance of a tool like Bancography Plan, which helps banks and credit unions make informed branching decisions. As a first-time attendee and winner, we are proud to win this award and look forward to continued momentum in the industry.”
Workplace Banking: A Multiplier for New-Account Sales
The Bancology journal focused on one of the ways bankers can find opportunities to accrue multiple accounts – workplace banking, where credit unions or banks create a proposal tailored to the employees of a specific company. Bancology said, “The premise involves developing a favorably priced offering that a participating company can position as an employee benefit; and for which the company in exchange grants the bank or credit union some level of access to its employee base.”
The journal suggested “A workplace-banking program is most beneficial when it coordinates the consumer and business sides of the institution (i.e., where the consumer offering complements a commercial depository and/or lending relationship). In that environment, the commercial relationships provide a channel for ongoing dialog with company executives, where bankers can reinforce the benefit of the workplace-banking program and address any issues arising in implementation.”
The employee-facing component of the workplace-banking program can include a discounted bundle of services, anchored by a checking account, but also allow a discount on mortgage-origination fees or a rate premium on CDs (for example), the journal noted. “By collaborating with the employer, the financial institution can gain the ability to promote the offering in new-employee orientation packages, or via hosting financial education sessions at the worksite.”
Bancology further stated, “Credit unions have for years employed workplace banking programs via the select employment group (SEG) provisions of their charters. But as more credit unions have migrated to community charters, that activity has waned.”
The journal recommended any workplace-based checking relationship should mandate direct deposit, which saves the employer money (whether they process their own payroll or outsource) and time, if they process their payroll internally. The simplicity of direct deposit also reinforces a mutually beneficial relationship between the institution, the company and the employee. Further, if the workplace-linked checking account receives the employee’s paycheck,
then that account will presumably serve as the consumer’s primary checking product; and thus, more likely to see heightened debit card activity, which then augments fee revenue.
For larger employers (1,000 or more workers), some banks and credit unions can place ATMs at the worksite (e.g., hospital, large manufacturing plant) to provide an added convenience. “Workers who use the institution can then enjoy fee-free access to cash, while others incur surcharges, giving incentive to migrate to the employee-banking option.”
Another way to bolster acceptance of a consumer-side offering is to reinforce the institution’s brand on the business side by providing the business’ credit card (e.g., employees travel routinely and a significant number have a corporate credit card). Bancography said, “By establishing that card relationship on the business side, the institution creates a continual reminder to the employee of the value it offers. Every time the employee purchases office supplies or takes a client to lunch, they see how their employer trusts the institution as its primary banking provider.”
Accordingly, to implement a widescale workplace-banking program, institutions must provide training to business bankers and commercial relationship managers, and create accompanying product collateral. In that manner, the workplace-banking offering joins other ancillary services (such as remote capture and positive pay) as one more offering to tout when presenting the benefits of a holistic relationship with the credit union or bank, the journal noted. And if the company perceives the workplace-banking offering as a valuable part of its banking relationship, it will support those key cross-promotions in employee welcome kits, periodic email reminders and educational sessions — fostering the goal of creating that efficient channel where the institution can add multiple relationships from a single sales effort.