Summer 2006 email exchange with my son Chris, a young professional in NYC

Hi Dad,

Could you remind me of the name of the bank you mentioned on the phone a few months ago?   I've banked with Chase for almost seven years. It seems like all they do is find creative ways to charge extra fees.  I have finally had it with them and want to know where I should move my account.  What do you recommend?

Thanks,
Chris

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Hello Chris,

I am surprised you stayed with Chase this long.  The bank to which Mom and I switched is called USAA.  They would be an excellent choice for you if you don't care about having branches (they are headquartered in San Antonio and handle all transactions by phone, mail, or email).  For cash convenience, USAA lets you use other bank ATMs and actually reimburses you for any fees incurred.  Their phone service has been great.

If you want to have local branches in NYC, then I would recommend Commerce Bank.  They have the highest Net Promoter Score of any bank we have studied.  In fact, mostof their customers are promoters and as you would expect, their growth has been very impressive.

Hope you have better luck with one of these banks!

Love,
Dad

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Hi Dad,

I opened a checking account at Commerce the other day, and wanted to let you know it was a great experience. Their customer service is really excellent. They have someone greeting you as you come in, welcoming you and pointing you in the right direction. She set me up with a rep, who was extremely nice and friendly, and everyone working there seemed equally pleasant. Their basic checking is totally free, unlike most banks in NY. And it felt more like a living room than a bank -- I don't know if they're all set up like this, but the one in Greenwich Village was all open with big chairs, couches, and tables. And the tellers weren't behind glass windows, but behind a long counter, like a hotel reception area. It is a big contrast to the institutional feel of Chase (which now feels like the post office or the RMV), where they barely look at you--and then hit you with all these fees and hidden charges. I still need to close my account with them because I have some lingering checks out there, but I can't wait to do so. So - thanks for the recommendation. I've already become a Commerce promoter and Chase detractor :-)

See you at the Cape!

Love,
Chris

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Hi Chris,

I wondered if you would mind my using your email as part of my net promoter blog?  I would like to use this example to show how you picked a bank--once Chase finally goaded you into action with continuous nuisance fees.  My guess is that if Commerce continues to treat you well, that you will end up referring friends and colleagues to them--and that is how a business grows (not so much by advertising and sales--but through turning customers into promoters).

By the way, how many friends and colleagues have you told about the contrasting experiences between Chase and Commerce?

Love,
Dad

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Hi Dad,

I've already referred at least ten people to Commerce. No one seems to have heard of it, but they are all very interested after I tell them about it. I actually just used their change-counting "penny arcade" for the first time yesterday (which anyone can use, even without an account), and it's totally free. They make it fun, too, by having you guess how much $$ you have, and then giving you a prize if you're within a dollar. (I had $75 worth...)

Anyway, yeah, you can use what I wrote. It may sound kind of gimmicky -- like I intended you to post it as an ad for Commerce when I wrote it to you. Maybe you just want to quote from it and summarize my experience? Although whatever you think will work best for your purposes is fine.

Oh my gosh - and I forgot to tell you how hard it was to close my account with Chase last week. All I said was that I wanted to close my checking account, please. And they got the manager, who was this terrible woman who demanded I tell her where I was opening a new account, and then launched into a desperate monologue about how Chase had more ATMs than Commerce, how it was more convenient, etc. etc. Then she said she was "disappointed" I hadn't taken the initiative to investigate other options with Chase, since they could have waived the $4/month fee if I had asked them to earlier...? She finally closed my account, rolling her eyes. So, if I ever had a reason to go back to Chase for anything, I can't imagine I would consider it. And I've been telling everyone about that too...

Love,
Chris

Moral of this story: It is not advertising campaigns, marketing promotions, or retention programs that determine corporate reputations and profitable growth; it is the millions of conversations and email exchanges that occur between family members, friends and colleagues every month of the year.