Every Minute a Memory in the Making

by: Mark DeBellis, President, PSB Integrated Marketing

Some of life’s most memorable moments are found in places where you least expect it.  The mindset is that the chores of our daily life are expected to be completed with some cost in time and drudgery. Traditional chores… are by tradition…chores.

Unfortunately, many people view “banking” as a chore, an errand…something to complete.  But taking a traditional “chore” and converting it to a memorable experience might not be as hard as you’d expect.

This morning while going through a security check (X ray, shoes off – you know the drill) one of the guards starts busting out “Listen to the Rhythm of the Falling Rain” an old tune from Ricky Nelson circa 1960s. (For those of you that might wonder, he is the father of the Nelson twins). So he starts singing and I chime in and start harmonizing. Before you know it, other people are humming along…and SMILES start appearing in the crowd…despite our off-key singing.

From frowns to smiles in a couple of minutes. Those in line expected nothing more than the traditional drill and had already assumed the stone-face requirement of someone waiting in a line.

So, how can you add zest to the mundane? Do you ever have any lines in your branches? Maybe Friday night at 4:00?

Some of our clients have employed lots of ways to put a smile on the faces of their visitors. Fresh baked cookies in the lobby. Dog treats for the dog owners coming through the drive through. Fresh lemonade handed out in the lines during the summer. You get the idea.

The element of surprise is important. It also helps if it is truly something that is pleasing to the recipient and helps to build your brand.  If you’re going to have the staff sing, you might try some auditions first. Some people might not be as forgiving as the group this morning.

Mark DeBellis has spent over half of his life in the Marketing profession and in the promotion and management of consumer brands and services. He seeks new ways to provide value-added services and product marketing strategies for PSB’s financial service clients. As a full-service provider, PSB Integrated Marketing offers creative concepts, graphic design and layout, in-house prepress, and on-site lithographic/digital printing, bindery in addition to secured mail house services in their Orange County, CA facility. Mark DeBellis is President of PSB Integrated Marketing and can be reached at markd@psbonline.com; www.psbonline.com