US Bank Archives - Page 3 of 4

US Bank Adds Remote Deposit Capture to Online Banking Menu

By Jim Bruene Posted on August 16, 2010
Categories: PayPal, Remote Deposit Capture, US Bank

I saw a new option today when I logged in to my U.S. Bank account:

Make a Deposit

Clicking on the link brings up a screen (see below) promising that DepositPoint, a desktop-scanner-based service, is “Coming Soon!”

From the little info provided, I can see that it’s targeted to home users using existing equipment (all-in-one printer/scanners) and allows checks to be deposited through 6 PM central time for (I assume) same-day credit.

The webpage shown below is the only info available. There’s nothing posted on pricing, when it will launch, or other terms and conditions. And a search for “depositpoint” on the main website comes up empty. Interested customers are asked to “please stay tuned to this page for more exciting information!” While not exactly state-of-the-art lead capture, at least the bank is getting the word out (note 1).

In other news, PayPal moved one step closer to becoming a bank/credit union replacement with the revelation that it will add remote deposit capture to its iPhone app later this year.

U.S. Bank online banking primary navigation (16 August 2010)

Note:
1. I’m putting this in the footnote since it’s not the focus of this post. But seriously, U.S. Bank, this is the best you could come up with from a design and copywriting standpoint? It looks like a webpage from 1996. All that’s missing is the “under construction” sign. How about some color? Graphics? Links to an FAQ? This is a great development, but the customers drawn to this page from the “NEW” button are unlikely to be impressed.

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Debit Card Overdraft Protection: 2 Steps Forward, 1.9 Back

By Jim Bruene Posted on July 13, 2010
Categories: Bank of America, Deposits, Checking, Savings, CDs, Fee Income, Fifth Third Bancorp, PNC Bank, Strategies, US Bank, Wells Fargo

So far, I’m underwhelmed with the industry’s online marketing response to the new opt-in debit card OD protection regulations. I expected to see new pricing models transforming small overdrafts into a value-add for debit card users, rather than the onerous penalty they had become over the past few years.

On the positive side, the elimination of OD charges for small transactions is a good first step. Three of the five FIs in our mini-survey have dropped fees on ODs of less than $5 (PNC and GTE Federal) or $10 (U.S. Bank). And Wells even makes a bit of a game out of it: Customers who cover the OD during the same day incur no fee.

And Bank of America has just thrown in the towel on the whole notion, running full-page ads (p. A11 in today’s WSJ; Overdraft Control landing page) saying they’ll just deny any attempt to overdraw via debit card. The retail giant joins Citibank and ING Direct, which already followed the same approach.

But financial institutions are missing an opportunity here. Take Wells Fargo, for example. When I ran across the bank’s new homepage ad for debit card OD protection (see first screenshot), I expected to click through and find a novel take on the new federally mandated opt-in requirement (see second screenshot).

Wells does a good job explaining how the new rules benefit customers (the two steps forward):

The bank’s website copy is understandable and nicely outlines the lower-cost credit line, and savings account transfer options are offered
The toll-free number to sign up is prominent, although where’s the online signup option?
Great to see online and mobile balance-tracking tools offered up to help avoid overdrafts in the first place
My favorite: Customers are allowed to cover the overdraft during the same day and avoid the charge

But much of that uptick in consumer goodwill is negated when you get to the pricing:

Debit card overdrafts are $35 each, with a maximum of 4 per day, or a $140 daily penalty if you opt in and make a mistake coffee-shop (or more likely bar-) hopping some weekend.

In a spot check of other financial institutions, it’s clear that Wells Fargo is far from alone in the $30 per item price range:

US Bank will charge $10 per overdraft of $20 or less and $33 for all others; it will charge for up to 3 ODs and 3 returned items for up to 6 per day; there’s a $25 fee if you don’t pay back within a week, but no charge for any item that results in less than $10 in total negative balance.
Fifth Third Bank will charge $25 for the first overdraft each year, $33 for the next three, then $37 each after that; maximum of 10 per day; $8 per day after the third day it’s not paid back; no OD charge if negative balance is $5 or less.
PNC Bank charges $36 per item up to 4 per day, plus $7/day the account is overdrawn for a maximum of 14 days.
GTE Federal Credit Union is charging $29 each, with no charge on under-$5 items (blog post, Facebook post)

I just don’t see customers being too pleased with the price/value here. Wouldn’t customers, and shareholders, be better served with a value-based pricing strategy? How about $5 each for an under-$100 mistake? Or follow the telecom model and sell debit card overdraft protection as a $4.95/mo subscription.

By my simple math, a million customers paying $5/mo is a whole lot more revenue than a few thousand paying $35 a pop. Then there are all the side benefits: customer goodwill, reduced customer service headaches, positive word-of-mouth, and the PR/marketing value of making debit overdrafts into a real service.

Debit card OD link on Wells Fargo homepage (13 July 2010)

Landing page (link)
Click to enlarge

Note: Upper-right graphic from Horizons North Credit Union, which is charging $25 per item, with no limit on the number. The opt-in ad is a huge part of its current homepage (inset, click to enlarge).

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U.S. Bank Previews Website Redesign

By Jim Bruene Posted on April 14, 2010
Categories: Login/logoff marketing, US Bank, Website Usability & Design

Although U.S. Bank has long held a state-of-the-art online banking design, its homepage and public website haven’t kept up with modern standards. From the looks of the preview unveiled earlier this week, that will change when the bank rolls out on Friday a major site redesign.

The bank is wisely inviting online banking customers to take an advance peek at the new site. I learned about it Monday via a splash screen after logging in to online banking (see first screenshot below). The preview is also featured in the upper-left of the current homepage (see second screenshot below).

U.S. Bank is one of the last big banks still using a homepage dominated by a list of products and services. Presumably, the bank will move to flyout menus on the tabs across the top of the page (see third screenshot). Another expected improvement: liquid display.

For existing online banking customers, the biggest change is the repositioning of the login box from the middle-right to the upper-left, the industry standard.

Lessons: It’s important to give online customers advance notice of login changes so they don’t think they’ve arrived at a fake site. In fact, I think U.S. Bank should have gone further and simply included the preview in the splash page so everyone was forced to see it. Or at least the bank should have a prominent link to the preview within online banking. As it stands now, once you skip past the splash screen, there is no way back to look at the redesign (other than going to the homepage).

Before: current site
Notes:
1. Upper-left announcement of coming site redesign, with link to preview shown above
2. Login box placed in non-standard location mid-page on the right

After: Preview of new site design coming April 16 (link)

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How Measly Online Banking Archives Almost Cost Us $300

By Jim Bruene Posted on September 8, 2009
Categories: Chase Bank, Electronic Statements, Fee Income, US Bank

One of my least favorite tasks as a business owner is filling out forms, and tax forms are the worst of the lot. Thankfully, Washington state has a relatively simple online form that I can complete at literally the last minute of the quarterly filing period.

So last week, with the midnight deadline looming, I went to download the previous quarter’s transactions into our accounting software. After doing so, I noticed a six-week gap in the data. Because of timing issues, it had been 130 days since I’d last downloaded. Guess what? My bank archives only 90 days of data for Microsoft Money users (note 1).

So, I went online and figured I’d retrieve the older transaction there. No luck. Again, only 90 days of past data are visible in online banking. Next, I tried the data-download function. Nope, same 90-day limit. Now realizing that I’d have to hand-key the data, I was getting frustrated, but I figured I could at least view my April and May statements online. Strike 4. My bank doesn’t post any estatements online UNLESS you’ve previously given up your paper statement.

So I had to paw through my paper piles to find the missing statements, then spend a half-hour hand-entering business transactions. Boy, did I feel like a fool. Luckily, I’d started the process earlier than usual and made the midnight deadline; otherwise, the lack of data archives would have cost me more than $300 in city and state penalties.

Fee opportunity for banks
Had I been a perfect customer and remembered to download my data within the 90-day window, this wouldn’t have happened. But really, now that you can buy a 1TB (1000MB) hard drive for $79, how can a bank justify a measly 3-month archive, especially for business clients? Even factoring in security costs, backup sites and other expenses, what is the marginal cost to store 18 months of transaction data? A buck per year? Probably more like a dime or less (note 2).

It no longer makes sense to arbitrarily limit online data archives. Put a price on it and let your customers decide how long they want to store their data. Many small business customers would pay $1 to $2 per month per year of back archives. Interested consumers might pay half that, e.g., $3 to $5 per month for a 7-year archive.

It can also be used a perk for going paperless. For example, Chase Bank offers seven years of online statements for its customers (see screenshot below); otherwise, users can access only the last 18 months online.

Finally, it’s one of the most cost-effective retention tools imaginable (note 3).

Chase Bank promotes the benefits of going paperless to its online banking users (1 Sep 2009)

Notes:
1. The lack of past data is especially annoying since I pay $5.95/mo for the data download service.
2. I do understand that increasing online archives is not a simple project. And even though storage costs are relatively minimal, the PROJECT costs, are certainly not. I’m sure it’s a multi-million effort that’s difficult to justify in an era where regulatory mandates eat up IT budgets like a power surge gobbling data.
3. For more info on estatements, refer to our Online Banking Report on Lifetime Statement Archives (June 2005) and Electronic Messaging & Statements (Feb 2003).

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U.S. Bank Integrates Self-Service Collection Module into Online Banking

By Jim Bruene Posted on July 31, 2009
Categories: Loans & Credit, US Bank

One benefit of running a financial services publication is that my own financial mistakes can be used for editorial material. My latest faux pas resulted in learning first-hand about U.S. Bank’s self-service collection module integrated into online banking.

The details: Apparently, last month I hit negative $300 in my business checking account during some intra-day moment. The daily closing balances never fell below a healthy balance, so I didn’t realize an automatic “overdraft” transfer from our credit line had occurred (note 1).

Since I assumed it was unused, I never looked at the credit line statement, and therefore neglected to pay it off or make the minimum payment. Then yesterday, when I went online to pay a bill, I noticed a new line item on my account ledger, Payment Assistance Options (see first screenshot below). I know that if my bank is offering to assist me with my payment, I’m in deep trouble.

I followed the link to where a well laid-out module took me through my options to pay back the delinquent loan (see screenshots 2 and 3). I paid off the $300 plus an extra $39 for the late fee, $3 for the overdraft fee, and a $2.79 finance charge. That’s $44.79 in penalty fees, pretty expensive for a 42-day $300 loan (note 1), but low cost for a blog entry.

Bottom line: The self-service collection module is a good addition to online banking and should save the bank costs in routine collection efforts where the user simply forgot to make a payment. Even though I hated the $39 late fee, I’m glad the delinquency didn’t progress further until it landed on my credit report.

1. US Bank main account management page showing collection function (29 July 2009)

2. Landing page outlining collection options

3. Promise to pay page
Note: Can pay by Web, mail, express mail,

Note:
1. Yes, closer monitoring of our checking account transaction register would have identified the transfer. But like many business owners, I prefer to spend time in other areas of the business.

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New Online Banking Report Published: Selling Behind the Password

By Jim Bruene Posted on April 24, 2009
Categories: Advertising & Promotion, Credit/Debit Cards, Deposits, Checking, Savings, CDs, Online Banking Report, US Bank, Wells Fargo

We just posted our latest Online Banking Report.
It will be mailed to subscribers tomorrow. It’s also available online here. There’s no charge for current subscribers; others may access it immediately
for US$395.

———————————————————

Selling Behind the Password
Unlocking the marketing potential within
online banking

48 pages (published 21 April, 2009)

In this report (abstract), we go behind the login screen and report on the marketing and cross-selling practices of 15 financial institutions and card issuers.

Even among large banks, there’s a huge disparity in the amount of cross-selling efforts within online banking. Wells Fargo is the most prolific, with nine marketing messages and product placements alone on its main account-management page. The bank also uses login and logoff activities to display promotions (see screenshot below). On the other hand, US Bank has just a single link to an “offers page” buried below the fold. Most FIs fall somewhere in between.

We looked at the opportunities within six different areas:

Interstitial pages (splash screen) inserted after performing any online activity, especially after the initial login.
Banner and keyword promotions within the secure online banking area
Product placement within online banking and bill pay
Transactional upgrades
Page displayed after an online banking session has concluded (either through logout or inactivity)
Product/shopping/discount portals and third-party ads

The following financial companies were analyzed by logging in to actual accounts and documenting their sales and marketing efforts:

American Express business gold
Bank of America online banking
Chase credit card
Citibank business card
Citibank online banking
Discover Card
Everbank
First Tech Credit Union
ING Direct
Jwaala (demo only)
Mint
Netflix (non-financial)
PayPal
Revolution Money
US Bank
WaMu
Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo promotion displayed after logging out from online banking
(27 March 2009)

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Money Link from the University of Wisconsin Credit Union Makes Electronic Transfers Simple (like they should be)

By Jim Bruene Posted on March 12, 2009
Categories: Alt Payments, Funds transfers, Mobile Banking, US Bank, UW Credit Union

Financial institutions vary considerably in how easy they make it to move money in and out of bank accounts.

On the one extreme is U.S. Bank, which still requires a retail customers to visit a branch to initiate an electronic payment (note 1). Plus, if you come in after the wire transfer deadline, 2 PM I believe, you can set it up to go out the next day, but you still have to call back and reconfirm before 2 PM the following day. When asked why they needed a phone call after I’ve already appeared in person, shown my ID, and signed multiple documents authorizing the transfer, they responded in all seriousness, “to make sure you are still alive.”

Then there’s University of Wisconsin Credit Union, who not only assumes its members are alive, but also wants to keep them satisfied.

The credit union’s novel Money Link service allows anyone to send money to a UW CU member via an email-enabled system similar to PayPal but free of any fees and branded by the CU. The service can also be accessed via UW CU’s mobile banking.

Transfers from outsiders take 3-4 days for the ACH items to clear. But member-to-member transfers occur in real time. It’s a great way for students to get money from mom and dad in time to thwart that Monday morning overdraft.

The CU also supports full inter-institutional account-to-account transfers online. There is no cost to move money into UW CU, but there is a $2 fee for outgoing transfers.

Members who can’t wait for the 3 to 4 days for an ACH to clear, can elect the the Express Service that offers one-day turnaround for $10. The Express service has a $2,000 limit where the Standard Service can be used up to $10,000 (see inset).

Bottom line: This is the type of transfer service most consumers expect from their bank or credit union. It’s amazing that it’s still not supported at many financial institutions, including some of the majors.

Note:
1. Referring to wire transfers here initiated in the Seattle area. There could be other procedures in other areas of the bank’s footprint. Also, customers can CheckFree-powered online bill pay to pay any U.S. resident or business within 5 days.

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Out of the Inbox: U.S. Bank Pushes E-statements with "Go Green with Online Statements"

By Jim Bruene Posted on January 27, 2009
Categories: Electronic Statements, Email Marketing, Email Samples, US Bank

On Friday, I received a marketing message from U.S. Bank attempting to convince me to turn off my paper statements and adopt online statements. In 2007 (here), I wrote about its similar effort at login.

The graphic design and layout are wonderful with splashes of green throughout and a peaceful, sunny forest scene. It’s a nice bit of branding for the bank. So far, so good.

However, in terms of direct-marketing effectiveness, where the goal is to get the reader to take action, the message leaves a lot to be desired.

Turning off your paper statement is a relatively major change in behavior (previous post), so readers need clear information and/or incentives to move to less-costly paperless delivery. This message is lacking in both.

Benefit statements
Here are the supposed user benefits touted in the email:

Online statements help you:

– Deter fraud
– Reduce clutter
– Manage accounts
– Get real-time updates

Let’s look at the benefits from the standpoint of the end-user:

Deter fraud: Can the average reader make the leap to how online statements will cut down on fraud? I doubt it. This bullet point needs more detail.
Reduce clutter: This is pretty self explanatory. But do people really think of their monthly bank statement as “clutter.” Some do, but it’s not a particularly compelling argument.
Manage accounts: This wording leaves a lot to be desired. How does turning off your paper statements help you manage your accounts better? Presumably, those who sign up for online statements have more info available online. If that’s the case, the bank needs to say so.
Get real-time updates: What do online statements have to do with real-time updates? This is probably meant as a generic benefit for banking online, but it’s out of place here.

On the other hand the environmental benefits are much more tangible. However, for the cynical reader (and there are a LOT of cynical bank customers these days), there should be footnotes explaining the derivation or source of the green benefits. For example, at the bottom of the message there’s prominent claim:

Save nearly 7 pounds of paper yearly by Going Green.

That sounds impressive, but if you think about, it doesn’t jive with experience. Unless you get your checks back, most statements come in at under an ounce. And that includes a significant amount of bank advertising flyers. So how do we get from 12 ounces saved annually to the 7 lbs cited in the email? Readers will never know because there is no additional info available to substantiate the claim. You would think the bank would explain the claims on the landing page, but it has even less info (see below).

Call to action/incentives
The message includes tangible, albeit unsubstantiated, environmental benefits which are compelling. However, customers know that all these benefits spell significant cost savings for the financial institution. For some customers, especially of member-owned credit unions, that may be enough to get them to take action.

However, many customers are going to feel this is a pretty one-sided deal. If they are going to give up the comfort of their paper statements, there should be something in it for them.

That’s why we recommend an incentive of some sort. It could be a periodic giveaway, a one-time thank-you gift ($5 at Amazon), or an extra online benefit they wouldn’t otherwise get, such as long-term archives, premium customer service or a free-overdraft card. For example, Key Bank offered a low-cost and effective incentive in the fall (post here). Chase had an even better promotion in 2007 (post here).

Landing page
Granted, there isn’t much room in a one-page HTML message. So it’s understandable that the benefits are abbreviated. Usually, a marketer will use the landing page to expand on the key features and benefits. However, U.S. Bank’s landing page offers little additional help (see screenshot below).

The page doesn’t connect back to the email in any meaningful way. Benefits are neither reiterated, nor explained. Within the page, a brief explanation tells how to enroll, but surprisingly the Enroll Today link on the right has nothing to do with estatements and leads to a page explaining online access options.

Grades

Design: A
Copywriting: B+
Content: C+ (could be A- if benefits were explained on the landing page or FAQ)
Landing page: D
Overall effectiveness: A- for brand building; C- for driving estatement enrollment

U.S. Bank email marketing message, “Go Green with Online Statements” (23 Jan. 2009)

U.S. Bank landing page for online statements (link, 27 Jan. 2009)

Note: See our Online Banking Report on Email Marketing and Online Banking Report on Emessaging & Statements for more information.

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Visa Announces Android and P2P Mobile Initiatives

By Jim Bruene Posted on September 25, 2008
Categories: Alerts & Messaging, Chase Bank, Credit/Debit Cards, Mobile Banking, Mobile Payments, US Bank, VISA

Visa today put a stake in the ground to be viewed as the innovation leader, a position that American Express has claimed for some time with its chip cards, social media efforts, and even an online lab site. At today’s “innovation briefing” in NYC, Visa announced several pilots and upcoming initiatives.

Mobile person-to-person transfers
The most far-reaching announcement was the ability for Visa cardholders to transfer funds from one card to another via mobile device. So far, just one bank is participating in the pilot. US Bank says it will make the service available to a few thousand cardholders as a test later this year. PaymentsNews has more details here.

It sounds good, but as always the devil is in the details. For instance:

Through what hoops will cardholders have to jump to enable their card and phone for the service?
Will the transfers be treated as cash advances triggering fees and finance charges?
Will it be available to all cardholders using any mobile phones?

Visa jumps on the android bandwagon
A more immediate innovation is a location-and-alert-based service built for Google’s android platform, a new mobile system launching in late October. Visa’s new service, to be rolled out initially by Chase Bank (no time frame given), promises some important new developments:

“Near real-time” purchase alerts (see note 1) so you can see immediately whether your server added an extra digit in front of your tip on that bar tab. The real-time alert pilot was announced a month ago (here) involving several thousand accounts at PNC Bank, SunTrust Bank, US Bank, Wachovia, Wells Fargo, Royal Bank of Canada, TD Bank, and Vancity.
Visa merchant finder based on your location-based/GPS technology (nice!) with targeted marketing offers (hmmm??). The merchant locations will be integrated with Google Maps.

Again, PaymentsNews has the entire press release here.

Notes:
1. Visa says that the alerts will arrive “typically before (the consumer) leaves the store.”

2. For more information, see our Online Banking Report on Mobile Money & Payments.

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Login, Logoff Marketing Messages from Bank of America, PayPal, US Bank, WaMu and Wells Fargo

By Jim Bruene Posted on August 1, 2008
Categories: Advertising & Promotion, Bank of America, PayPal, US Bank, Washington Mutual, Wells Fargo

After returning from some R&R in Iowa and Kansas, I logged into my banking and credit card accounts to see what I'd forgotten to attend to before leaving town. Luckily, everything seemed in order this time.

Always on the lookout for online marketing examples, I thought it would be interesting to compare and contrast the marketing messages presented to users as they logged in and logged out of five major banking sites.

Bank of America (business and personal credit cards): BofA typically has a marketing message at login and logoff.
Login The bank's brokerage division is pitching free Morningstar mutual fund research. I haven't seen this one before, and it seems a bit wordy, so it may be the first time for this offer (see screenshot #1 below)
Logout A pitch for a cash-back business credit card. It's a good offer, but perplexing, given that I already have a business and personal card with BofA. Not sure why they want me to have three (screenshot #2).
PayPal (verified account): PayPal has used log-in splash-screens almost since it began in 1999 with a mix of marketing and service messages. But they don't overuse the technique, so it's noticeable when they have a new splash-screen running.
Login No marketing, just direct entry to main screen
Logout No marketing, just a landing at the usual PayPal merchant emporium (screenshot #3)
US Bank (multiple accounts): I don't think I've ever seen a marketing message from US Bank at login or logoff. I believe I've seen a service message at login a few times over the years, but it's extremely rare.
Login No marketing, just dropped on main account page as usual
Logout No marketing, just a brief "you've been logged out" message
WaMu (business checking): I've had the account only a few months, but WaMu has frequently posted marketing messages at login, and they've been relatively creative, as you'd expect.
Login Pitching its WaMu Live concert promotion which provides exclusive access to summer events to WaMu credit and debit card holders (screenshot #4).
Logout No marketing, just a solid recap of security precautions, a good message to leave with online banking users (screenshot #5).
Wells Fargo (credit card): Wells uses marketing messages frequently at both login and logout.
Login Electronic statement (paper turnoff), something I've not done yet (screenshot #6).
Logoff Home equity loans (screenshot #7)

What's Innovative?
There wasn't anything particularly enlightening in these examples. The WaMu Live pitch was the only truly unique message. For the most part, they were typical, well-crafted marketing messages you'd expect from these major players. That's fine now, since most customers don't yet have "banner fatigue" at their online banking site. But going forward, the messages will need to be more targeted and more interesting to get attention and action from jaded online users.

The other issue is frequency. You'll figure this out through testing, but there's a line you don't want to cross where a splash-screen message presented at every login ceases to be effective and is just plain annoying.

Finally, for financial institutions, such as US Bank, still not using this login real estate for sales messages, your customers thank you; however, quick-loading, targeted messaging, used with discretion, should benefit your bottom line.

1. Bank of America login screen for business-credit-card only account (1 Aug 2008)

2. Bank of America logoff screen (1 Aug 2008)

3. PayPal logout (1 Aug 2008)

4. WaMu login screen (31 July 2008)

5. WaMu logout screen (1 August 2008)

6. Wells Fargo login splash screen (1 Aug 2008)

7. Wells Fargo logoff screen (1 Aug 2008)

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50 Banks and Credit Unions Have Facebook Pages

By Jim Bruene Posted on March 6, 2008
Categories: Facebook, Social Media, US Bank

Four months ago (here) I wrote about how easy it was to set up a company page in Facebook. Even a total novice like myself could create one in a few minutes.

There hasn't exactly been a rush to do it, but approximately 50 financial institutions have posted a free company page on Facebook (see note 1). Although, most are simple "white page" listings with no more than logo, address, phone number and URL, it's still better than nothing.
(Update Mar 7: Please note, I am talking only about Facebook "pages" here. There are several banking "groups," notably Chase +1 with nearly 50,000 members, that are far more active. Also, some FI pages , such as TD Money Lounge and RBC Bankbook, do not show up in my search using "bank" and "credit union." Consider these counts approximations. )

Credit unions have three times as many as banks. Credit union's can often move faster because of their size and culture. Here's the count by financial institution type:

10 North American banks
32 North American credit unions
8 banks outside North America

The only banks with more than a handful of fans are Jordan's Arab Bank with 145 and HSBC Bank Egypt with 89. Silicon Valley's Valley Credit Union (screenshot below) leads in the U.S. with 45 fans.

There's also one bank branch that's taken the initiative to post a Facebook page. U.S. Bank's Beaver Valley, Ohio branch (here) is one of the few to have posted something interesting, a $100 Super Bowl contest. They've also posted their branch hours (see screenshot below).

Note:

1. I counted financial institution pages by using Facebook's site search for "bank" and then for "credit union." To qualify the FI had to at least post the bank's logo and URL. There were also a few placeholder pages with no logo.

2. For more information on social media and online personal finance, see our Online Banking Report #144/145.

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U.S. Bank Uses Login Splashscreen for Security Warning

By Jim Bruene Posted on December 4, 2007
Categories: Security & Privacy, US Bank

The best way to get the attention of your online banking customers is by dropping a landing page in front of them right after they login. It’s a bit annoying, but if used judiciously it can be extremely effective. PayPal has been using this technique for most of the eight years I’ve had an account there.

U.S. Bank is fairly new to this technique, using it just a few times a year for service-related messages. The latest, a 100-word message that reads like it was crafted by the legal department, was posted on Nov. 29 and warned customers about fake emails (screenshot below).

It’s a good idea to remind customers about your email policies to help them avoid scams. However, U.S. Bank only warns against low-tech fakes asking for account info or PINs. Few consumers would fall for that any more. The bank fails to address the more common, and far more effective, approach of sending users to a fake website via a disguised link. The bank should explain what a genuine U.S. Bank email looks like and how to tell it apart from the fakes.

A few other ways to make this message more effective:

Link to an area on website for more info on security
Provide an email address and/or phone number to call if there is a question about the validity of a bank message
Use a professional copywriter to craft a clearer and more concise message
Use a larger font
Use a heading or subheading that introduces the specific subject
Add a graphic to make the topic standout, for example the security image from U.S. Bank’s homepage (inset above)

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