Business Pundit has an interesting in-depth look at an Oregon Bank that has ferocious customer loyalty and is rated the 13th Best Place to Work by Fortune Magazine:
Fortune 100 Company Interview: Umpqua Bank Serves Up a Lifestyle
I wish my bank served chocolate coins on a silver platter. In fact, I wish everyone served me chocolate. Unfortunately, only a handful of businesses appear to comprehend this point. Ritz-Carlton, for example. And Roseburg, Oregon-based Umpqua Bank.
Umpqua has mastered the art of effective lifestyle retailing. It banks on pampered customers to differentiate itself from more standard, stress-inducing bank environments. The bank, which was founded in 1953, identified its core service strategy in 1994. Since then, its has gained more than $6.8 billion in assets. It also landed at 13th place on the 2008 Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For.
Remember Starbucks' move to sell music CDs in their coffee shops? Umpqua sells music, too -- in a different guise. The bank has its own Discover Local Music Program, which highlights up-and-coming artists in the bank's operating regions (mainly the Pacific Northwest). It also offers free Wi-Fi, its own brand of specialty coffee, and space for community events like movie nights and yoga classes.
Customers, in effect, hang while they bank. The idea is to walk in, gaze at interactive digital signage, sip free brew, lounge in the comfortable seating area -- and stick around long enough to do some banking on the side.
"We eliminate the chore from banking," says Lani Hayward, Umpqua's Executive Vice President of Creative Strategies. "The retail model gives people a reason to come in to the bank. Our customers and other community members use our stores as community centers. Many come for entertainment and or just to read the paper and enjoy a cup of coffee." She adds that when people come in to the stores, they are also more likely to do business with Umpqua or make an impulse buy.
Very good management -- it shows. Attention to detail and customer satisfaction...
