I’m no ad man. Perhaps that was already all-too-apparent and required no announcement from me.
I’ve been running an ad with “Business Banking Made Easy” as the headline. I should know better. I’ve been in the banking industry long enough to know it’s anything but “easy.”
Getting my start in sales (or “relationship management” as it’s referred to in these parts), I knew I wanted to take something onerous and groan-inducing for business owners and do whatever I could lighten the load. You know, answer phone calls, give straight answers, reduce paperwork, hand-deliver documents. Nothing superhuman, just add a touch of service and go from there.
It’s not the first time I’ve been naïve.
It’s been said “there’s no place for emotions in business.” If you ask me, that’s a ridiculous claim. Where there are humans, there will be emotions. Still, I believe the point to the saying is that the less emotion you have, the better businessperson you are. And while I suppose that’s true, it’s like the industrial plant that rakes in profits but trashes the environment. It might be true, but is it a worthwhile goal?
One of my co-workers resigned last week. He was in tears as he said his goodbyes to the group. Maybe it was the culmination of the moment, but I was taken aback by his level of emotional investment. I admired his vulnerability – to me, it meant that he really, truly cared about his work. I aspire to that level of care.
What I’m coming around to saying is that I’ve come up with a new slogan (and I hope it’s more than just a slogan). I’m not giving up on making banking easy, but it’s not the first impression I want to give.
Business banking, with care.
That’s a worthwhile goal in my book.
