Question 4: Bank of America

To better prepare for our visit with MSU Federal Credit Union President Pat McFarlin and Vice President of Finance, Tiffany Ford, today's entry will focus on a financial institution instead of your focal organization.

1. Identify a product and/or service that you use from your financial institution (e.g., credit card, savings account, checking account, student loan, etc.) and describe the characteristics/benefits of the product/service.

I do the majority of my day-to-day banking with Bank of America, where I have a checking account, a savings account, and a credit card. The benefit of having all three of these services with one bank is the ease with which can transfer money and manage my accounts and balances.

2. How would you rate the financial service provider’s service?

Out of 10 I would rank Bank of America a 8. They've always been accommodating with disputes I've had on my credit card, and just this week I got a call because of suspicious activity on my account, which turned out to be fraud. They were quick to rectify the situation and were proactive in monitoring my account.

3. What is your level of customer satisfaction and why?

Again, out of 10 I would put my customer satisfaction level at a 7. I started my account with Bank of America when I was living in Charlotte, NC, where they are headquartered. It would be nice if there were more ATM's in the East Lansing area. Also, their website is very user-friendly. I do 90% of my banking online, so having a comprehensive site is very helpful.

4. Where do you think customer service / satisfaction fits in your financial service provider’s overall strategy? Why?

I think Bank of America strives to create a personal connection with its customers, or at least the feeling of a personal connection with them. It's much harder for a financial institution as large as they are to actually service each customer individually than it is for, say, a local credit union. By creating a feeling of personal service I think Bank of America is trying to make their customers comfortable banking with them and, as far as I can tell, it's working.