One thing that I learned and was reinforced by the FSI training was the importance of remembering something personal learned about each member and bringing it up the next time you talk to them. This has been very useful. I had a member who had opened a savings account a few weeks ago come back last week to open a checking. Because I remembered that her son worked for US Military Intelligence in Georgia and was getting married soon, I was able to create small talk with her while I ran Chex Systems making the wait pleasant. I learned then that she was going to Maine for the wedding, allowing me to share more about our shared branching and mobile banking. This has also been helpful in teller transactions. It makes the experience more welcoming and I have found that people become more receptive to suggestions about their accounts. Now every time I open a new account or work on a loan, I try to include something about the member in my follow up file.
