The ath Power Small Business Banking Study™

Small Business Banking remains the most robust growth segment in today's financial services markets.  Banking institutions of every size are scrambling to create strategies to make the Small Business market a top strategic priority.  And, while highly profitable Small Business customers expect more from their banking relationships, there are huge gaps in the service experiences banks provide their business customers.

ath Power conducts extensive audits on the Small Business Banking efforts of the nation's most well respected financial services institutions.  We have developed comprehensive benchmarking studies as a result of our field work and industry expertise.  The ath Power Small Business Banking Study™ is a detailed assessment of the sales and service processes, product and service offerings, delivery methods and customer experiences of the nation's premier institutions within the Small Business banking target market.

Our industry knowledge and proprietary research methods provide statistical inference and industry best practices to assist our clients in realizing their growth strategies.  The ath Power Small Business Banking Study™ is a unique account that ranks the Small Business Banking practices and benchmarking profiles, detailing the current marketplace.  Our in-depth view of the industry provides the information needed to target strategic sales and service initiatives aimed at growing Small Business Banking revenues while increasing retention rates, profitability and shareholder value.

Methodology

A total of 834 in-person audits were performed by Small Business Owners at 39 leading banks across the U.S. in an effort to understand the competitive customer experience environment associated with front-line sales and servicing protocols regarding Small Business Banking products and services.  Evaluations were completed in metropolitan areas within 5 different regions throughout the United States (Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, South, Midwest and West).  Banks of national, regional and local scope are included in this study. Some banks were audited in multiple regions.  Findings are segmented by Bank, Region and Small Business Revenue Size.  A comparative view of previous studies is also presented to trend consumer behavior year-to-year.

Banking relationship scenarios for businesses of $400k - $4m in annual revenues were used for individual branch visits of potential small business clients.  An Overall Evaluation Score was calculated based upon branch experience and banker behaviors in four categories:

Institutions Evaluated

Associated Bank, Bank of America, Bank of the West, BB&T, BBVA Compass, Capital One Bank, Chase, Chemical Bank, Citibank, Citizens Bank / Charter One, Comerica, Fifth Third Bank, First Citizens, First Niagara, First Tennessee, FirstMerit, Frost Bank, Harris Bank, Huntington Bank, Iberiabank, M&T Bank, MB Financial, New York Community Banks, People's United Bank, PNC Bank, RBC Bank, Regions Bank, Sovereign Bank, SunTrust Bank, Synovus, TCF Bank, TD Bank, Union Bank of California, US Bank, Washington Federal, Webster Bank, Wells Fargo / Wachovia, Woodforest National Bank and Zions Bank.

In this report, you will:

ath Power Custom Research

If you are interested in obtaining a customized competitive analysis for your own institution, please contact Michael McEvoy by phone or email:

+1.978.474.6464 Ext. 117         mmcevoy@athpower.com