You Never Know—Winning People Over

The following story illustrates why we treat everyone like they are gold.

One busy Friday afternoon all the tellers were occupied and there was a long line of people waiting their turn. A man entered the credit union with a bag of coins in his hand. He took one look at the line and started searching for someone at the branch who wasn’t busy and his eyes met with the branch manager’s. He shook his bag of coins as if to say, “Hello, I need service and I’m too important to wait in line.” Reluctantly, the branch manager came out from behind his desk approached the impatient patron and asked how he could assist him. “Do you have coin wrappers?” the man inquired. “My bank across the street told me you have them and they’re free. I need them to roll my son’s piggy bank money.”

“Yes, we do have coin wrappers and they’re complimentary,” the branch manager confirmed. His initial instinct was to hand over the coin wrappers and retreat back to the safety of his office. Despite his apprehensions, he offered to roll the coins to demonstrate his credit union was superior to the big bank across the street. “Don’t I know you?” the man asked as the coins were being expertly rolled. “Yeah, our sons play Little League together.” It turned out the two had a lot in common and a connection was made while they sat and chatted. “Do you offer money market accounts here?” the man wanted to know when the work was done. “Of course, and with great rates I might add,” the branch manager proudly stated, and explained how credit union accounts were insured. “Great. I want to open an account here today. The fact that you made the effort to come out and ask me what I needed, and then took the time to roll my coins for me means a lot. That’s why I’m moving all my finances over, starting with this check for $200,000 to open a money market account.” What we learned. You never know. If we treat everyone like royalty or a family member we may be surprised at the good things that can happen. Even if nothing happens, it feels good to make another person’s day. Commit to making every interaction with a person a chance to make them feel special, important, and appreciated and then exceed their expectations with exceptional service you offer with a smile. Excerpt from, "The Credit Union Way" a new book by Lee Silber.