Customer service top priority for locally-owned banks

Employees at all banks maintain that outstanding customer service is of major importance to them, although specifically how that gets practiced is going to vary from institution to institution.

Branches of big commercial banks that are part of national or international chains have products and services that are designed to meet a variety of needs, and get delivered with a smile by local employees who express deep affection for their customers.

But the region is also blessed with a wealth of small, locally-owned and operated or small regional banks, who say that their unique blends of services and how they are delivered offer consumers beneficial choices as well.

Coastal Commerce, Synergy and South Louisiana Bank, Iberia and Regions are among the local institutions that provide checking accounts, savings accounts, and various types of loans.

“As a local bank, we strive to provide the utmost customer service to every person who walks in the door,” said Jerry Ledet, president and CEO of Synergy Bank, which has branches in strategic Houma locations and recently opened a branch in Thibodaux. “We take the time to get to know our customers so that we can help meet their financial goals. That kind of personalized service can only be found at a local bank.”

Local banks, Ledet and other bankers said, are “intimately tied” to the success of the communities they serve.

“We understand the local issues and needs of our community, and our loan decisions are made by people who have a vested interest in sustaining and ultimately growing the Bayou Region,” said Ledet.

At South Louisiana Bank, the oldest locally-owned community bank in Houma, president and CEO Mickey Thomas said the relationship between employees and customers not just on a business basis but as neighbors, drives the services received.

“We tell our employees to be careful how you treat your customers,” Thomas said. “We live in a community and they are either a friend, family member or neighbor. That is how we treat a customer who is calling or who has face-to-face contact.”

The current local economic downturn due to slacking oilfield industry problems are challenging for banks as they are for consumers. Local bankers said they recognize that as part of the community their interest goes beyond balance sheets.

“We are part of the community and as the community goes so do we,” he said, “it is important for us particularly in the lending arena to make sure we fulfill our obligations to our community and in so doing continue to loan money through tight times.”

Thomas said decision makers at his bank lived through the oilfield crash of the 1980s, and that experience helps them to meet current challenges with ingenuity rather than fear.

“We don’t fear for them, we plan for them,” Thomas said of tough times. “That doesn’t necessarily happen with big banks. Big banks will look at a region. We understand the economic cycles.”

Local bankers said the communities in the bayou region have a long history of adapting to challenges and change.

“This is an incredible community in reference to its mental industriousness, credibility and durability,” Thomas said.

Giving people a little special attention is key when dealing with locally-owned banks. Quality customer service is one of the things that most customers said they look for in their dealings.

FILE