Take a look at Capital One’s new commercial!
There I was, sitting down with a nice cup of coffee and watching a ballgame. An advertisement came on the air from not just any bank, but my bank. It turns out that Capital One bank is really going to shake up the banking industry.
According to Capital One, “all banks feel the same” and that’s why “Capital One is building something completely different; Capital One cafes.” Sounds good so far! The commercial continues to give you a visual look of what they call, “banking reimagined,” and they aren’t kidding! The lobby looks more like a WeWork facility, with couches, bar tables, snacks, juices, coffee, and more. What an amazing way to reimagine banking… and then it all goes wrong for me with one, irresponsible statement:
“Ready to help you; not sell you.”
Really? You want to help us, but not sell us? Pardon me, but that sure sounds like an oxymoron. How can you help us if you are unwilling to sell us? Could it be that you are misinformed as to what good, well-trained salespeople can do?
I get the fact that some of the public is misinformed, and many believe that being sold something is some sort of evil and devious act. But one of the largest banks in the country? Could it be that the leadership of Capital One bank doesn’t understand how misguided a statement like that is?
As the customer. I understand that you don’t want to be soldsomething. That’s your nature. But do us both a favor and try this little experiment. Take out a pad of paper or open up a blank document and write down the five biggest purchase mistakes you’ve made when you’ve made those purchases entirely on your own. Remember, I’m looking for decisions that you made without the aid of a skilled salesperson.
Rather depressing, isn’t it? It’s not really your fault. Your instinct has always been to fix small problems; not big ones, so you may have waited a little too long, worked with flawed information, got hung up by that pesky fear of change, or maybe even let price rule your decision and hold you back. You weren’t lacking information; you were lacking a well-trained subject matter expert to help you sort through that information. You didn’t have someone who knew how to problem solve, create urgency, not take “no” for an answer, and not be afraid to ask questions that might have made you feel uncomfortable. Coincidently, I just described what a well-trained salesperson does. Do you still want to go to a bank that’s afraid of the word, “sell?”
But where are my manners? Maybe Capital One is right. Perhaps people who are “ready to help you; not sell you” would better serve us. They would merely be acting on the instructions you provide them. For the record, that’s the definition of an order-taker. Make sure you study up so you can be the one to tell your order taker how to handle your finances. Study up because we’re only talking about your hard-earned money, your home, your car, your children’s education, your retirement, and more. But hey, it looks like they’re serving coffee and pastries just like Starbucks, and who doesn’t like a nice, hot cup of coffee!
Personally, I not only value the assistance of salespeople, but I would also gladly pay extra for their help. I welcome their support because I don’t want an order taker handling my banking or any major decisions I may have. Ask your tougher questions and push me when I need to be pushed.
As for Capital One: For goodness sakes, stop telling people you’re not there to sell them. It’s a ridiculous statement, and it’s disrespectful to those in the sales profession. If you’re actually serious, you are doing a tremendous disservice to your clients. I love the idea of a café, and I’m not afraid of “reimagining banking,” but I truly hope you reconsider amending your catchy little slogan. I’d suggest this one:
“Ready to help you; and not afraid to ask the tougher questions.”
If you want to hear a real pro interview a real animated Rob Jolles, listen to this recent Central Valley Times Podcast. We get right at Why People Don’t Believe You!
Don’t forget to get your copy ofWhy People Don’t Believe You. It is now available at bookstores, and available at Amazon in paperback, E-Book, audio book, and CD versions. What a great stocking stuffer!
Rob, I was talking with a friend about that same commercial. Is it our age that makes us view it with tainted glasses? Certainly a new style of bank. I like the thought of going to the cafe and talking openly in public about my finances, concerns and investment plans, next to tables with other people having a snack with their ‘banker’…..who isn’t selling them anything. Interesting concept. Is it for millennials? Just curious…..because we have one of those cafes near our local Whole Foods. I’m always curious when I walk by…. Good post!
Is it our age? Look, I like the a smoothie, or a cup of coffee, or a muffin, and I think I might like it sitting in what used to be my bank. I have no issue with what they are doing. But to take a shot at those who sell, and to make their smoothie, coffee, muffin serving bank a home with no selling makes we want to find a new bank. But I’ll be happy to eat a muffin there!
Hi Rob. I think banks have been one of the worst offenders of misselling and they contributed heavily to the global recession. I have often felt intimated in the past by their approach and have been turned away by my mortgage lender once when I wanted advice while I was paying them hundreds in interest. They know they have wrecked their reputation and they are probably ashamed to use the word ‘sell’ now. I think people don’t trust them to sell them.
You may be on to something here. Those mortgage sales are in a category all to themselves. Having worked with many banks I always considered them a kinder, gentler financial institution to be sold by… but this is ridiculous. Again – cafe: Good. Pretending or actually honestly not selling you: Bad!
Thanks, Rob. Great point! The difference between “Ready to help you; not sell you.” and “Ready to help you; and not afraid to ask the tougher questions.” is that the former sounds like hypocrite, but the latter conveys engagement and service – to this end, I’d like to use “answer”, rather than “ask” the Qs.
That’s it Hui, it comes down to not being afraid to sell. Maybe the problem is they have never been taught to sell correctly. For the public, it becomes a question of being careful what you wish for! I always appreciate your post’s Hui.
@Neil Wood
It’s not just your age. It’s your values.
I am twenty-five years old and have never considered the big banks honorable, especially after they and the government colluded first to (gleefully) force banks to lend to bad debtors and then for the politicians they owned to bail them out of that mandate. The government was colluding with the banks.
That’s why I insist on doing my financial services with credit unions.
However, what I dislike about credit unions is their informality.
The way I was raised, I still believe that going to a bank and asking for financial services (e.g. and especially a loan) is something you must put on a suit to perform properly.
Consequently, if I were a loan officer, I would severely doubt the creditworthiness of a man who arrived on a wife-beater tank top and cargo shorts. Why should I trust him if this is what he thinks of me and of needing money?
For this reason, I would NEVER do business with a Capital One Cafe. I never thought of your points, but they are even better than mine, particularly that they simply withdraw and deposit money (etc.) as order-takers.
The idea of sitting in beanbag chairs at a financial institution sickens me. Combining an extremely formal practice like financial services with something as casual as a coffee shop in some place that looks like a hipster art gallery is obscene.
I would NEVER trust a “cafe assistant” teller-barista with handling my money. I would not even trust them with passing my valuables through to the safety-deposit boxes at the vault. I wouldn’t trust their vault!
Banks are formal institutions for a reason: your life savings, your debt, your home, your retirement……. these are SERIOUS ISSUES.
Those are serious issues to be discussed with serious people in skirts and suits. Your future, if not your life, may depend on them.
You expect me to trust these foundations of the secular part of my life to a COFFEE SHOP?
Capital One Cafes don’t even do things besides certificates of deposit, checking, deposits, withdrawals, and savimgs. They give no loans and provide no advice. Worse, as you said, they don’t sell you on things and are but order-takers. They make a mockery of banking.
They are a dumbed down bank for my decadent, entitled generation that thinks advice and discipline are threats to their psyche or mental state. What better place than one you can’t be told “no” or “you’re doing this wrong” or “you should do it like this”?
I abhor the whole idea.
Well, you certainly said a mouthful… and I thought I was disappointed in this bank! It’s just too bad we don’t have banks or savings and loans like the one in It’s A Wonderful Life. THAT seems to be more like the one you are searching for, and so am I. However, let’s remember that each bank in a sense is it’s own entity. Like most chain stores, the leadership at the top dictates the processes followed below. There are some wonderful stories of lending institutions that do look out for their customers, and go above and beyond. Heck, when my parents lived in Florida they banked at a location that not only knew the name of their two dogs, they sent them home with their deposit slip, and dog biscuits for the dogs. Capital One seems to be celebrating a new process that doesn’t work for either one of us, but let’s see how this little experiment works because I’d like to think good managers will take matters in their own hands by not being afraid to sell, and getting rid of the bean bag chairs. Thank you so much for writing. You put a lot into that, and I found it very interesting.