In the age of chatbots and foreign call centers, what does good customer service look like? To say nothing of exceptional care? Even defining the term is tricky. Ask 100 different companies or consumers and get 100 different answers.

Emerging technology can save businesses a boatload of cash. But in the long term, delegating customer interactions to glitchy voice recognition software could have major consequences.

To define better service, let’s start by looking at what doesn’t work. That way, we might reverse-engineer a stronger way to operate.

As it has for the last nine years, Forrester Research Inc. conducted its Customer Experience Index survey for 2024. Forrester polled consumer perceptions across 200+ brands to identify trends in service and satisfaction. As you may have guessed, the results were dismal.

Among the brands reviewed (including such major players as Navy Federal Credit Union, USAA, Tesla, and Zappos), the average consumer experience score came in at 64%.

If this survey were a report card, some of the most recognizable brands on Earth would receive a depressing D for service. What is going on?

From a business perspective, it’s easy to be cutthroat about phone calls and troubleshooting. We too often associate customer service with simple courtesy – a matter of etiquette to be disposed of in pressing times.

But we might also try the inverse perspective, placing customer service at the core of how we operate. If our customers feel that their needs are more important than our profits, then they’re more likely to stick with us through shrinkflation, price increases, shipping delays, and the rest of the wrenches thrown into America’s economic machine.

At Main Street, customer service isn’t complicated. When you call, a human answers. Our Customer Service team is committed to first-contact resolution, meaning that whatever your issue is, it shouldn’t need a second phone call to solve. To learn more about what separates Main Street from other check vendors, download our Check Vendor Comparison Guide today.

Fisher, Rhys. 2024. “Customers Reject AI for Customer Service, Still Crave a Human Touch.” CX Today. July 9, 2024. https://www.cxtoday.com/speech-analytics/customers-reject-ai-for-customer-service-still-crave-a-human-touch/.

Deighton, Katie. 2024. “Customer Experience Gets Worse. Again.” WSJ. The Wall Street Journal. June 17, 2024. https://www.wsj.com/articles/customer-experience-gets-worse-again-23774dff.

‌Mishra, Savyata. 2024. “McDonald’s Posts Rare Profit Miss as Customers Turn Picky.” Reuters. April 30, 2024. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/mcdonalds-sales-misses-estimates-customers-cut-back-spending-2024-04-30/.

In its August Member Milestones article, the Independent Community Bankers of America recognized nearly 20 Main Street clients for their incredible longevity. These legacy banks are cornerstones in their communities to this day.

Let’s take a moment to appreciate some of the oldest banks in America and their remarkable history of service.

In 1899, pharmaceutical company Bayer received the first patent for aspirin. Later that year, Ernest Hemingway would be born in Oak Park, IL, and Henry Ford would resign from the Edison Illuminating Company so he could focus on something called an “automobile.”

Meanwhile, in Halls, TN, a bank was opened with barely two nickels to rub together for supplies, a ledger, or even a safe. That bank was, fittingly, the Bank of Halls. Thanks to the tireless penny-pinching of its lone cashier, Isaac Burton Tigrett, the Bank of Halls defied the common opinion that it would not succeed.

These days, accountholders in Halls enjoy business checks, online banking, and HELOC loans from their trusted local institution. Better still, the great nephew of the bank’s first president, W. T. Nunn, serves as chairman while his sons work in the C-suite.

Congratulations to The Bank of Halls!

Even today, $15,000 is a lot of money. For that amount, you might be able to purchase a gently used car. But in 1924, $15,000 could get your bank up and running with tremendous promise – the kind of origin that kicks off a century of service.

Today, The Union Bank boasts $280 million in total combined assets – a little over 18,000 times its starting capital. But even well-funded banks aren’t guaranteed to go the distance, especially when they change hands and locations through the years.

Thankfully, The Union Bank survived the Great Depression, a world war, and the digital revolution to continue offering vital services to accountholders from six branches in North Dakota.

Congratulations to The Union Bank!

As we wait for the 2024 numbers to roll in, we can look at past years to chart the rise of check fraud.

Life’s biggest purchases are paid for with checks. From rent to deposits, contractor fees to down payments, checks represent a financial certainty. But carrying a loose checkbook in your pocket or purse is a non-starter. To stay crisp and collected, your checks need protection.

Thankfully, Main Street creates high-quality checkbook covers, complete with your team’s logo or mascot amid full team colors. These plush, elegant checkbook covers allow accountholders to express themselves each and every time they pay with checks.

Since 1999, Main Street has served as a nationwide check vendor for community banks and credit unions far and wide. With 25 years under our belt, we know how difficult it can be to weather economic storms and technological turbulence.

Each of these long-serving financial institutions is a true inspiration. As a family owned company, Main Street knows that success isn’t guaranteed. It takes something truly special to keep a bank or credit union operating for a century or longer.

After all, more financial institutions have closed their doors or merged with larger competitors than exist in present-day America. The trick, according to history, isn’t opening a bank so much as keeping it open.

Main Street is honored to serve the oldest banks and the newest. For business checks, strategic check program management, custom collegiate and high school sports checks, and so much more, there’s Main Street in Birmingham, AL!

From computer checks to festive gift envelopes, Main Street pulls out all the stops in supporting check programs new and old. Increase check program profits with a check vendor who cares – speak to a Main Street representative about your needs today!

“History.” n.d. www.gruppomps.it. https://www.gruppomps.it/en/about-us/history.html.

“Member Milestones 2024: Steadfast Banks for Modern Times.” 2024. Independent Banker. 2024. https://www.independentbanker.org/article/2024/08/06/member-milestones-2024-steadfast-banks-for-modern-times?.

“1899 Archives | HISTORY.” 2024. HISTORY. 2024. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/year/1899.

“Our Heritage – Bank of Halls.” 2024. Bankofhalls.com. 2024. https://www.bankofhalls.com/our-heritage.aspx.

“History | the Union Bank.” 2014. Theunionbank.com. 2014. https://www.theunionbank.com/about/history.

Since 1999, Main Street has delivered high-quality checks to community banks and credit unions across the nation. Even so, we’re not blind to the challenges checks face in the 21st century.

Check fraud, a decline in usage, and a lack of acceptance by major retailers may paint a bleak picture. But bombastic headlines can’t convey the nuance behind these issues.

Identity theft, data breaches, phishing schemes – the imagination of crooks knows few bounds. But in an age where the most sophisticated scammers focus on 0s and 1s, others are using decidedly low-tech means to make an ill-gotten buck.

For our discussion, check fraud can be defined as the act of manipulating, printing, or stealing checks for the purpose of defrauding accountholders and financial institutions.

Setting our skepticism aside, we might take major retailers at their word. Fewer people are paying with checks, so why accept them at all? Add in the element of check fraud and it seems like a sensible thing to do.

That’s certainly the easiest explanation. But there may be other motives at play, especially when you consider the implications of not accepting a certain form of payment across thousands of stores.

While plenty of major retailers and mom-and-pop stores accept checks, some of America’s leading brands (Whole Foods, Aldi, etc.) have decided against it. Another possible culprit could be the fees associated with processing those checks.

All businesses are subject to automatic clearing house (ACH) or interchange fees – small payments made to financial institutions or card issuers for the convenience of accepting payment methods.

For cards, an interchange fee may be a percentage of the sale (something like 0.03% for example) but seldom in excess of 20 cents or so. For checks, processing fees can be higher.

According to Paystand, check processing fees can range from $4 to $20 per check – a significant increase from the cents paid per card transaction. In an age where fewer people are relying on checks, $4 may not seem like a lot. But when multiplied across thousands of stores, check processing fees can add up and eat into profits.

The answer to this question is: more people than you think. Returning to The Washington Post analysis, we see that Americans younger than 25 are the least engaged with checks. That said, even Gen Z writes them for big-ticket items.

Of course, Gen Z is just one datapoint on the long-term, check-writing demographic spectrum. The same fear of a “tech-savvy generation” abandoning checks could have been said of Millennials – inarguably the first “digital natives.” So, what do we see from that and other generations?

Millennials are using checks at nearly three times the rate of Gen Z – more than 25% write them every 30 days or so. While we continue to see enthusiastic usage among Baby Boomers, age is only part of the equation. Checks may enjoy greater adoption by older Americans simply because older Americans make larger purchases more frequently.

According to Jason Young of the Wisconsin Bankers Association, the average amount of checks is increasing. We may use them for fewer purchases, but those purchases are bigger and more significant to our lives.

Regardless of usage trends and the actions of major retailers, we can all agree that check fraud is a hefty issue.

Some pundits have even called for the elimination of checks entirely. This is, of course, a silly solution. By most accounts, money order and debit card fraud are much more widespread, though no one is calling for an end to either payment method.

What industry insiders are demanding, though, is the creation of substantial policy addressing the lax practices that empower fraudsters.

Checks aren’t going anywhere. In fact, most Americans prefer checks for life’s biggest purchases. At Main Street, we believe in check fraud prevention. Our high-security checks, custom check designs, and strategic account management services drive engagement and satisfy accountholders for robust and profitable check programs. To learn more, contact us today!

To assemble their list of the best credit unions in the United States, Forbes polled 26,000 residents – each of them past or present members. They were asked to rank credit unions on a half dozen telling criteria, including:

• Cybersecurity Measures
• Customer Service
• Quality of Financial Advice
• Fee Structures
• Ease of in-person and digital services
• Trust