The tech department has requested the help of a few other departments to come up with some really great reason to finally introduce internet banking. As compliance officer... I have my reason not to introduce... but that is another story.

Anyway... I am looking for some help with some really great reasons... besides the obvious... "cause everyone else is doing it".

Any assistance would be great!

One personal advantage is that the Internet never sleeps. You have 24/7 coverage at minimal additional expense.

Customers can check balances, view rates, have questions answered, get directions to the branches, see the great work the bank is doing in the community, determine if there are job openings, get forms, switch balances to cover checks, apply for loans, get electronic statements and check copies, investor information, important phone numbers, etc. These could be done from anywhere, including away from town if they are on vacation.

Just look at some of your competitors to see what their customers can do that your's can't.

We finally introduced it last year, and the response has been phenominal. Our customers love it. If you'd like to PM me, I can give you more specific information.

We just introduced Internet banking last July and being a small community bank we thought we'd be lucky if we had 10 to 20 people sign up. I haven't seen the figures but I'm sure we have at least five times that. The hardest part was getting the disclosures done but that involved going to other bank sites and cutting and pasting the best. It is a great added service especially if you have customers who do shift work.

Besides that - it's such a great loss leader!!!

We are a small community bank too and our customers love Internet Banking. Depending on your capabilities, with the onset of Check 21, and truncation, our customers can view their checks - front and back, online. We have started truncating our service charge exempt accounts and with Internet Banking, they still have access to view (and print if they so desire) their checks.

Customers who use tend to love it. Customers who don't want to touch a computer thingy don't care about it.

I would say of the active users, they never want to go back. My wife wouldn't. They can balance routinely on their schedule without waiting for a periodic statement. There is the feeling that they have more information and more control because they see it more.