Elavon Merchant Services - Corporate Services at Union Savings Bank pdf

CorporateServicesatUnionSavingsBank Introduction UnionSavingsBankinDanbury,Connecticut,isa communitybankdedicatedtothegrowthandprogressof itscustomersacrossConnecticut.Establishedin1866,the bankisrootedinthetraditionsofprovidingthebestservice tocustomersandgivingbacktothecommunity.Notonly doesthebankencourageits staffmemberstovolunteer,it alsodonated$1.6millionin2011tocharitieswithinits footprint.  UnionSavingsBankcurrentlyhas29branches,6,500 businessDDAsandassetsof$2.5billion.  The Challenge Throughtheyears,UnionSavingsBankworkedwith differentvendorstoprovidemerchantprocessingservices fortheirbusinesscustomers.WhentheBankacquiredFirst NationalBankofLitchfieldin2010,themanagementteam decidedtopickbest‐in‐breedvendorstocoincidewiththe merger.“Bothbankshaddifferentplatformsfor merchant processing,sowedecidedtoputtogetheranRFPtohelpus makethebestchoice,”saidJimRusiecki,SeniorVice PresidentofCorporateServicesatUnionSavingsBank.“We wereverydeliberatewiththeprocessandwantedittobe fair.Wewerelookingforatruebusiness partnerwhocould helpusmaximizeourincomepotentialaswellasprovide solidtechnologyandcustomerservice.”  AstheRFPresponsescamein,Rusieckiputtogethera committeetoreviewtheresponsesandultimatelypickthe merchantservicesvendor.“Intheend,wedecidedto contractwithElavonand ElavonFinancialInstitution Solutions,”saidRusiecki.“Wehadahistorywiththe companyandagoodrapportwithDianaBarhorst, RelationshipManager.BecausewehadworkedwithElavon inthepast,wewerealreadyfamiliarwiththeirsystemand knewtheywouldprovidegreatservicetothebankandto our customers.Oneothercriticalpoint:Elavonwasbig enoughthatthebankwouldnothavetobeinvolvedin everydetail.Thesalesrepresentativecouldanswer comprehensivecustomerquestions.”  The Solution Elavon’sMerchantServicesprogramoffersfront‐end authorizations,back‐endsettlementandallcustomer supportfunctions,providingclientswithonesourceforall oftheirpaymentprocessingneeds.Inaddition,value‐added processingserviceslikecorporatepurchasingcards,PIN‐ baseddebit,fleetcards,electronicgiftcardsandelectronic checkconversion areallavailable.  UnionSavingsBankimplementedtheElavonMerchant ServicesprograminJune,2011.“Thetransitionwassmooth andseamlesstoourbranchesandbusinesspartners,”said Rusiecki.“Liketheimplementation,thetrainingwasvery professional.” Elavon Merchant Services   UnionSavingsBank – ElavonMerchantServices CaseStudy 2 Oncetheimplementationandtrainingwerecomplete, Rusiecki’sCorporateServicesteamworkedwiththeBank’s retailbankingandmarketingdepartmenttogettheword outaboutthenewoffering.“We’vegotanexpertatthe bankwhohelpsuswithourmarketingcampaigns,and we’vetakenadvantageofvariouse‐marketing  opportunities,”saidRusiecki.“Withelectroniccampaigns, wecanprepareallthemessagingandeverythingwithina fewdaysandmakesurewetargettheri ghtpeople.Our approachhasbeenmoreconsultativethansales‐focused, andeachtimewedoacampaignwegetbacksixtoeight qualifiedleads. Allreferralscometothebankfirstsowe cantrackthemandmakesurethecustomeriscontacted quickly.”  Alongwithe‐marketingcampaigns,UnionSavingsBankhas alsohadinternalpromotionstohelpraiseawarenessof theirmerchantservicesoptions.Giftcardsprovide employeeswithmoreincentiveto understandandsellthe solution.“We’reconsciouslytryingtofindtherightfitwith thenumberandtypeofpromotionssowedon’toverwhelm thebranches,”saidRusiecki.“Andwe’reworkingclosely withourcommerciallenderssotheycanbecompletely comfortablewiththisproductandrefercustomers.”   Salesand MarketingSupport Elavonprovides: • Asuiteofonlinetoolstohelpyoumanage yourportfolio,trackmerchantapplications andviewresidualreports • Developmentassistanceforleadgeneration programsatyourinstitution • Developmentassistanceformarketing materialstosupportyourpromotions  Elavon gives financial institution partners the power to meet all their customers’ payment processing needs. Elavon provides management and customer service while assuming risk and full compliance responsibility for the program. The Results FromJunethroughDecember,2011,UnionSavingsBank reached$10millioninnewbusinesssalesthroughthe merchantservicesprogram.“Oursalesgoalsfocusedon openingacertainnumberofaccountsaswellasdriving residualincome,”saidRusiecki.“Wewereluckytoopen somelargeraccountslastyear,which drovethesales figuresup.”  Beyondincreasedsales,thebankmeasuresthesuccessof thisprogrambypersonallyreviewingcustomersatisfaction. “Wecontactourcustomersperiodically,”saidRusiecki. “Maybeit’snotspecificallytoaskaboutmerchant processing,butwegenerallybringitup.Thereareno instancesofcomplaints.Everyone Ihaveheardfromis happy–especiallywiththe24/7service.AllElavon representativesarecarefultoaddressconcernsrightaway beforetheybecomeproblems.”  Rusieckihasgatheredalotofpositivefeedback.“Pricing flexibilityisonebenefitourcustomersreallyappreciate,” hesaid.“Ithelpsthemtocompete inachallengingmarket. Theyalsolikesomeoftheotherperkswecanoffer,suchas giftcards.Nowsmallerbusinessescanoffergiftcardsthat helpbuildcustomerloyalty.”  Withaccesstonewpaymentprocessingsolutions,Union SavingsBankcustomerscansolverealworldproblems.“I loveto hearstoriesabouthowwemakeadifferenceforour customers,”saidRusiecki.“Forexample,wehaveahome heatingoildistributercustomerwhowastakingquiteafew checksthatwouldthenbounce.Weworkedwiththeowner toshowhimitwasworthittoacceptdebitorcredit cards sohedidn’thavetochasepeopledownforpayment.We setupwirelessterminalssocustomerscouldpayon delivery.”    UnionSavingsBank – ElavonMerchantServices CaseStudy 3 Likemanybanks,UnionSavingsBankstrivestosecurethe wholerelationshipwithacorporatecustomer.“Wewantto beafull‐serviceproviderforcustomers,”saidRusiecki. “Merchantprocessingisanothertoolthathelpstoround outourproductmixandcontributetothebottomline. Customersseethisas afeeforaservicetheyneed, somethingthathelpstheirbottomlineaswell,notjusta penaltyfee.”    The Next Steps WhatdoesthefutureholdfortheElavonMerchant ServicesprogramatUnionSavingsBank?“Wehave aggressivebankgoals,”saidRusiecki.“Wewanttogrowour portfolioby15%overthenext12monthsanddrive residualincome.Wecanachievethisinpartbycontinuing withoure‐marketing program.We’vehadgoodsuccessbut haven’ttappedourfulldepositbase.Ilookforwardto workingwithElavononnewideas.Wehavegottensuch greatcustomerservicefromthecompanyandwehavean excellentrelationship.It’satruebusinesspartnership.”       UnionSavingsBank2011MerchantServicesProgramGrowth  $0 $500,000 $1,000,000 $1,500,000 $2,000,000 $2,500,000 $3,000,000 $3,500,000 $4,000,000 June July August September October November December NewAccounts       UnionSavingsBank – ElavonMerchantServices CaseStudy 4  TheElavonMerchantServicesProgramisonlyoneof themanyproductsofferedbyElavonFISolutions.If youhaveapaymentprocessingneed,wehavea solution. FinancialinstitutionswhoworkwithElavonFISolutionscanofferafullsuiteof merchantpaymentservicestotheirbusinessclientsincluding:  • VirtualMerchantMobilesupportspurchaseandauthorization transactionsviaSmartphones  • Credit&DebitCardPaymentProcessingenablesstorestoacceptand processcreditanddebittransactions  • MerchantConnect,amerchant’sonlinewindowintotheirpayment processingaccount  • ElectronicGiftCardsencouragerepeatbusiness,attractnewcustomers andboostsales  • Phreesia,aself‐servicepaymentsystemforhealthcareproviders  Elavon’send‐to‐endprocessingnetworkisone‐of‐a‐kindinthe industry.The paymentprocessingsolutionscanhelpimprovecashflow,minimize collectionsrisk,andbetterserveyourbusinessclients,allwhilemeeting stringentsecuritystandardstoprotectcardholderdata.  “Pricing flexibility is one benefit our customers really appreciate. It helps them to compete in a challenging market.” ‐  JimRusiecki    Elavon Financial Institution Solutions Related Solutions TheExchangeisanonlinedestinationforfinancialinstitutionsthatpresentsbestpracticesand future‐forwardstrategicthoughtleadershipinacollaborativeformat.TheExchangeisyour site,yourforumandyourplacetobeheard.Jointheconversationat www.TheExchange4FIs.com  For more information on Elavon Financial Institution Solutions, contact us at ask@elavonfis.com or call 1-866-576-0760. You can also visit our website at www.elavonfis.com. . December NewAccounts       UnionSavingsBank – Elavon Merchant Services CaseStudy 4  The Elavon Merchant Services Programisonlyoneof themanyproductsofferedby Elavon FISolutions.If youhaveapaymentprocessingneed,wehavea solution. Financialinstitutionswhoworkwith Elavon FISolutionscanofferafullsuiteof merchant payment services totheirbusinessclientsincluding:  •. Solution Elavon s Merchant Services programoffersfront‐end authorizations,back‐endsettlementandallcustomer supportfunctions,providingclientswithonesourceforall oftheirpaymentprocessingneeds.Inaddition,value‐added processing services likecorporatepurchasingcards,PIN‐ baseddebit,fleetcards,electronicgiftcardsandelectronic checkconversion areallavailable.  UnionSavingsBankimplementedthe Elavon Merchant Services programinJune,2011.“Thetransitionwassmooth andseamlesstoourbranchesandbusinesspartners,”said Rusiecki.“Liketheimplementation,thetrainingwasvery professional.” Elavon Merchant Services   UnionSavingsBank – Elavon Merchant Services CaseStudy 2 Oncetheimplementationandtrainingwerecomplete, Rusiecki’sCorporate Services teamworkedwiththeBank’s retailbankingandmarketingdepartmenttogettheword outaboutthenewoffering.“We’vegotanexpertatthe bankwhohelpsuswithourmarketingcampaigns,and we’vetakenadvantageofvariouse‐marketing  opportunities,”saidRusiecki.“Withelectroniccampaigns, wecanprepareallthemessagingandeverythingwithina fewdaysandmakesurewetargettheri