Independent Banker - June 2017 - 21

each community can select a card
representing their school, with a few
choices for the school logo or image
on the card.
The bank promotes the program
at each school, and because the
schools receive the revenue, they also
promote the program internally to
teachers and parents. " We visit each
school to give presentations, and the
PTOs also promote us, " says Heid.
Getting the word out
In terms of publicity, the bank benefits
from occasional articles in the
local papers highlighting the checks
they present to the schools.
" We also have a corporate truck
that has the logos and card information
on it, and we bring it to high
school sporting events and community
parades, " he says.
Once a year at each school, the
bank promotes the program at the
halftime of a football or basketball
game, preferably one in which teams
from two of the five schools are playing.
" That way, we reach people from
both communities, " says Heid.
At these events, the bank presents
checks to the school, provides
running totals for the year and also
announces totals for all of the six
schools, adding to the competitive
spirit. Before, during and after games,
bank representatives hand out mini
basketballs and footballs and pass out
the game programs that include an
ad or flyer with the school logo check
card information.
The program has been gaining
popularity. " When we first started,
checks to each school averaged
between $10,000 and $15,000 a year, "
says Heid. " Last year, we presented a
check to one school for over $53,000. "
And, as of February 2017, the bank
had presented checks totaling almost
$1,100,000 to all of the schools. " We
" Last year, we presented
a check to one school for
over $53,000. "
-BLAKE HEID, FIRST OPTION BANK
don't tell the schools how to use the
money, " he says. " They decide. "
Instant results
To further encourage the use of check
cards, the bank initiated another program
in 2009: the Instant Issue Check
Card Program.
" Previously, when customers
ordered cards, they had to wait maybe
10 days to receive the cards, " says
Heid. " We decided that we wanted
our cards to be live when customers
activate their accounts and walk out
the door. "
This is not only more convenient
for the customers, the bank also
begins earning interchange faster.
" Customers can walk out and use it
for gas and groceries right away, so
the income production for the bank
starts that same day, " he says.
The program also makes it easier
for customers to change banks. " Customers
like to use their cards on a
regular basis, so we didn't want them
not switching to our bank because
they couldn't have active cards right
away, " he says.
Customers can get replacement
cards on the spot if they are stolen
or damaged. " One customer used
his card to chip ice off his car, " says
Heid. " They can walk into any one of
our five locations, and we can print
them off a new card right away. "
The bank uses Datacard as the
card issuer. " We are currently still
using basic card stock, " says Heid.
" We have not switched to EMV for
debit cards, but we have already on
the credit card side. "
William Atkinson is a writer in Illinois.
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Independent Banker - June 2017

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