Independent Banker - October 2017 - 44

activities, such as making account withdrawals, cashing
or depositing checks, receiving loan payments and making
transfers between accounts. ITM deposits are posted to
the customer's account immediately, unlike ATM deposits,
which can take a day or more. In addition, the presence
of an actual teller allows customers to cash checks to the
penny, with coins dispensed through the ITM. Customers
" ITMs provide a higher level of
technology than ATMs, but they
[also] bridge the gap between no
person-to-person contact and actual
in-person contact. "
-LORIE HELLER,
TOWER COMMUNITY BANK
also can ask the teller basic account questions and even
schedule appointments for additional banking services.
The first bank in Tennessee to offer ITMs was
Tower Community Bank in Jasper, Tenn., with assets
of $150 million. The bank created a strategic plan
focused on efficiency, customer experience and
customer convenience.
" We did some research and found that ITMs would
provide all of these, " says Lorie Heller, senior vice
president and chief experience officer. " ITMs provide
a higher level of technology than ATMs, but they [also]
bridge the gap between no person-to-person contact and
actual in-person contact. "
Tower Community Bank deployed its first ITM in
December 2015 and currently has 12 in operation. Some
are at the branch locations, and others are at remote,
stand-alone locations. Branches with ITMs have been able
to close their drive-throughs.
Convenience first
Customers appreciate the longer hours available for talking
to tellers. ITMs offer service from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on
weekdays, and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. Since customers
can talk with a live teller before and after work, this
eliminates the need for them to visit a branch in person
during their lunch hours, when everyone else would also
be there standing in long lines. The bank's ITMs are dualfunctioning,
meaning they operate as traditional ATMs
during hours that the video tellers are not available.
" Acceptance has been very strong, " Heller says. " We
arrange for customers to be trained on how to use the
ITMs by the employees they personally know at the
branches. In fact, we had one business owner who likes
the ITM so much that he brought his own employees in to
show them how to do transactions. "
Another bank finding success with ITMs is The Citizens
Bank in Philadelphia, Miss., with assets of just over
$1 billion. " We wanted to stay on the cutting edge and stay
ahead of the competition, " says Jackie Hester, vice president
of marketing. " We wanted to provide as easy access to
banking as possible for our customers with technology. "
Transformative experiences are key
According to Dave Kuchenski, director, business development-design
and new technology incubation for
Diebold Nixdorf in North Canton, Ohio, user experience
is at the heart of all technology. " We recently celebrated
the 50th anniversary of the ATM, " he says. " What made
ATMs so successful is that they are ubiquitous and
convenient. They are ubiquitous in that you can put your
card in any ATM around the world, and it will dispense
money from your bank account. And they are convenient
in that they are located in places you already are. " As
such, according to Kuchenski, 50 years ago the ATM
began fundamentally changing people's relationships
with their banks.
But not all technology has been this successful.
" Mobile wallets have been around for a while, but they
44 ICBA IndependentBanker October 2017
aren't really catching on as much, because they aren't
that much more convenient for customers, " he says.
" Rather than pulling a card out of your wallet,
you pull your phone out. However, this
doesn't really create a new experience
for the customer. For example, it
doesn't allow you to bypass checkout
lines. "
Kuchenski says it doesn't make
sense for community banks to just
implement technology for the sake
of technology. " Some transformation
of experience needs to take place for
the customer, such as saving time or providing
additional services, " he says. -William Atkinson
Independent Banker - October 2017

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