3 Steps for Bankers to Shift to a Deposit-Driven Strategy

Historically, banks have focused on a lending-driven strategy because deposits have always been available at a low cost. Bankers were even called lenders, but times have changed. Now, as banks face liquidity challenges and a competitive deposit market, it’s more important than ever to carefully think about catering to clients on both sides of the balance sheet.

Many community banks have offered treasury services at very low, or even no, cost to win relationships from larger banks. That not only leaves money on the table, it also reinforces the focus on lending as a bank’s primary form of business.

Before Anything Else, Define Your Goals
Before you make the shift, it’s important to hone and define your goals. What do you want your team to achieve after making this shift? Once you know that, consider customizing the following steps to help you achieve your goals. With these tips, it is possible to build a deposit-driven strategy that can easily fit into your existing lending strategies.

1. Pricing
When it comes to treasury management and cash products, many banks don’t have an elaborate or detailed approach to pricing compared to what they might have on the loan side of the house. The key to growing deposits starts with being able to demonstrate to clients, line by line, what their current bank charges and how your bank’s offerings are of better value. That doesn’t just include how you’re better from a cost perspective — it also details how your offerings are of better quality, including your support, the add-ons that you offer, etc.

To support a deposit focus, it’s important to assess your current pricing tool kit. Ensure your bankers are properly equipped to build a pro-forma for treasury services and can speak to your offerings. You can maximize the value for your clients and the returns for your bank.

2. Client Insights
You likely have customer relationship management software that analyzes your loan pipelines. But do you have the same visibility into your deposit clients? Do you track potential opportunities? If so, do you know what their treasury strategy is and how they want to grow? What other insights do you know about these clients?

If the answer is “not much,” it’s time to think about why and how you can leverage your CRM data to change it. When you think about all of your clients holistically, based on existing insights, you will find opportunities to grow and improve your relationships with each and every one of them. Take a look at what clients you are lending to but don’t have operating accounts for and ask why.

3. Technology
Once you have compelling pricing and visibility into potential clients, it’s time to evaluate technology that can enable both your bankers and clients to easily make the transition. Too many banks lose out on commercial deposits because it’s just too tedious to open a new account or switch to a new bank.

But when a commercial account can take just a day to open — yes, it’s possible — there’s no friction. Tools like this do exist, and they make it easy to streamline and grow deposits, all while allowing you to focus on delivering white-glove service to clients.

Is your bank putting more of a focus on deposits? With the right processes, strategy and solutions in place, it can easily open up opportunities for your bank to weather whatever comes next.