“It ain’t heavy, it’s my laptop”
While I waited, I was increasingly amazed to see the cross section of society that was waiting amid all the noise and display. They were all lugging some kind of Apple technology. One kid who looked about 14 carried a desktop Macintosh that he could barely carry. Others not much older came in with laptops needing attention. Parents were there with younger kids, bearing shopping bags containing wounded or uncooperative technology. The stream of iPhone users proved more fascinating still.

Blue-shirted geniuses periodically disappeared through, or emerged from, a silver door behind the bar. The mystery zone.

A few years back I’d been in a community bank, also on Long Island, that experimented with “branches of the future” that included the concept of sit-down banking, where any need not served by a branch “concierge” would be served by a personal banker. For the sake of security, the bankers’ desks weren’t equipped with tills. Instead, the tills were located in a secure back room, another mystery zone.

In another case, in Connecticut, tellers work at sit-down stations, with customers sitting across the counter, and the tills are located, as traditionally, right by the teller.

In some ways, the Genius Bar seemed to fulfill the same function, but with differences that became apparent.

Sanity amidst the madhouse
I’m not sure how much time elapsed, in the end, but I was pretty frosted by the time our turn came. (Mind you, we were there in the first week or so of the iPad, so that could account for the wait and craziness.)

We met the very competent and friendly Agnes (not her real name), a woman in her early 20s.

She asked about the older machine first. She plugged in a portable hard drive and performed a battery of diagnostics while we watched. She located the problem in short order. But then she advised us that the machine, while to me still a very serviceable device, had long been considered “vintage,” to use Apple’s label. Apple Stores don’t do “vintage” device repairs—the company actually doesn’t make parts for them, either—and Apple instead leaves that to authorized independent servicers. She gave us some data to take to the shop, and a printout of the servicer closest to our home.

Then came the “newer” machine, Appointment Two.

Agnes performed some tests and, after a trip to the mystery zone beyond the silver door, decided to check the serial number on the Apple database. She told us within two months this machine, also, would go into vintage status.

Somewhere in the midst of this, a boy about 15 years old came back asking about his laptop and the operating system repair he’d left it for.

He clearly didn’t get the concept of not interrupting another person’s appointment. But Agnes gave him the short version and excused herself, as she was helping us.

The kid continued to sit next to us at the bar, glowering. Clearly, he was annoyed that the re-installation of the software hadn’t worked, and that we stood between him and the genius. The layout and concept encouraged his remaining on top of us. He grew more impatient as time wore on, and yanked out his iPhone to beef to a friend.

We asked questions about the full implications of “vintage.” It turned out this meant that any repairs made would only be guaranteed so far, and, as well, there was the issue of spare parts after the machine went into vintage status.

Clearly, the message behind all this “vintage” stuff was, “Let us sell you the NEW generation.” Surely this is a major reason Apple Stores exist.

Sign here, in INK
Oddly, then came the agreement for the repair. In this Temple of Electrons, one might expect an all-electronic transaction, finishing with a biometric thumb-scan.

Nope. From somewhere beneath the bar, Agnes produced crisp laser-printed paper contracts, disclosures, and releases.

They had to be signed.

With an ordinary ballpoint pen.

Apple, for all its technology—and I’ve been a Mac fan for years—was no more able to avoid paper than the typical mortgage lender who must kill half a tree to close a transaction.

Another thing that bothered me—after the fact, actually, after my wife pointed it out—I was asked for personal information relating to the contract within the earshot of the unhappy teen, who continued to perch near me on his Genius Bar stool. My wife worried that, since he already seemed to feel we were infringing on his time by being ahead of him, that he might hack our accounts out of sheer revenge.

Ultimately, we wrapped up and went home.

Considering the Apple experience
My wife and I talked a great deal about the experience in the Apple Store. While I write about banking, she handles virtually all of our family finances. This includes extensive online banking with several institutions, including billpay; usage of live banking facilities for our local institution in both traditional and supermarket locations; and more.

We felt that Agnes had given us highly skilled and professional service; had been friendly without being “gushy”; had kept the implied sales pitch to a decent level, with no feeling of “bait and switch”; had been explicit about what was being guaranteed and what our risks were; had answered many detailed questions without giving any indication of being rushed or wanting to rush us; and hadn’t done anything that made us feel we hadn’t been well served. That is, once we got past the long wait, and that wasn’t her fault.

An important point to add. We had about 45 minutes, or so it seemed, of her mostly undivided attention. And there was no charge for any of the diagnostics, or anything about the appointments at all.

If we had decided not to choose the repairs, we would have walked out at no cost at all. That was impressive. Where we live, most repairmen charge at least $100 just to show up.

A downside was the later followup, actually, though that could have been looked at two ways.

What happened was this. Flying to San Antonio for the banker meeting that opened this article, with my wife along, we had to change through Atlanta. While awaiting our next flight, I was scrambling to finish a magazine story at an airport computer desk. My wife told me our daughter had called to say that the Apple Store had called to say they were holding up the repair until they had our definite OK. The issue, again, was the approaching “vintage” status.

I cursed to myself over this.

I had things to do, I was over 21, and had already signed a detailed printed contract for the repair.

What part of “do it” did Apple not understand, several business days after the authorization had been signed?

I called the Apple Store and found myself back in the phone queue, waiting almost 23 minutes to speak to someone. I plugged in my headset and kept writing. Finally, a live person. They asked for an order number. I said I was in an airport, far from home, thought I dispensed with the question of the repair five days earlier, and didn’t have the file with me. I was back on hold for another five minutes or so.

Then my oral OK was taken, and the work commenced—I hoped.

Is this consumer protection taken to a fault? Or just Apple covering itself? As it turned out, my wife called me shortly before this article went online--almost a week after the airport incident. Apple called again about the "vintage" issue. Work had STILL not begun on the computer. Apple AGAIN wanted clearance to go ahead with the work. You can ponder on the meaning of service; I won't belabor you with any more updates on this particular case, other than to say that I still don't think there was any intentional "bait and switch," just a technological juggernaut that perhaps ought to learn to keep better records. And, no, I wouldn't put up with this from a bank. But there are lots of banks.

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Mike Branton said:

Steve, I enjoyed your article. I do think it is a bit of an apples and oranges (no pun intended) comparison of an experience at the Apple store and going to a bank. Only the Apple store can service its highly in-demand, proprietary merchandise; whereas, there are thousands of banks that can provide commodity services and products. Maybe we as bankers can learn more from examining consumer experiences (good and bad) to more comparable, necessary/required, repetitive transactional activities like grocery shopping, going to the pharmacy or the laundry, getting your car serviced or booking a plane ticket. Ask most consumers and they say they bank because they have to, not because they want to (like most if not all of the activities mentioned above). I'm not judging the relative importance of any of these activities but finding the best practices from more comparable activities (like the ones mentioned above) seems more applicable than the Apple store comparison. Food for thought. Keep up the good work.

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May 07, 2010
Votes: +3

Mike Magee, CEO, Independent Bank, Ionia, Mich. said:

My wife and I enjoyed this article and couldn’t help but chuckle at some of your observations. My son, who just graduated from college, was home last night, so I shared with him how we had a chance to meet you recently, and asked him to read your article and share his thoughts with me. He is a full Apple user and supporter!! I thought he made some interesting observations, and I have listed them below: • Why would anyone want to have or try to save a vintage machine when new applications and software won’t work on them? • He goes to the store for entertainment, and to experience and see the newest software and hardware Apple offers. • He said parents now shop at Apple because their kids moved them there, versus banking, where, for example, he banks at the bank his parents told him to use. • He said he supports Apple because the company is always coming out with a new product and staying up with the times. On the other hand, he says, in his experience banks never try to upgrade his current product, even though they offer new ones from time to time. • Apple owners feel they are part of a fraternity because they can go to the stores and hang out together versus Microsoft users or buyers of Dell computers!!

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May 13, 2010
Votes: +3

Mom/Banking Consumer with Teenagers said:

Banks are a necessity, not an entertainment. We want to go to an Apple Store, if not just for the curiosity factor but maybe to glean something new that will make owning an Apple MORE entertaining/fun, easier. We feel hip if we are part of this crowd, because they are young. Most teens would want to be part of the cutting edge crowd. Going to the Genius Bar is like going to a social bar, just, thankfully, without the booze. Maybe if community banks made the ties to the community stronger to start with, screens showing what is going on in their communities, what’s coming up in their community, highlighting individuals of note, places of note, etc. That might draw more attention. Banks need to have more events which show they care about their up and coming customers, too. They could hold seminars for young people, on to learn how to transition from high school to becoming more independent with their finances, financial road maps to follow, how to become an entrepreneur or manage college without breaking the bank, etc. They could show young customers how to bank with an iPhone. E-mail them with latest rates when they go up, or let them know of upcoming bills and rate changes. This generation lives on their phones and mobile devices! Today’s kids don't want to interact with sales people as much. I see how kids interact with each other and older people. They would find a kiosk much more approachable. If community banks made kiosks tailored to their interests, financially, with attention-getting forms, etc., that might lead to a sit-down meeting: "Have more questions? we can help" Kiosks could also include calculators, budget form suggestions, maybe even tie-ins with other marketing ideas. Ideas: Concert tickets, tickets to community events they would be interested in. How about tie-ins with local businesses? For example: free bowling or a free slice of pizza in exchange for checking account deposits. Today’s young people aren’t about toasters!

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May 13, 2010
Votes: +4

Dan Hawk said:

Personally, I have been an Apple and iPhone user for a few years and have had experiences with the Apple store that were great and some that were not-so-great. I too, loved the article but felt that comparing Banking to the Apple Store experience is difficult because of the proprietary nature of Apple. The reason you go to the store is that at some point you decided to look into a different and innovative way of computing. Apple doesn’t represent the “Old Guard” and they aren’t simply trying to spruce-up and tweak your old computer. They are offering a significantly different interface with data manipulation and the act of interfacing with the internet. At issue for many of our younger, but increasingly affluent clients is the perception that banks aren’t willing to innovate and that they only make changes from a reactionary stance…. Like when the government forces them to. This type of behavior is what makes banking feel like going to the post office or DMV for most people. What if a bank made really revolutionary strides to be something different? Not necessarily an attempt to be “cool” and to copy something like the Apple Store, but an attempt to fundamentally change the relationship that it has with clients. This is why a company like Apple has such loyalty and keeps people coming back. They have a simplicity and a flexibility that is very freeing to people. In contrast, the way that bank accounts operate is often both complex and inflexible. I know that a lot of that rigidness can be blamed on regulation, but the financial institutions that can find a way to innovate and rewrite “Banking” for this generation will gain the business.

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May 14, 2010
Votes: +2

Brett King said:

Steve, Excellent article. I was on a conference call with some of the top thought leaders on the future of banking in the US yesterday and this very concept of the Apple Store approach to branch banking came up. Your article is great and raises some great issues that bankers need to think about. Here are my key points: 1. Branch Banking is too expensive as-is Branches are costly dinosaurs in the most part. Over-the-counter transactions cost the bank highly, margins are constantly being squeezed, so it won't be long before the current 'branch' model is unsustainable. Branch has to be about revenue generating, not high-counter processing centers. 2. Customer Behavior - the big shift Customers are already migrating to better, more efficient channels for day-to-day banking. ABA has already tracked the fact that in the last 3 years branch as 'preferred channel' has declined 41% in favor of internet. Mobile internet banking is going to further accelerate this change. 3. It's about experience What Apple does really well is give you an environment where you experience their product and their service. I'm a regular at the Apple store and love the fact that any roaming staff can take my credit card payment on their iPhone. The branch has to be about showing you how the bank can help you, and facilitating engagement for new product and service. It's all about you as the customer - not the bank and their outmoded compliance processes. You'll have to read BANK 2.0 to find out what I recommend for Branch banking moving forward though Regards, Brett King Author - BANK 2.0

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June 04, 2010
Votes: +2

David Gerbino said:

Steve, you raise some interesting points that ALL community bankers are going to have to face in the coming year. Over the last several decades change and evolution has been part of the community banking experience. With each year, the pace of change has quickened. The pace today is frenetic. Tomorrow this will not change. How many of us are prepared? How many of over the last couple of years have been addressing this quickening pace? The pace of change is not just technology or how we service our customers, it is part of every facet of banking. Many community bankers are facing this change head on. You spoke of a group in your article and the people posting comments have addressed it as well. As a community, many of us forward thinkers have found each other on sites such as this, Twitter and other bank related blog sites the world over. The Apple store does do some things right that are applicable to banking. The appointment is one such example. Many banks do this for their business and high value customers. Bank of America has even brought that capability to the web. Brett King mentioned how the branch is racing towards being a dinosaur. We have seen over the last few years the introduction of the use of video into banking to better meet a customers needs. I am not talking about video walls but interactive video where one - to one conversations are happening via video. Did it work? No, it is not mainstream. The same thing happened with mobile banking. Mobile banking was a big flop. Now a few years later and mobile banking is the hottest thing. Why? The time is right now. The people using the technology are ready to use it. We are on the verge of 50% of all mobile phone sales being a smartphone.The next generation of mobile technology is currently rolling out slowly across America. This new technology will provide broadband access to us on our mobile handsets and tablet computing devices. Is video banking going to get hot in the near future? Maybe it will follow in mobiles foot steps. The fact is, nobody knows what the future of community banking is going to be. We need to continually invest our most important assets, our people, in the improvement process. And as Brett also says, we have to pay attention to how our customers are interacting/engaging with us and we must make the banking experience better. Additionally, we must not forget what has happened in the financial industry over the last few years. Managing risk must be paramount and finding ways to innovate in the risk and compliance areas of our business are equally important. Focusing on the likes of Apple or other successful retailers like Zappos is helpful. Copying them is not. If we ignore the coming changes, future Friday's will feature the names of our fine institutions with the following Twitter tag "#BankFailFriday" - http://search.twitter.com/search?q=#BankFailFriday @dmgerbino

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June 07, 2010
Votes: +0

Jon M said:

Steve, I very much enjoyed the article and absolutely agree that banks should turn to the Apple store as a model. I can't tell you how much i try to avoid going to the bank because I dislike the experience so much. From the lines to the constant "next customer please" it all feels so impersonal. Just the idea of Apple requesting a customers name makes the experience that much better when you are referred to as a person rather than a sale or number. My mother tells me a lot about how certain banks have such a personal experience. She claims that the entire teller system does not exist in her branch and everything is done personally from a desk in a comfortable office chair. Though this is a very desirable experience, I still do not have the heart to switch from my current bank based on the fact that my bank has the most proprietary ATM machines in the area and many areas I enjoy spending time in. I think in my book conveniences will go on the top, closely followed by customer service and eye candy of course. If i could have the best of all those words, I think I would have my bank chosen. Thanks for the good read, Jon

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June 29, 2010
Votes: +2

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