By Eric Copley
Recently, a friend was utterly disappointed with the bad customer service provided by his bank and he did express his disappointment over Newswav. I am referring to an article by Mihar Dias about the moment of truth in customer service. He was seriously considering a permanent divorce from that financial institution where he banked for the last 40 years.
I could sense a tinge of regret in his article about having to put an end to their relationship that way.
If he had asked me for my opinion, I would have told him to reconsider his decision. After all, his bank's tagline or slogan is "FORWARD YOUR AMBITION".
If only the bank would consider allowing him to put forward his own ambition then perhaps their relationship would not have been terminated.
Perhaps, just perhaps he could have convinced them of his ambition. And both could have remained bosom buddies if only the bank knew what his ambition really was. But the bank or the officer in charge did not even bother to find out what he was there for, never mind finding out what his ambition in life was all about.
In the meantime, let's take a look at some taglines of other Malaysian banks that I believe might reveal a similar hidden message created merely to lure customers or to serve their own ends.
Many have often used words "you", "your", "future", "together", "progress", etc in tagline. But as we shall find out they are not actually meant for you, the customer.
For example, you should not feel left out when a bank like Maybank uses "Humanising Financial Services" in their tagline because being human you will immediately agree with the bank and be sold by the idea of the bank with them just because they'll make you think that they'll treat you like humans. But try getting in a queue at a busy Maybank branch they'll treat you just like cattle being herded into a cage.
On the other hand, Ambank wants you to "Imagine Your Future" with them and perhaps forget your past. Maybe past relationships with other banks even. But you can only imagine and might not get to realise the future. In all probability, it will remain just an imagination.
Then consider HLBB which says it is "Reaching Out to You", on the assumption that you would be equally open to reaching out to them. But would you want to reach out to them?
Or you might want to think about RHB which is not only reaching out to you buy their slogan about wanting to hold your hands and "Together We Progress". But will you really be making your progress with them holding your hands for the rest of your life?
Besides, there's Affinbank who is "Always About You" and nobody else. So they make you think that they are there always for you but it implies is that we are here only for your money.
Also, there is UOB, a Singapore-based bank that is always "Right By You" and therefore may be assumed not to leave you behind or abandon you in time of need.
Then there is HSBC which is "Opening Up A World Of Opportunity" for you. That makes you wonder whether they are talking about theirs or your opportunity that they are talking about. Be sure you don't lose sight of your own opportunity while they are making theirs out of your hard work.
This compares starkly with OCBC which is always "Spot On", which is fine as long as the spotlights do not go off in the time of darkness for you.
In case you forget banks like everything else life is fair weather friends who will take away the proverbial umbrella when it rains which reminds me of Standard Chartered which is " Here For Good". But they are also closing most of their branches in the country. So how could they say they'll be here for good?
So, will banks be there for you when you need especially in bad times?
Or maybe you want to consider the newest kid on the block MBSB Bank that wants to be "Part Of Your Journey". Would they also be willing to sponsor you to fly in business class on your next trip to San Francisco?
But for Public Bank, it is just "Excellence is Our Commitment". They are just committed to their own excellence, nothing more and their results speak volumes with promising much more than that. However with they be as committed when you become less than excellent?
Bank Islam, on the other hand, is very holistic (for lack of a better word). They are focused on trustworthiness and its effect on good values. "Amanah Terjamin Nilai Terhebat".
But they say the best is simply the simplest which is Bank Rakyat which declares that they are "Bank Pilihan Anda". They don't promise you anything. They just want you to choose them as a bank of your own choosing that you'll be doing at your own risk.
Im tempted to move my one and only account to them consciously knowing the hollowness of sloganeering by other banks. Aftet all isn't Bank Rakyat "The People's Bank".
Would you join me and avoid the disappointment of following empty promises like Mihar Dias who only realised after 40 years that it was purely for the sentimental reasons that kept him going back and forth to a bank in Plaza Damansara that didn't give a hoot for its old die-hard customers.
Eric Copley is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav.
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