Do you know someone that’s nervous about switching to online banking? Were you nervous about moving your finances online at first?
When I was in college I was a business student and I took many courses on Labor Relations and Organizational Behavior. We often spoke about the idea of different corporate cultures and the idea of being change resistant.
I’ve recently noticed that many people are very change resistant when it comes to making the switch over to online banking. The reason this is surprising is that online banking has been around for many years and it is not a new concept by any stretch. Yet there seems to be a resistance to online banking.
The other day before a night out on the town my buddy went to pull out some cash. He quickly wanted to check his last few transactions so he clicked a few buttons and a little slip was printed out. He then received some interesting news. He was charged $1 just to view his past transactions. Now I know that it’s petty to stress about a buck, but what a slap in the face. This colossal bank had the nerve to take one buck from him just for a paper. Another reason why I think you should switch to online banking.
Why is there such a hesitance to make the switch to online banking? Let’s break this down…
Is the switch all that bad?
Many people are afraid to make the switch to online banking because they think it will be too much of a hassle. It took us many years to setup our financial infrastructure and now we’re afraid to break it. It seems like it will take a damn long time to go through all of the paperwork and to figure everything out. You have to deal with your payroll, automatic bills, and all of that other boring stuff.
Well the reality is that the switch is really pain-free. All you need to do is take a tally of your automatic deductions/money coming in. Then you contact those sources, fill out a quick form, and send over a new blank check. Just like that and you have everything setup and ready to go. Not as bad as you thought!
The switch to online banking is this simple:
Do you feel a sense of loyalty to your current bank?
I have a feeling that most of us feel a sense of loyalty to our local bank that we’ve been with since we were kids. That’s cool and all but this loyalty shouldn’t be one sided. You shouldn’t feel obligated to pay for banking and service fees if competitors are offering you the option of free banking.
Being loyal to your bank is cool and all, until you realize that you don’t have to be paying all of these fees.
Are you worried about security?
I was previously concerned about the idea of my money being digital, until I realized that this just isn’t really a big deal. Without any physical banks on street corners, the online banking provider is able to save money. With this saving they provide you with a higher savings interest rate and no banking fees.
A physical bank is good when you want to go in and speak with a representative in person. If you don’t really care about that then you shouldn’t experience any security issues with your banking. These days online banks provide safe and secure banking so that you don’t have to stress out.
Readers– Have you made the switch to online banking? Do you know someone that’s nervous about making the switch?
I completely agree that it’s time for some people to switch. A long time ago I wrote a post about how people need to get over the security concerns as most of the online banks are actually run by or are off-shoots of traditional brick-and-mortar institutions that have been around for decades or centuries. The switch isn’t hard, but it can be a little bit of a hassle if you have a lot of other things linked to it.
I say screw loyalty. They won’t do anything much to reward your longstanding history with them, so why reward them by paying their new ATM card and per swipe fees, statement fees, and whatever else they want to nickel and dime customers on (this coming from a person who usually supports businesses making a profit!)