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Niche lending ideas: Green products and services
Community banks thrive in niche markets, and lending in new spaces is just one of the ways they serve their communities. As the market for “green” products and services evolves, we asked community...
Three Essential Strategies for a Winning Contact Center Culture
SPONSORED | Contact centers are increasingly expected to deliver more, often with less time and fewer resources. Keeping pace requires going back to employee engagement. Employee and customer...
It’s Time for a Shift: From Transactional to Relational
SPONSORED—While transactions are essential and can exist almost entirely online, the business of banking is about more than transactions. Forward-looking banks are following three guiding...
3 Cybersecurity Challenges Community Banks Should Know
SPONSORED | As the year progresses, hackers are strengthening their attack methods. This article will explore 3 cybersecurity challenges facing the industry in 2022 and why your bank should...
Demystifying and Prosper: How Community Banks Find Success in Fintech Partnerships—with Greg Ohlendorf of First Community Bank and Trust and Joe Ehrhardt of Teslar Software
We have to demystify that fintech is complicated, or fintech is difficult, or fintech is risky or scary. Fintech, to me, is opportunity,” says Greg Ohlendorf, President and CEO, First Community...
First Women’s Bank tackles small business inequity
Dismayed at the lack of business ownership opportunities and advancement afforded to entrepreneurial women, Marianne Markowitz spearheaded a consortium to form a women-founded, women-owned and...
3 Steps to Review Your Core Provider’s Performance
SPONSORED | With big changes happening in fintech, you need to feel confident that your core is delivering the service and support your bank deserves. Learn why it’s important to assess your core...
A community bank-fueled payments rail
A secure, open-loop, cost-saving, customer-accessible, multiplatform P2P payments network might sound too good to be true, but community bank consortium Alloy Labs Alliance hopes to achieve just...
Can fintechs enhance your bank’s marketing campaign?
Customized, well-thought-out interactions are integral to wooing new customers and retaining existing ones. We asked several banking leaders how they’ve employed fintech to ramp up their marketing...
The women leaders inspiring future generations
Women’s History Month is an opportunity to spotlight women leaders who have crafted successful careers in community banking. This trio of executives describe the ways they achieve their goals and...
6 smart marketing moves for 2023
When it comes to customer acquisition tactics, it’s never too early to start thinking about next year’s budget. Here, experts give their take on trends that can freshen up your community bank’s...
Build your community bank's brand with swag
Promotional merchandise, or swag, has long been regarded as a no-brainer approach to branding. Community banks are shedding those thrifty connotations with a mindful approach to company gifting...
Charles Potts: Unlocking better customer connections
When assessing providers, keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all marketing solution. The beauty of innovation is that it comes in all shapes and sizes. Your marketing capabilities must fit...
Six ways data can boost your community bank's brand
Combining data with customer feedback can help community banks understand what customers think about their services and turn those thoughts into action.
How to collect positive customer reviews
When customers look up businesses online, reviews are one of the first things they see. These community bankers share how they collect positive reviews, and how to respond to negative ones.
Rebeca Romero Rainey: Tell your story
In a world that’s so full of noise, the story we’re telling is compelling and resonates with our customers, because it’s one of work centered around human connection, care and community.
Robert Fisher: Driving change
Community banks have an amazing reputation on Capitol Hill, and we need to leverage it to drive necessary change.
Lindsay LaNore: The impact of rewards and recognition
Making recognition a part of your bank’s culture is remarkably easy and incredibly beneficial.
Aaron Stetter: Back to Capitol Hill
In person for the first time since 2019, the ICBA Capital Summit in Washington, D.C., is your chance to make your voice heard by your members of Congress—with support from ICBA every step of...
UDAAP policy update for 2022
With a recent executive push for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to resume its enforcement efforts, we look at how banks can increase prevention, mitigate risk and, most important,...