Last week, we posted about optionsXpress taking advantage of E*Trade’s woes. Online upstart Zecco (which we do not track in our Monitor services) has also joined the fray with this amusing YouTube video:

In light of recent troubles among financial institutions, optionsXpress‘ CEO sent a bold email to clients this week:

This is certainly a powerful message and it shows an opportunism that we have not seen from other brokerage firms lately.

Wells Fargo recently added a Mobile Text Banking feature to its free mobile banking service, making it the second Bank Monitor firm to offer this option, along with Chase. With the Mobile Text Banking service, Wells Fargo customers can receive account balance and activity information on their mobile device in the form of a text message. Both Wells Fargo and Chase state that users must send text banking commands to pre-defined phone numbers in order to request the specific account information. For example, when using both Wells Fargo and Chase’s mobile services, texting “bal” indicates that customers would like to receive their account balance. While Chase only provides its text-based service, Wells Fargo also provides a mobile version of its online banking platform.

iShares recently introduced its third new advisor tool of the year which debuts shortly after their Desk-top Widget, an innovative first for advisor websites that we track. The new International Exposure Tool is a comprehensive device that allows advisors to show clients the country and sector composition of international iShares ETFs. This is the first international investment tool to be offered by any firm in our coverage group, and it is extremely impressive in its scope, customization options, and import capability into the preexisting Index Comparison Tool. 

The tool, accessible from the Portfolio Construction Tools page of the Tools & Charts tab, assesses the country and sector of international funds or portfolios in order to help advisors choose the best international investment strategy for their client. The tool can also compare country or sector exposure for any two iShares portfolios.

Our Mutual Fund Monitor Advisor Update has a full review of the new tool.   

We recently closed an account at UBS and were mailed a check for the remaining cash balance – a whopping 63 cents! Looking at this check gave us a little bit of a chuckle, as it reminded us of an episode of Seinfeld, in which Jerry’s hand started to cramp up from signing so many royalty checks – each for around 12 cents. There doesn’t seem to be much of a point in mailing us this check. It probably cost UBS more to produce and mail this check than it is actually worth. It is also noted that the check must be cashed within 180 days – or else, of course, we run the risk of foregoing our 63 cents.

It is very likely that this is not an isolated incident. Indeed, over the years, we’ve closed numerous accounts and have received checks like this (though we still couldn’t buy a cup of coffee at Starbucks with the total). Collectively, with millions of accounts at firms, these small checks could add up to real money. While firms cannot simply pocket this money, why not pool it and do some good? Tell clients when they open an account that upon severing the agreement, any amount less than, say, $5 will be donated to charity. It is likely that most people would rather see this than have to endorse a 63 cent check.

There has been much discussion about online security for banks lately and generally it has centered around the obvious importance of keeping customer data secure. Aside from this fundamental need, there are ancillary benefits that accrue from successfully implementing such measures. Among them is the ability to provide enhanced customer service online, which not only can increase customer satisfaction, but reduce service costs as well.

A recent Bank Monitor report that we published reviewed the customer online messaging centers at 14 major banks. In it, we reviewed message center design, secure message design, accessibility, timeliness of responses, etc. and in doing so were able to determine some best practices for providing this useful service.

In a telling sign of the industry’s adoption, every firm we track except one offers an online messaging center. And, of those, 85% allow clients to both send and receive messages. The major benefit of well-designed message centers is that customers can get support on specific account-related issues. Since the centers are secure behind the customer login, there is no need to filter sensitive data, which would be necessary if you were communicating via standard email.

Despite the overall high use of these centers, only 28% of firms send a confirmation email to clients confirming that customer service has received the message. More importantly, only a little over half the banks we reviewed email clients when they have posted a response to the question. Our report goes into detail and provides screenshots, examples, and best practices. Suffice it to say, however, if you plan to offer such a service, here are some important features to include:

• Set expectations - let clients know when they expect a response; and more importantly meet that expectation!
• Offer FAQs or knowledge base answers based on the client’s question prior to taking receipt of the message. This can greatly reduce support costs - after all, it is likely that other clients have had similar questions.
• Design the message center following conventions around online mail clients (e.g. gmail or Yahoo mail).
• E-mail clients confirming the submission of their question as well as when a response has been posted.