You may have heard the story about the cardiologist telling his patient that the only remaining hope is for a heart transplant. Trusting the expert's recommendation, the patient makes one request.

"I would like to have the heart of a banker," he says.

"Why?" asked the doctor. 

"Because it has never been used," answers the patient.

These were the types of jokes reserved for doctors and lawyers until just recently. The once highly regarded and respected community banker has fallen from on high. More than simply becoming a punch line, banking professionals are loathed in many communities. But that course can be altered.

This is the second in a series of posts dealing with reclaiming success as a community banker. The previous entry focused on how ego can prevent the necessity of leaving the bank, hitting the pavement, and actually making face-to-face contact with customers and potential customers (See: Reclaiming Success As A Community Banker). It was intentionally the first in this series. Reluctance to make personal customer visits for any reason is the largest hurdle career bankers must overcome. Once the commitment is made to "Just Do It" (my thanks to Nike and Bo Jackson), next is to devise a strategy which will make every customer contact count.

Pool your customers

All of your customers need to be classified into groups that will quickly, consistently and regularly identify them as a great customer, a poor customer, and possibly a couple of designations in between. If you fail to do this, it is highly likely time will be wasted with relationships you cannot salvage, customers that are no longer a good fit for the bank, or clients that need assistance beyond that which your institution offers. More damage can be done to your bank's reputation (remember, "reputation risk" is a key safety and soundness factor) if, by virtue of your personal attention, it appears your institution is dangling a lifeline when nothing of the sort is possible. 

Know before you go. Classify your customers.

This is not unlike FAS 5 pooling which separates loans by similar criteria defined by loan type, class, FFIEC or some other industry code. The chart below is an example of how customer classification might be structured.

Your specific chart and the qualifications for each pool should be individualized for your bank, your market, your customers and certainly for your overall strategy and ultimate goals. There are a few key rules to follow when developing a customer classification system.

Identify the Top Performers: You must know who your best customers are and why they are the best. Then, act accordingly. Take exceptional care of these relationships. By highlighting those clients that every banker would love to serve, you may well rediscover some of your institution's strengths. These seasoned followers are also the most likely to sign-on for new loans and products with a bank and banker they know and trust. Consider each one of these irreplaceable. 

Quantifiable qualifiers:  A valid argument can be made that any classification criteria which cannot be measured should not be considered. Yet, in the example above, one of the five qualifiers is not as simple to enumerate as the others. This does not mean it is not an important point of reference. Using the "community connector" example, decisions have to be made by you. What constitutes a "leadership role"? Are some civic organizations more advantageous to your institution than others? Should special weight be given to members of certain boards or authorities? You get the idea. However answered, if the determinant is consistent for all customers, then it becomes much easier to take into account and it will be more meaningful.

Think and ye shall find: Almost every piece of information needed to correctly segregate your customers into proper groups is available from within the walls of the bank you serve. Just take a moment to consider where data might be located and who at the bank can access the info. Don't know what other banks your customer might be using? Check the file. Look at the last credit report or loan application. Pay attention to start dates, current and high balances. Better still, take a close look at your entire portfolio. There are key details here that are needed in order to accurately create your own summaries of customer value.

Change is an absolute: Do not become paralyzed by this analytical exercise. Start simply, maybe with only three pools: Great, Fair, Poor. Assign to each about the same number of factors. Your first pass at this will not be perfect. Intelligence gained from visiting customers combined with the data you unearth at the bank will lead to constant revisions. Just as the customers may move from one class to another, so might the qualifiers change.

Done correctly, customer classification will force you to pay much closer attention to relationships, how each impacts your bank and your best course of action for each customer.

Step 2: Separate all customers into groups defined by meaningful, measurable factors. The value of each individual customer should then dictate how you divide your time and attention.