When you think of electronic payments, do think of check? Check 21 has enabled companies and consumers to electronically deposit checks via Remote Deposit Capture. But many decision makers wonder if consumer remote deposit capture is just a fad. If you’re an old timey operations person, like me, you never met a check you didn’t suspect. Why would you let a consumer send you a picture of a check??
Being one of those skeptics, I was expounding to a colleague recently about technology, and why I would never want or need a remote deposit capture service from my financial institution. Consumer RDC is a fad, just like New Coke. That evening, when I got home and opened the mail, low and behold there was a check from a friend. Now what? My financial institution is 900 miles away, and I haven’t set foot in a branch for over a year. What do I do with this check? Sure, I can spend time on-line looking for an ATM that accepts deposits AND doesn’t charge a fee and then I can drive over there and make my deposit. But now that I know I could make that deposit from my couch on my phone, why would I want to do it any other way?
Is your financial institution offering consumer RDC? Check is not going away at the speed the industry predicted a decade ago. Many employees are still paid by check. Individuals, who mow lawns, shovel sidewalks and driveways, or sell cookies, are often paid by check.
Why not consider offering an electronic service to deposit checks using a Smart Phone? There is an entire new generation that wants their financial institution to help make their banking experience as easy as possible, and to give them a 24/7 level of service on their mobile device.
Not every customer will qualify for remote deposit, just as not every customer qualifies for a checking account. Use the controls you already have in place when you consider offering consumer remote deposit. Know Your Customer. Your account holders know what they want. Don’t make them wait for you to catch up. They might not wait.
And for me? I like getting checks in the mail. I might just have to apply for my own RDC service.