Community Banks Doing It Right – What the Top 5% Know and Do
Roxanne Emmerich reveals how top 5% banks grow $100M+ in core deposits and triple cross-sales—without matching rates or chasing gimmicks.
Welcome to the Top 5 Percenter™ Blog
A Penny Saved is STILL a Penny Earned
One of the best side effects of the recession is the long, hard look consumers are taking at their financial habits. Nine credit cards and three mortgages might not have been such a boffo plan after all.
We also see the rebirth of a virtue of the past—saving. Even if they aren’t in a position to begin saving this minute, consumers busily promise themselves that the moment they have a spare nickel, it’ll go straight into the piggy bank.
That’s a golden opportunity for those of us in the piggy-bank business.
There was a time when banks encouraged saving, sponsoring school programs, and Christmas accounts and a hundred other ways to save. But most aren’t doing this anymore. There has never been a better time to bring back the creative and simple programs that once made saving a piece of cake.
Encourage your customers to make and keep a budget that includes savings NOT as something to do when there’s money left over but as an expense as regular and non-negotiable as the car insurance and groceries. Urge them to see if their employers offer an automatic deposit program that puts a percentage of each paycheck into savings.
Saving is a habit like any other. Make it easy for your customers to develop this habit, and they’ll never forget you for it. Soon enough, our culture might very well recover the long-lost value of thrift that our parents tried so hard to get through our collective heads. And banks with the foresight to do so can lead the way.
More From The Blog
Why Most Banks Fail at Cross-Selling—And How the Best Banks Are Tripling Results
Cross-selling isn’t a script—it’s a system. Discover how top-performing banks engineer daily discipline that triples products per customer and locks in loyalty.
Your “Nice” Culture Is a Lie. And It’s Costing You Millions.
One bank ditched fake smiles and vague reviews—and doubled profits in 12 months. Here’s how they built a culture that actually works.
Straight Talk from the C-Suite: What High-Performing Bank Execs Are Doing Differently
Top execs are done with old sales playbooks. Discover what’s replacing them—and why one COO hasn’t missed a quarter in six years.
How Elite CEOs Run Game-Changing Board Meetings
Most board meetings are packed with data—but starved of strategic clarity. Discover how the top 5% of banks engineer boardrooms that drive performance, challenge respectfully, and align with breakthrough plans. This week’s episode reveals what high-performing CEOs do differently—and how you can bring that same power to your board.
What the Best Banks Know—and the Rest Still Don’t Get
Top banks play to win. Discover what they do differently—and why it starts with culture and strategy.
What the Best Banks Measure (and the Rest Miss): The Hidden Levers of Top Gun Leaders
Most banks track performance after it’s too late. In this week’s video, Roxanne reveals the exact metrics Top Gun CEOs use to fix results before they lag.
Halfway Is No Excuse
Midyear banking strategy not working? Elite banks accelerate, not apologize. Here’s how to finish strong—with accountability, margin, and momentum.
Top Bank Doubled Revenue with 1/3 Fewer Staff—Here’s How
Toxic conflict is quietly draining your profits.
Most banks reach for generic culture fixes and miss the root cause—low emotional intelligence and zero accountability. Discover how the best banks use healthy dissension to crush drama, boost performance, and lead the industry in profitability.
Bank Drama is Draining Your Profits—Here’s the Proven Fix
Toxic conflict is quietly draining your profits.
Most banks reach for generic culture fixes and miss the root cause—low emotional intelligence and zero accountability. Discover how the best banks use healthy dissension to crush drama, boost performance, and lead the industry in profitability.