I believe community banks deserve to get paid for what they are worth—and never have to match rates.

In this episode, you’ll discover how to use extreme differentiation to get 150 basis points more on the loan side and improve your deposit pricing as well.

If you’re the kind of leader…

Who feels strongly that you can’t follow the herd that believes NIM compression is inevitable…you’ll love this.

• Or if you are one who has some lenders who get extreme pricing but are frustrated that others are still falling back to rate matching…you’ll want to watch this.
• Or maybe you’ve given up on getting premium pricing because you believed all the conventional wisdom you heard at industry conferences…you’ll love this.

Here’s why. When you “get it” you’ll have a blueprint for catapulting past the three biggest problems in banking right now:

• Customers that love you are leaving you.
• Customers believing you’re a commodity (and you might not be giving them a reason to think differently).
• Your people mean well, and they offer great service, but they don’t know HOW to sidestep the whole rate matching trap.

EVERY bank is facing these.

Today, I’m going to explain four levels of USPs and why you need dozens of these—but to get extreme premium pricing, you need to create Level 4 USPs.

Level 1 USPs offer basic differentiation. If you’ve ever believed that “great customer service” was your key differentiator then you’re working with a Level 1 USP.

Level 2 USPs are “gadgets and products”…your super-duper free checking, your nifty online banking site, and your instant approval mortgage are all Level 2 USPs. You need them, but they’re easy to copy.

Level 3 USPs are the special education and certifications you have that matter to customers and put you in a league of your own.

Level 4 USPs are the pinnacle. These are proprietary processes that clients tell you are worth at least ten times more than the additional amount you charge. These take you WAY out of commodity world.

Flex your Level 4 USPs with a sales process designed to monetize it and you’ll pull away your competitor’s best customers at 100-150 basis points more. Also, you’ll have the peace of mind that you are profitable and safe during good times and bad.

In our next episode, I’ll show you how to use your USPs in your sales process to make sure you never hear those ugly words—“can you match the rate”—so you AND your people can feel the confidence of knowing you are a prestigious organization. Get your USPs right and stop worrying about what the economy does to your profits.

– Roxanne Emmerich

Please watch the video above and share it with your exec team and board.