FM Bank Merger Report
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Farmers & Merchants Bank Bank Migration Communication Plan June 2019 | CONFIDENTIAL
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About This Document This document was prepared after a two-day on-site consulting session with Farmers & Merchants Bank in Stuttgart, Arkansas. During the meeting a number of the topics in this report were discussed with the primary goal of executive education on merger communication, laying out the best practices for a successful merger communication plan and related issues. In this document, we highlight some of the key elements of those presentations, highlight best practices and suggest important marketing steps. To support this document, we have created an online calendar of events. Disclaimer Material presented in this document represents the experiences, observations and opinions of Murphy and Company, Inc. We have made our best effort to apply our best practices and knowledge to this document and project. However, we can make no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the applicability of the material presented and opinions offered.
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Executive Summary On paper, the acquisition of one bank by another is a relatively simple task as you have the “Legal Day” and the ”Go-Live Day.” The challenge is preparing for these two critical days. Each year there are over 300 bank or credit union acquisitions in the US. The only thing they have in common is that they are time-based projects, driven by a sequence of events, managed closely by a detailed calendar. The calendar is an efficient common denominator as the technical, legal, HR and communication efforts are all intertwined. Certain technical tasks need to be accomplished before some of the marketing task can begin. Much of the marketing needs to be completed before human resources and marketing efforts can begin. A successful Go-Live is dependent on the accuracy and timeliness of the marketing tools.
At Murphy and Company, it has been our observation that having a strong master calendar is the best tool for planning merger communication at a high level.
§ Create a calendar across the 6 to 8-month window § Add in the important legal dates associated with the merger § Add in the local, federal and religious holidays § Create a series of marketing tools § Identify the most efficient places on that calendar to deploy the marketing tools
The purpose of the two-day on-site session was to introduce these concepts, lay them out on the table, and prioritize them for action. This report is focused on taking those items which during the session appeared to be most important, then creating the first draft of the calendar, what major events will appear on the calendar, and to highlight opportunities to accelerate or slow down the process. It is also our opinion that creating a calendar that includes months after the Go-Live date is critical so that in a relatively real time setting, management can review the success of the merger activities, have marketing communication tools at the ready and apply them as needed.
Primary gauge for success in a merger is the number of customers who successfully transitioned over and into their new accounts the acquiring bank. Secondary success points include:
§ Manageable customer service impact § Smooth IT migration § Cross sell additional products to acquired customers
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High Level Plan For Farmers & Merchants Bank (F&M), we suggest starting with the window of June through December 2019. Major dates include:
§ Legal Day – May 10 § 60 days prior to Go-Live – September 16 § 30 days prior to Go-Live – October 5 § Go-Live date – November 16
The next step is to add in the behind-the-scenes dates relative to creating the important communication components that will be shared with staff and customers at the times indicated above.
The next step after that is to add in all of the local national and religious holidays to make sure we don’t launch any important messaging to the time when the market will be distracted.
Merger Goals Primary:
1. Clear and present welcome to the acquired customers. 2. Match customers with the most appropriate account. 3. Smooth transition to the online banking users. 4. Ensure clear communication with acquired employees and legacy employees. Secondary: 1. Welcome business customers and ensure relationships continue. 2. Find opportunities to cross-sell incremental products to newly acquired customers.
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Current Available Stats as of May 13 § Total Customers: _________________________ (Primary account holders-Deposits & Loans) § Total Loans: 4,172 § Total Deposit Accounts: 22,705 (as of 3/31/19) § Total Number of Households Served: _________________ (each unique address?)
§ Total Personal Deposit Accounts: 19,965 § Total Business Deposit Accounts: 2,709 § Alien Accounts: 57 § Online Service Users: o Deposit Business: 2,713 o Loan Business: 37 o Deposit Consumer: 19,897 o Loan Consumer: 2,084 o Alien: 55
Source: F&M Bank
Current Available Tools § Bank website § Beaver Creek videos § Walk-in branches § Existing bank products § Existing bank product marketing and education tools
Tools to Build 60-Day Out: Welcome “Save the Date” Tri-Fold Mailer
A “Save the Date” message will be mailed to customers 60 days prior to the Go-Live date. This mailer provides a general overview to customers about upcoming merger and what to expect. Key topics include merger announcement, highlight benefits, expectations and contact information. 30-Day Out: Welcome Kit Booklet & Envelope A welcome booklet is mailed to customers 30 days prior to the Go-Live date. This mailer provides a much more detailed description of what customers can expect during the merger process. It includes a detailed welcome booklet, compliances and disclosers. There are two different version of this document depending on if the customer is a business or retail customer.
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Each version is built from a template and organized by account type within a data-mapped consumer spreadsheet. The spreadsheet includes consumer contact information and several other important fields. For customer accounts with listed email addresses, customers will receive a PDF version of the mailer via email. If an email is not confirmed as “opened,” the account will be included as part of the “To Print” list. For customer accounts with no email address listed, all accounts will be part of the “To Print” list. “To Print” mailers need to be printed and mailed to customers 41 days prior to the Go-Live date. This system sorts the data-mapped spreadsheet by ZIP Code, then prints the booklets and specific insert pages depending on the fields. Providing customers with an electronic mailer option will lower the cost per delivery. Four Videos Series of animated, branded, approximately one-minute videos. Video 1 will highlight the benefits of the merger, Videos 2, 3 and 4 will highlight challenging aspects of the merger process.
§ Video 1: “Warm & Fuzzy” – Welcome to Farmers & Merchants Bank § video 2: Debit Cards § Video 3: Routing Code § Video 4: IVR
Employee Briefings Best practices suggest briefing four separate groups:
§ All employees § All front-line employees including tellers and personal bankers § Cash management calling officer team § Private client group
The primary objective of these briefings is to create awareness and drive staff to the website for complete information. Additional Tools to Build Employee Coaching Employee coaching/training can be broken down into three groups:
§ All employees across the entire company § Front-line staff including tellers, personal bankers and telephone support personnel § Business calling officers and their support teams
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Best practices suggest that a series of messages be built for each of the three groups. The companywide material will be shared in the form of company newsletters and companywide events. The front-line staff will be engaged for coaching at the branch level in off hours meetings and the business calling officers will have a half-day session going over not only the business functions offered to the new customers, but strategies for ensuring adoption and usage of these tools. Merger Landing Page Many successful mergers have included a landing page publicly available to serve as a repository for news and information, frequently asked questions, videos and contact details. Email Communication It is our opinion that email communication is highly effective during a merger. A flight of email messages coordinated with major milestones on the overall calendar should be created and deployed.
Monthly Highlights June 2019 § Project kick-off and prep
§ Data Review from previous bank
July 2019
§ First round of Video 1 edits § Draft 60-Day Mailer § Begin planning 30-Day Mailer
August 2019 § Major construction of the three videos § Major construction of the 30-Day Welcome Packet § “Save the date” 60-Day Mailer is mailed September 2019 § Review cycles for all of deliverables October 2019 § 10/5 – 30-Day Welcome Booklet is mailed to customer November 2019 § 11/16 – Go-Live Weekend § Create flash reports and monitor merged customer activity December 2019 § Review merged customer activity and strategize responses after the holidays
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Project Management With all of our clients, Murphy and Company relies on a series of online project management tools.
§ Trello task management and gantt charting § Sharefile file sharing system § Adobe PDF for content review
Next Steps 1. Obtain a final number of unique households for communication purposes. 2. Confirm all noncommunication, systems and technical aspects of merger conversion timeline. 3. Execute work orders for creative tools requested by the bank. 4. Hold kick-off call project management and initial branding and support information exchange.
5. Hold kick-off call for printed content. 6. Hold kick-off call for video content. 7. Develop employee briefings and coaching content.
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