Are BNZ staff expected to sell debt at the beach

27th December 2005
For immediate release

Are BNZ staff expected to sell debt at the beach or Christmas Dinner?

As most people are enjoying the summer sun, BNZ staff are being ‘encouraged’ by their employer to sell debt products to family and friends during their holiday break.

A memo to staff from BNZ management states “It is important that we keep up and maintain our sales and service focus right through the holiday season to ensure a successful 2006 for the Bank. It does not matter where you are over the holiday period..... at work or on the beach .... there will be numerous opportunities to provide financial solutions to family and friends by referring them to Bank of New Zealand.”

This memo was followed by a sheet teaching staff how to use life event clues for “social prospecting”. This memo is attached.

“This shows an absolute lack of respect for staff, who desperately need a well deserved break from the pressure to sell and who deserve to get that break – at least while they are on holiday” said Karen Skinner Campaign Director for the Finance Sector Union. “The bank’s obsession with selling has hit an all time high”

“I think we can all imagine how this went down with staff” concluded Ms Skinner.

Social Prospecting – Christmas 2005

‘Promoting Bank of New Zealand as a leading financial institution, trusted and renowned for getting it right’

Key points of Social Prospecting Key Products – Features & benefits
Key differentiators for Bank of New Zealand

• Christmas is a time for friends and family to catch-up
• It is a time to reflect on the year
• To openly share dreams for the year ahead
• Your friends and family respect you
• They appreciate you supporting their goals with sound advise Our Unbeatable Home Loan Promise
• Changes from campaign to campaign
• But the focus, to date, has been on price i.e. interest rate
• Read Homepage for daily update

Classic Home Loan

Key Features

• Lower interest rates – no optional extras
• Run as a campaign to promote sharp rates from time to time e.g. ‘Unbeatable’.
• No 5% lump sum repayment allowed on fixed rate loans
Key Benefits
• One of the lowest home loan interest rates in the market amongst main banks
• Pay less interest over the life of the loan

Tailored Home Loans

Key Features

• Repayments increase automatically by a factor determined by the difference between the customer interest rate and the RIB
• Increases occur annually on the anniversary of the loan
Key Benefits
• Loan is repaid faster i.e. term of the loan reduces quicker
• Pay less interest over the life of the loan

GlobalPlus Home Loan

Key Feature

• Receives Air NZ Airpoints Dolloars on the outstanding balance of the loan.
Key Benefit
• Recognises customer loyalty by providing reward points that can be exchanged for free flights

Premcare

Key Features

• 24 Hour 0800 Claims line
• Death, Accident & Illness cover at no additional charge
• 24 Hour Emergency Breakdown Service with MV Supreme cover
• Fly Buys points

Key Benefits

• $10,000 accidental death payout
• Premiums paid up to 2 years due to accident or illness
• Competitive premium discounts
• BNZ #1 market share in Business Banking
• Accessibility across all channels – service 24/7
• Range of experts to service and understand your needs –
Business Bankers, Micro Managers, Banking Advisers,
Package Managers, Personal Managers
• Most advanced ATM network with the largest number of
strategically placed machines across the country
• The only bank with a Tailored Home Loan proposition
• Market research – voice of the customer – drives business
decisions, campaigns and initiatives
• Unbeatable promise
• Principal sponsor of Commonwealth Games Melbourne 2006
Kiwi Recovery programme, Katherine Mansfield Awards

Life event clues for social prospecting
Life events that provide social prospecting opportunity

Child attending University – (campus pack, student card, credit card, insurance)

Purchase of new car or boat – (personal loan, top-ups, insurance)

Purchase of investment property – (home loan, insurance)

Purchase of new home – (home loan, top ups, house & contents, life insurance)

Alterations to existing property – (home loan, top-ups, house & content, life insurance)

Bonus payments (win-falls) – (term deposit, managed funds, future lifestyle plans)

Investments coming off ¬– (term deposits, managed funds, future lifestyle plans)

Overseas holiday – (personal loans, credit card, foreign exchange, travel insurance, house and contents insurance, life insurance)

Transient cashflow due to Christmas – (personal loan, credit card, overdraft facility)

Purchasing a business – (Business first products,

Why choose Bank of New Zealand

- We own the relationship with our customers – our no broker policy sees us negotiate directly with our customers
- We are empowered to make sound business decisions and we have access to powerful tools that help us demonstrate savings to our customers (competitor comparison calculator)
- We really are a 24 hour bank – we make it easy for you to contact us through your channel of choice at any time
- Our commitment to achieving a great customer experience is supported by our Award winning customer contact centres and our Branch network who have achieved best in Branch performance for the past 2 years
- Our Unbeatable campaigns set the pace in the market – we are innovative in our products and services to achieve our Bank Smarter promise
- Our community focus sees us serving the Commonwealth Games athletes and supporting the Kiwi recovery programme
- We have been a part of New Zealands heritage since 1861 – we make decisions at a regional level based on the voice of the customer.

ENDS

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