Today (5/23/2019) I stopped into the local Cedarstone Bank on Lebanon Road in Nashville, Tennessee for a quick favor, and was reminded that at Cedarstone Bank (where my school does its banking), they don't care if you are a teacher spending your own money (as usual) for students, you will not be trading dollar bills in for quarters without opening an account. As it happens, and according to Cedarstone, I am not a customer.
I had raided my dollar bill cache (as teachers often do for their students) at home to allow my students at School the opportunity to use the vending machine in the teacher's lounge on their last day of school. For fifth graders, this is very exciting as they are completely forbidden to do so at any other time.
The problem was, the machine only takes quarters right now because the dollar changer isn't working. No one in the building had $18 in quarters, so I made a quick trip to the closest bank, Cedarstone (the same bank my school has been doing business with for years).
Making small talk as I stepped to the counter, I shared that I was trying to trade my dollar bills for quarters for my students at School. Following the strictest of company policies, the teller informed me that since I didn't have an account at Cedarstone, they couldn't possibly trade my dollar bills for quarters (I even offered to pay her) to someone who wasn't a customer. Aren't we all potential customers? This is the same bank that solicits accounts for our teachers and students annually, but seems to have forgotten a basic principle: we are human beings and there's a thing that we used to call customer service. Trading dollars for quarters doesn't cost anything. Further, It is also possible that had they accommodated a teacher who was trying to make the last day of school a little more fun (even at his own expense), they might have gained another customer, possibly several. Unfortunately, I, as will many others, share this story many times over. Cedarstone, you've potentially lost many future customers over $18 in quarters. The bank wasn't busy at 9:30 a.m. and the teller was sitting at her window, fiddling with her coin rappers (ironically), waiting for the next customer, but potentially losing many more because of a policy that refuses to serve anyone who isn't a personal customer (although our school is). Corporations like yours make dramatic commercials with melancholy music, but don't mean any of it. I will never return to your bank. Remember, I'm not a customer? read more