The place is sparkling clean, with gleaming floors. Beverages and candy in a nice lobby area are offered to those who have to wait.
I came in after 11:00 am on a Friday and had no wait.
There was only one gentleman working at the front desk. I came in to renew a debit card which was completed with some amount of steps and question asking. I also came in to apply for a Fidelity credit card. That's where it all kind of went downhill. I won't name names because it's not that important, but the gentleman working at the front desk basically wasn't trained in explaining the credit card at all. He only hesitantly answered my questions based off of his personal experience with the card. Apparently, Fidelity credit cards are done through a third party, even though it has Fidelity branding on it. So I guess none of their employees are trained in how to explain this particular credit card.
It's not the end of the world, but in a competing world where I am offered/sold/begged to sign up for credit cards by mail and in banks and retail stores every day, I expected better from Fidelity. I already had my heart sold on the card based off of what I needed the card to do for me and my lifestyle, but I had some gray area questions that needed to be answered by a person who was knowledgeable about the card, not from reading off a website. I expected Fidelity, with its investment advisers and credibility as a banking institution, would be able to explain and answer some relatively simple personal questions about their own credit card.
This was important to me, because the other unfortunate thing about this bank was that they have limited business hours. So actually, I had to call off work and come in to ask said questions that were not confidently answered. Fidelity's lack of business hours on the weekend really forced me to do it over the week when I should have been working. So, you can imagine my disappointment when the person at the front desk couldn't really answer my questions, then told me to apply for the credit card online, and not here at the bank. He said I could get a cash bonus offer if I applied online and not through their actual bank. Again, what a disappointment, because I could have just done that myself and not wasted time going into their building in the first place.
This by far pales in comparison to when I go to Chase or other banking institutions where I can do EVERYTHING while talking to a human being who can explain and answer every financial query I have, and give recommendations personalized based off of my financial lifestyle. I also appreciate not just having things explained to me, but being able to do it all with one person so that I don't have to go home and do it.
Like I mentioned before, this didn't change my decision with Fidelity's credit card because I already did my research before walking into the building itself. But I really feel like I wasted my day. And the service I received was disappointing for something so basic. I mean, the sales people at Kohls are better at explaining their credit cards than Fidelity is!
With that being said, i'm not sure if my guy at my counter was getting flustered because a bunch of people came in after me around noon and were waiting. In fact, he never smiled or showed any emotion at all. He answered things to the best of his ability professionally, but I'd recommend Fidelity to better think through their training better. I was dropped like a hot potato when he told me just to go online. I've received way better and helpful service through my other banking institutions. Have we lost the art of human interaction? i=I'm not sure. Seems like this Fidelity branch has. read more
