Build a relationship with your local banker. While we think of banks as big impersonal institutions, they are run by human beings, and your local branch manager or account officer still has a degree of discretion, and as with many things in life, it’s not what you know but who you know. Getting to know the actual people who run your branch and building a relationship with them will really help when you’re having a concern.
Until you build a relationship with your banker, you are just another number in their computer, but when they know you and have a good idea of your creditworthiness, they may be able to make things happen for you.
The best way to cement a relationship with your bank is to not just open a checking account, but to also open some kind of credit line or other credit account. Even if you rarely use the credit facility, the process of approving you as a borrower clears away a lot of the due diligence involved in deciding whether or not not extend further credit to you.
For example, suppose you get caught in a cash crunch from past due accounts receivable. You have the money on the books, but you are not getting paid. Because you have already built a relationship with the Branch Manager or Operations Officer so if you go to them, show them the accounts receivable on your books, they are more than likely to offer you a credit line to help tide you over.
If you may have a large check to deposit and can’t wait out the normal time that the money is put on hold, instead of depositing at a teller or the ATM, bring it to your branch manager, who may be able to confirm the availability of funds at the payer’s bank and shorten the hold period. Obviously, you can’t do this every day, but when your banker knows you, they may be able to cut red tape and bend a rule or two for you.
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