I went into one of my bank’s branches the other day. It was mainly because the weather here in Chicago was so nice – an unbelievable 65 degrees in November – and I wanted to get out for a bit.

While there I asked about eBills. (I reported on this extensively in the July 2010 report “Online banking, Bill Payment and eBills”. The title isn’t wildly exciting, but the content is. Trust me. Email info@comperemedia.com to learn more.)

I really, really, really want eBills. I’m convinced it will streamline and simplify my life. If not my whole life, certainly it could have a significant impact on my financial life. Unfortunately my bank doesn’t offer eBills.

Upon my inquiry in the branch, the customer service rep replied, “we certainly do offer that.” I could barely contain my excitement. I did, however, manage to refrain from pointing out that the service must be buried on the site, because I haven’t been able to find it anywhere. And I’ve looked extensively.

Turns out that he was talking about online bill payment. All my hopes came crashing down and landed in pieces at my feet.

So much for financial nirvana.

Even more remarkably, when I defined eBills for him, not only did he not know what they were, he said that no bank would ever offer such a service because it would invade customer’s privacy. Of course, I tried to educate him and gave him a list of banks – both large and small – that provided the service.

He was still somewhat skeptical. I even asked him for his business card, promising that I could email him a lot of information about the subject.

He declined to provide one.

Given that I was on a roll, when I returned to my computer I decided to email customer service. I wrote a very nice message about wanting eBills and asking if they had considered adding the service. I also defined it so it wouldn’t be confused with online bill payment.

The bank replied with pretty much the same answer as the branch representative. I promptly replied back, attempting to further clarify the difference between eBills and Online Bill Payment.

It’s been almost two days now, and I’m still waiting for a response. (Remember this is through my bank’s “Message Center” in their online banking section – they won’t actually send the email to my email address. See my blog entitled: “Email overload…but where’s my bank?”)

I’m hoping it’s because the matter is being discussed with the appropriate executives and the bank is working on its development and rollout plans. Perhaps I shouldn’t hold my breath.

Like most people in this day and age, I am used to having information at my fingertips. With Google, email and online chat, most of our questions get answered almost instantaneously. At the same time I can appreciate an “I don’t know the answer to that, but I’ll get one and get back to you.”

Since I had to send my message through the bank’s online message center, I also had to choose from a list of subjects the bank provided. I selected “Suggestions and Comments.” Unfortunately the reply I got makes me feel that my suggestion is not being considered. I’ve worked in customer service before (and as a teller in a bank) so I thoroughly understand the Crazy Suggestions that some people make. The craziness and the sheer volume makes it difficult to respond to every one single thing. But at the same time, if the feedback mechanism is provided, then accurate responses are necessary.

It’s another beautiful day in Chicago. Perhaps I’ll take a walk over to the branch again.

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