MINNEAPOLIS, Jun 29, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) --
City Business Journals Network recently ranked U.S. Bank the number one
bank brand based on results of a nationwide survey of small business
owners fielded November 2009 through January 2010.
According to the authors, the SMB Insights 2010 Brand Study demonstrated
that small business owners seek brands or companies that value them as a
customer; they believe tough times reveal who the solid brands really
are and when making purchases for the company; and they consider brand
name, quality and service well before price of the product.
"A key learning of the annual City Business Journals Network Brand Study
was the significantly growing position of U.S. Bank in the minds of
small- and mid-sized business owners," said Godfrey Phillips at City
Business Journals Network. "Perceptions of U.S. Bank increased, at a
time when many other banks lost ground. U.S. Bank scored as the leading
bank in the study, surpassing regional and national banks alike."
U.S. Bank improved across all attributes measured in the study,
including the key attributes of relevance ("for growing companies,"
"easy to do business with") and differentiation ("is forward
thinking-has a vision"). The company also saw substantial gains in brand
momentum ("is growing in popularity") as well. More small business
owners are now familiar with U.S. Bank - increasing from 32 percent in
2009 to 42 percent in 2010.
Small business has long been a focus for U.S. Bank. The company is
consistently a top Small Business Administration (SBA) lender and
advocate for small businesses.
"When the economy took a turn in 2008, we knew that the next 12 to 18
months were going to be very difficult for some of our business
customers," said Rick Hartnack, vice chairman at U.S. Bancorp and head
of consumer banking at U.S. Bank. "Our guiding principle was that we
were not going to make decisions in the short-term that we would regret
two years later. Our small business bankers worked closely with their
customers to understand their stress points and what it would take to
get them through. We didn't back away when the going got tough, and as a
result we're seeing a significant increase in loyalty and new business."
U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), with $282 billion in assets as of March 31,
2010, is the parent company of U.S. Bank, the fifth largest commercial
bank in the United States. The company operates 3,025 banking offices in
24 states and 5,312 ATMs and provides a comprehensive line of banking,
brokerage, insurance, investment, mortgage, trust and payment services
products to consumers, businesses and institutions. Visit U.S. Bancorp
on the web at usbank.com.
SOURCE: U.S. Bank
U.S. Bank
Teri Charest, Media Relations, 612-303-0732
teri.charest@usbank.com
or
City Business Journals Network
Jessie Shaw, 212-500-0616
jessieshaw@bizjournals.com
