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© St. Petersburg Times, published July 8, 2002
xWhen is a postal rate increase a good thing?
When you can use it as a marketing twist, naturally.
After the price of a stamp jumped from 34 to 37 cents a week ago, AmSouth Bank had a new argument to persuade customers to join its Internet banking system.
Print and radio ads are in the works to remind customers they could save on stamps if they use the bank's Internet banking to pay their bills free online.
AmSouth figures customers who pay their bills through the Internet could save about $100 a year in postage and other expenses. "It's also guaranteed to get the customer's payment to its destination on time," spokesman Rick Swagler said.
The Alabama bank began offering Internet Banking with Bill Pay free for life last year and now has 450,000 customers.