Check Out the ING Cafe in Chicago

So, I finally made it down to check out the new ING Direct Café this weekend – and I was very impressed. The Café, which opened last month in Chicago, is the fifth physical “branch” location from the internet-focused institution, and if you have a chance, you should check it out yourself.
As the name implies, this isn’t your typical bank branch – it’s set up as a café serving coffee from Peet’s Coffee and the baristas double as personal bankers who probably spend more of their time making cappuccinos than opening savings accounts – but that’s exactly how ING intended it.

In an industry where financial services executives and marketers are looking for ways to drive traffic to their branches and get customers to stay a while, ING seems to have figured out what works for them – as the place was packed when we stopped in.

First of all, the café is in a great location with tons of foot traffic; it’s near Michigan Avenue shopping, an el station and a Loyola University Campus. And, the café is impossible to miss – as the orange façade screams ING to anyone within two blocks.

Once inside, it definitely feels more like your local coffee shop/internet café than your typical bank branch. Teller lines are non-existent; instead, you are greeted by the baristas – mine happened to be the branch manager. There are no personal banking desks – but, there are tables and chairs, lounge chairs, and about a dozen internet kiosks for anyone to use free of charge.

My wife and I had intended to take our drinks to-go, but, after ordering our drinks the manager said “I hope you’re planning to stay and drink these here – we have cool espresso glasses…and it always tastes better from a real glass.” So, we decided to stay. And, as our drinks were prepared we continued our conversation with the manager, who let us know about the weekly specials. On Fridays, customers’ drinks are free if you wear orange (the ING brand color); and, on Mondays your drink is half-price if you use your reusable ING travel coffee mug.

Me with my "really cool, real espresso glass"

In my conversations with the branch manager, I learned that the café also has a community room that is available to anyone to host presentations/seminars at no cost. And, that the entire facility is available to anyone after hours if a larger space is needed – this is also available for free. The entire space is carefully planned out – with a good mix of entertainment and merchandising, and the brand is reflected everywhere.

I told the manager that I was surprised that he didn’t ask us if we were ING customers or try to pitch us any banking products – and he said “that’s not what we’re here to do; we want you to enjoy yourself and we know that you’ll ask us about our services when you’re ready.”

Perhaps the most interesting part of the experience came as the customer in front of us at the coffee counter tried to tip the barista – to which the barista said “thank you, but we’re a bank – and we want you to save your money.”