Have you ever heard of Ally Bank? Probably not, but it is being advertised very heavily these days.
What is your bank trying to sneak by you?, they ask. Fine print? Asterisks? Not Ally. They promise “no sneaky disclaimers ever.”
But who is Ally Bank? Clicking “the Ally Story” link on their website, reveals who they really are:
*MOUSE PRINT:
“We are Ally Bank. Built on the foundation of GMAC Financial Services”
When asked to explain that somewhat flowery language, Ally’s customer service department responded, in part:
Ally Bank was formally known as GMAC Bank. The launch of our new name was on 5/15/2009.
Ally Bank is a separate company from General Motors (GM). Ally Bank is a part of GMAC Financial Services, which became an independent company in late 2006. GM holds an equity stake in GMAC, but is reducing its ownership equity due to the federal requirements of GMAC becoming a Bank Holding Company. GMAC provides financing to automotive dealers and customers, but they do not directly finance GM. The companies have separate banking relationships.
So this is really GMAC Bank with a new name. So why did they change their name away from GMAC Bank?
” — We do not own gmac.com, and we do not own the “GMAC” name as it is leased from GM.
— We decided to invest in building a new brand, since we are going to increase our marketing of the Bank to raise retail deposits.
— Our research showed that GMAC brand recognition was largely limited to existing and past customers. We wanted a bank brand name that would have potential for eventual global growth.
— Perhaps most importantly, to launch a unique online bank with a unique customer offering, we felt that it was important to create a truly unique brand – one with a name that means something to the customer and speaks to our business philosophy of working with customers to make money, not against them.” –Manager, Global Marketing Communications
Or, just maybe people were reluctant to deposit money with what was better known as an auto finance company with the name “General Motors” in its title?
In any event, they have savings products that pay higher rates of interest than almost anybody. Their savings account currently pays 2.05% (down from 2.25% just last week), and they have a money market checking account paying 1.90% (limit six checks/withdrawals a month). The latter account also comes with an ATM card, and they will reimburse other banks’ ATM fees for the first four transactions a month, up to $6 a month. And, of course, individual accounts are insured by the FDIC for up to $250,000.
Just before Memorial Day last week, members of Home Depot’s Garden Club received an email with links to various garden coupons.
Whenever Macy’s prints percent-off coupons, they are usually loaded with exclusions for product categories and brands to which the advertised discount does not apply. But according to their latest circular for Memorial Day, there are no exclusions for their 15% coupon.
