Metro chief executive will have us doing the conga all the way down to the bank

Metro Bank chief executive Craig Donaldson is big on energy and enthusiasm.

The 46-year-old boss want his customers to be fans - fanatical about the bank and keen to talk to family and friends about it.

“That brings in more customers,” he told 160 delegates at the Rawlinsons business conference 2018 in Peterborough.

It also helps keep down the advertising costs as the bank relies on customer satisfaction and word of mouth to attract new business.

The bank, which opened its 50th and most northerly bank in Long Causeway, Peterborough a year ago, spent just £62k on advertising last year compared to £70 million on technology, stores and staff.

Giving the customer what he or she wants immediately is at the heart of his vision scribbled on a beer mat in a pub when he helped create the bank. He said: “I looked up the 10 things people hate about banking and engineered them out.

“We open seven days a week and customers get bank cards and accounts immediately.”

He said: “We don’t have branches we have stores. Stores are where you get served, branches are where you queue, stand in the dark and feel sorry for yourself.

“We don’t run incentives to get people to join us, and we don’t have sales targets for staff.”

It means his staff have to buzz with energy and be ready to engage with customers.

He said: “Everyone who joins us has to do the conga around the office on their first day - showing energy and a readiness to try something new.”

Craig Donaldson.