We are still witnessing the aftereffects of the pandemic, specifically around small businesses. Many people are turning to entrepreneurship as a way to provide for themselves and their families. According to a recent study, it is estimated that up to 17 million new small businesses will be formed in 2022. This surge in entrepreneurs is inspiring and provides hope for a bright future. However, this will be their first business venture for many of these individuals. And with any new experience comes a learning curve. So how can banks assist these first-time entrepreneurs and help them prepare for the challenges ahead?
This question is Michelle Melekwe’s main focus being part of the Fulton Bank team. Michelle succeeds at being a valuable resource for entrepreneurs. Since many unknowns come with starting a business, it can be challenging to know how to provide answers to questions you can’t anticipate yet. Read about Michelle’s path as one of Fulton Bank’s trusted bankers.
What do you enjoy the most about your job?
I like the work-life balance. When I come to work, I can focus on work. Then when I go home, I can shut down and just concentrate on my home life. Most businesses run seven days a week from 8 am-7 pm, and there is no balance, so I am really grateful to have this.
What is your favorite thing about being part of the Fulton Bank team?
Fulton is very community-focused. We are all about supporting our community and our customers.
We are focused on helping our community as they advance through their lives, and Fulton is helping us do that by broadening the services and products we provide to help our customers.
How do you locate business owners that may be a good match for FINSYNC?
When I was first introduced to FINSYNC, I concentrated on the payroll aspect and immediately thought about one of my clients. They are a small business, not even a year old, and they had many payroll challenges.
There are a lot of small businesses that want to understand how to do ACH payments and direct deposits with their payroll. There is a big learning curve, especially for individuals starting their first business. The world is changing, and companies need to be able to accept many forms of payments.
What is your approach like?
My approach is to talk less and listen more. So I can understand the issue, and then I can bring up a solution. After a while, I build a rapport, and over time, I can dig deeper by listening to their issues. It can be about payroll processing, check cashing, account balances, account receivables, and so much more. With time and just listening, I am able to unravel when companies need help.
Do you think your customers struggle with other software solutions?
I have come across several companies that have struggled with other software. Employees were not getting paid on time, taxes were not deducted correctly, and it was an ongoing situation. I am not an accountant, so I didn’t know how to assist with the multiple phone calls I kept getting. Fortunately, after recommending FINSYNC, the calls have stopped.
What do you like best about FINSYNC?
I love how FINSYNC makes it easier for our Fulton Bank customers. It is hard to just pass our business owners along to someone else, which results in all these fees and requests, which is not helpful. You make it easy on them and often take care of the technical aspects of transferring their accounts. I appreciate how after I give you the customer’s information, you take it over from there, and I know they will be successful.
Honestly, I used to get several phone calls and emails every single day from some clients who were struggling to pay their employees, and after I handed them over to FINSYNC, I never heard back from them with any issues. Their problems are solved, their business is up and running, and it is now smooth sailing.
Learn more about FINSYNC’s all-in-one cloud-based accounting platform.