Online Banking: A Primer

With all the new technology and the times we are living in, it is now possible to do the vast majority of your banking within the luxury of your home. You are able to open accounts, purchase stock, transfer funds, and pay bills with the click of a button. All you need to have is average computer skills and internet access to bring online banking into your home.

Doing banking online is a very simple process. If you already have a bank account, your bank manager or teller can give you the banks website. You sign by using your bank account number, social security number, or other number assigned to you by the bank. You will then be prompted to enter a password.

As your bank account is one of the most important things, I suggest using a letter, number combination that you will share with NO ONE. You should NOT use the same password as your e-mail account, or any other account online you may have. Your bank account password should be unique and something only you will remember.

After choosing your password, you are now able to access most all the features available through at the bank branch. You are able to see your available funds, less any uncleared checks or pending transactions. If you forget to write a check down in your check book you can look up the check number and see instantly who you wrote the check to and how much you wrote the check for.

Having an online bank account is convenient if the company you work for offers a direct deposit option. You can go into your online account and see when your check is direct deposited and exactly how much it is for.

The Bill Pay section of your online checking account allows you to add accounts for which you have monthly bills and schedule payments. This will save you from having to buy stamps and envelopes, and mailing the payments every month. This feature lets you go in and schedule the payments for the day they are due, and your bank account is debited on or after the day you schedule the payments. This option is available for things like cable bills, vehicle payments, electric bills, phone bills, and much more. The bill statement will tell you how to set the account up in your Bill Pay section.

Online banking is very convenient should you need to transfer funds to a friend or family member with an account at the same bank. This could be helpful if you have children in college. You never know when one of life's little emergency may pop up!

Online banking could be the newest wave of the future. Although the person to person customer service factor is taken out, there are still many benefits to banking online. You can save time and money by utilizing online banking features.