A community bank uses a rewards program to differentiate itself.

A Maine community bank in a highly competitive market-place was able to leapfrog its larger competitors by introducing a far-reaching rewards program. The program came from Rewards NOW, Dover, N.H.

Bar Harbor Bank & Trust (assets: $840 million; 12 locations), Bar Harbor, Maine, has launched two of RewardsNOW's programs--the Pik n' Clik automated rewards program for new bank customers and Full Spectrum Rewards, which turns virtually every financial product the bank offers into a way to earn rewards.

With Pik n' Clik, when customers open a new debit card and checking account at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, they are set tip with a reward account and credited with an initial number of points. Customers can redeem those points immediately for a gift, or save them for later use. The Full Spectrum program lets customers accumulate additional points through the business they transact with the bank on an ongoing basis.

"We were looking for a way to provide added value for our customers," says Cheryl Curtis, senior vice president of marketing for the bank. "Many banks offer free checking with a free gift, but we wanted to do something different that offered more choice and continued to provide value long-term, not just at the time of a new account opening.

"Our Harbor Points program rewards both new and existing customers, while many other banks' programs are designed only to attract new customers."

The new rewards program is a differentiator for the bank which faces a highly competitive environment.

"There are many banks in this area, serving a relatively small population," explains Steve Leackfeldt, senior vice president of retail banking. "Several are community banks that offer friendly, responsive local service. Because the banks in our market do a good job, it was important to us to find a way to be different. This program adds a little extra thank-you for our customers. Every day we try to find ways to express our appreciation to them, and rewards are just one more way we can do that."

The Full Spectrum Rewards program goes beyond rewards programs that focus only on credit or debit card purchases. Full Spectrum Rewards is designed to reward users of any bank product, such as personal loans, deposits, mortgages, online banking, home equity lines of credit, and of course credit and debit cards.

With the Full Spectrum Rewards program, Bar Harbor Bank & Trust leverages a wide variety of gifts and other rewards to customers. Full Spectrum Rewards options include a flexible travel program, appealing consumer goods, hundreds of gift certificate options, and a downloadable content, such as music, mobile phone ringtones, and videos.

Bar Harbor Bank & Trust customers can transact all their rewards business on a special website, operated in the background by RewardsNOW. The 120-year-old bank, serves a 150-mile-long region along the Maine coast from Lubec to Rockland, which includes Hancock, Washington and Knox counties.