MaineBusiness.com

enlarge

Blue hoods mark the free-parking spots in the Old Port on Thursday, giving shoppers a pleasant surprise as part of a first-of-its-kind bank promotion in Portland.

Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer

PORTLAND — Denise Mancall was backing into a parking space Thursday on Exchange Street when she got a pleasant surprise.

The parking meter was covered with a blue canvas hood that read: "Free parking today from Bangor Savings Bank. Unconditionally free ATMs every day."

That made Mancall smile.

"I think it was a very nice, feel-good gesture," she said as she got ready to go into the Swiss Time watch store.

Mancall was reacting to a one-day promotion by Bangor Savings Bank, which paid the city $10,000 to put blue canvas hoods over 325 parking meters in and around the Old Port. The free-parking promotion was the first of its kind, the city said.

Drivers can look forward to an even bigger campaign next Friday: TD Banknorth will offer free parking at all 828 meters in the Old Port to celebrate its name change, to TD Bank.

Thursday's event was a local example of guerrilla marketing, a growing trend in advertising that relies more on imagination than big bucks.

The bank's goal was to draw attention to its three-year-old policy of not charging fees for ATM use, even for machines that aren't owned by Bangor Savings.

Bank fees and surcharges are a growing source of anger among customers. Recent national news stories have profiled people who have been charged a $35 overdraft fee on their debit card, for instance, after paying for a $5 sandwich.

Bangor Savings hopes the publicity and goodwill from the free-parking campaign will translate into new checking accounts.

"The bread and butter of community banking is having a person's primary checking account," said Yellow Light Breen, a senior vice president for Bangor Savings. "It's hard to get people to change banks. But when people are frustrated, maybe they'll think of your bank to turn to."

The bank chose the Old Port because it has the greatest concentration of meters in Portland, Breen said. Also, it's near Bangor Savings' flagship office in the city, at the corner of Franklin Arterial and Fore Street.

The bank followed up by having workers hand out fliers on streets in the area.

Bangor Savings worked with the Barton & Gingold public relations agency to carry out the campaign. Maine's longstanding billboard ban leads businesses to think of other ways to reach customers, Breen said.

"There aren't a lot of opportunities in Maine to creatively get in front of people, outside of traditional advertising," he said.

The parking meter campaign looked good to Amber Caouette, vice president of the Ad Club of Maine. She was walking along Commercial Street, noticing the rows of blue hoods, and hearing people comment about them.

That's brand awareness, she said. "If nothing else, you get people to say your name," said Caouette, a senior account executive for KG Partners. "It's very smart advertising."

Free parking campaigns are common in other cities, said Janis Beitzer, executive director of Portland's Downtown District. Businesses sometimes use them around holidays to lure shoppers to their stores.

Beitzer was unsure Thursday what effect the Bangor Savings campaign had on stores, but she said the experiment might inspire merchants to organize a similar move around Christmas.

"Free parking, by definition, is usually a good thing for downtowns," Beitzer said.

The $10,000 that the bank paid the city was the maximum that could be collected on the meters in a day. The hoods were put on and taken off the meters by city workers as part of their regular shifts, said Nicole Clegg, the city's spokeswoman.

"This is the first time we've ever done anything like this," she said. "It was a trial run."

Next Friday, TD Banknorth will sponsor free meters in an area bounded by Franklin Arterial and Commercial, High and Congress streets, part of a media blitz for the name change to TD Bank. Staff members will be stationed at many of the meters to get the word out.

That event will also include a block party at One Portland Square, said Jennifer Carlson, a bank spokeswoman, and the free meters will make it easier for people to attend.

Ultimately, of course, TD Bank hopes the campaign will generate new business.

For Denise Mancall, Thursday's free parking was a nice surprise that left her with a good feeling about Bangor Savings Bank. But it wasn't a game-changer.

"I wouldn't change my checking account," she said. "It's too complicated."

Staff Writer Tux Turkel can be contacted at 791-6462 or at:

tturkel@pressherald.com