I have a bank account with Wells Fargo. It has long annoyed me that I am often subjected to ads for additional Wells Fargo services when I login to my account. I’ve been trying to reduce the amount of junk and spam in my life. I whinged about it on Twitter, and ended up with the following exchange:
- @nadyne: Dear @WellsFargo: I sincerely hate how you try to upsell me on something every time I login to my account.
- @Ask_WellsFargo: @nadyne Sorry for the inconvenience, Nadyne. To opt out these ads, please visit https://www.wellsfargo.com/help/faqs/privacy_faqs … for more info. Thanks, ^MD
- @nadyne: @Ask_WellsFargo – This addresses email, mail, and phone. It says nothing about ads on login to my account.
- @Ask_WellsFargo: @nadyne Please call our support team at (800) 956-4442 and we’ll submit your request to stop further interactive offers. Regards, ^MD
- @nadyne: @Ask_WellsFargo – The fact that I have to call you to get you to stop spamming me when I login to your site makes me want a new bank.
- @Ask_WellsFargo: @nadyne You can send a secured email with your request. After logging in, click on Contact us at the top then, Email us to the right. ^MD
So I did, and got the following response from “Porsche” (I’ve cut out a bunch of boilerplate):
If you would like to opt out of email solicitation, please reply to this email with your request or call us anytime
Thank you for missing my point. So, back to Twitter:
- @nadyne: @Ask_WellsFargo – I sent mail, and the response indicates the request is not understood. Why do I have to work so hard to not get spammed?
- @Ask_WellsFargo: @nadyne Follow and DM us, Nadyne. We’ll have our support team try to help resolve this for you. Regards, ^MD
I did as requested, and they didn’t respond in any fashion, just in case you were curious.
So back in email, I responded that it’s not email solicitation that I’m concerned about (I’ve already opted out of those), it’s the ads when I login, and I got this email reply from “Ashley” (again, cutting the boilerplate):
The messages you see at the top of your Online Banking session screens are designed to let our customers know about new products, services, and special offers. These messages are only used for Wells Fargo products and we limit the number that a customer sees in any one Online Banking session.
I responded that I didn’t want these ads, and since Wells Fargo is either unwilling or unable to stop spamming me, it’s time for me to to some research and find a non-spamming institution for my mortgage and chequing account. Somehow this netted yet another response, this time from “Lashia”:
I have noted your preference to no longer receive full-page offers in your online banking session. Please be aware that it may take up to 60 days for your preferences to take effect. I appreciate your patience during this time and apologize for any inconvenience.
I also apologize for the misinformation provided in our previous correspondence.
It’s amazing how Wells Fargo can start spamming me in an instant, but somehow it takes 60 days to stop getting spammed. Of course, it’s also amazing that it took me two days of complaining about their spam and a threat to move my account to potentially get rid of this.
Yes, in fact, I do have a new reminder on my calendar to email them again in 60 days if they’re still spamming me every time I login.