''Calls to our people are failures if they're about anything
other than an inability to access our site,'' Mullin said. ''If
we deliver (through an online help desk) our customers shouldn't
have to call us.'' Mullin, 38, became president of the Datek brokerage last month after 16 years with Waterhouse Investor Services, the No. 3 online broker, where he ended as senior vice president of electronic brokerage services. Waterhouse is owned by Toronto- Dominion Bank. Datek is owned by closely held Datek Online Holdings Corp.
Fully 84 percent of Datek's customers are male, a fact that ''bothers'' Mullin, who said he will increase spending directed at potential female customers. The company this year will offer a ''streaming'' quote ticker, the ability to write checks against accounts, and no-fee IRAs. It's also ready to offer after-hours trading if regulators establish rules governing extended market sessions.
''Instead of watching some of these soapy, sappy sitcoms,
let's watch the market and trade,'' he said. ''It's not that far
away.''
The company may also add international stock trading, mutual funds, options trading, access to initial public offerings and bond trading, though those are a lower priority. The brokerage is profitable, even after ad spending, Mullin said. The company can handle as many as four times its current trading volume of more than 50,000 transactions daily, he said.
--------------------
We are looking forward to that....
iS. |
