As a new generation approaches the age where they find banks and credit unions are necessary, financial industry marketing strategies aimed at young people have never been more relevant.
Gen Z is learning to balance student loans, health care costs and more against their income as they graduate and begin careers. With progressive technology tools and enhanced tactics, banks and credit unions can appeal to this new audience.
Smaller retail banks and credit unions have some seriously big competition to deal with. By utilizing the latest marketing strategies, however, those smaller alternatives will be in a better position to compete and grow. All of this is only possible by implementing the best marketing strategies. Learn all about retail bank marketing, and discover what retail banks and credit unions can do to get themselves ahead of the curve.
Marketing for financial institutions starts with baby steps.
SEO For Banks & Credit Unions
Like most other industries, the financial industry is flourishing online. When people are looking for banking solutions, most head to Google to research their options. If you want to show up at the top of that search engine results page, you’ll have to optimize your keywords and meta tags.
Keep in mind that SEO is distinct from paid search ads. You can pay search engines to run marked ads that show up at the top of search engine results pages, but SEO is instead focused on generating organic rankings. Most internet users, especially the younger ones, are savvy when it comes to recognizing ads, so ranking organically is the best way to circumvent their aversion to marked advertisements.
First, you’ll need to identify the most relevant keywords to your business. These keywords will likely be something like “auto loans” or “credit cards.” After that, you’ll have to research the most commonly searched topics related to those keywords. Craft content about those topics and utilize the keywords to boost organic rankings as determined by performance metrics.
Content Marketing For Banks & Credit Unions
Curating content can only get you so far. If you want to engage your audience as much as possible, you’ll have to generate content of your own. That means creating content that people in need of your financial services will actually care about. This includes content like infographics, blogs and even videos.
It’s also good practice to diversify the type of content you create. While some users prefer longer pieces of content, others want something they can absorb very quickly and move on. For example, you could write a small content piece comparing and contrasting checking vs. savings accounts, and you could write a longer content piece detailing the process of getting a home equity loan and everything that entails.
In Banking, Big Data Is Great
Data as a resource is one of the most important things you can ever collect from a marketing perspective. Not only can it provide valuable insights into a consumer base that’s increasingly more interested in ad personalization, but it also provides the necessary tools to analyze marketing performance and optimize strategies. This applies to every stage of the consumer’s journey as well, allowing you to optimize the messaging on a stage-by-stage basis to increase conversions.
Think of data analytics as a way to craft a persona. Consider the variety of people in need of retail banking and credit union services. Their financial goals, motivations, behavior and emotional responses are all going to be different, but data analysis can help make that behavior more predictable among certain personas. By understanding the persona a potential customer most closely embodies, you can better serve their needs by connecting with them on a deeper level.
Artificial Intelligence Gives You An Authentic Edge
Only by utilizing the latest technology can local banks and credit unions stay competitive with the major players in the finance industry. One of the most popular and useful pieces of tech available is artificial intelligence. AI has been the driving force behind many marketing strategies for a few years now, and it can be utilized to automate retail bank marketing efforts as well. One of the best examples of how banks and credit unions benefit from AI is gaining the ability to provide fast, high-quality information to customers.
Chatbots are one of the most popular forms of artificial intelligence used by many in the financial industry. By implementing chatbots on your site, your customers will be able to obtain solutions to common requests without the need for a customer service representative. Using a chatbot or similarly automated system, your customers can check their account balances, transfer money, pay bills and more.
With this kind of top-level customer service providing quick and easy solutions, your customers are going to spread the word about your business much more favorably. You can even utilize social media marketing strategies to showcase just how easy it is for people to interact with your institution.
Financial Marketing With Symphonic Digital
If you want effective, performance-based credit union and retail bank marketing strategies, Symphonic Digital can take care of the entire process for you. With our data-driven approach, we can help boost your rankings and visibility and drive more people to your site. Contact us today for a free audit of your marketing efforts, and see what our elite team can offer you.
Note: A version of this article appears on Medium.com.
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