Easter egg hunts are always a blast. Whether you’re searching for carefully dyed eggs or plastic canisters with candy inside, the appeal is the same: you find something special in a normal environment.
Unfortunately, your community financial institution’s social media often comes off as too "normal." What you’d expect. Not attention-grabbing.
It’s time to create some "easter eggs" on your community bank and credit union social media. It’s time to generate something special that attracts attention.
Hidden in Plain Sight
First, examine the obvious opportunities you’re missing on your community bank or credit union social media...those easter eggs so visible you look right past them. What are some easy wins?
- Eliminated Fees – Publicize any fees you’re eliminating, even if it seems small. Doing so shows you save consumers money, and it aligns you with the popular swing against fees.
- Humor/Memes – This won’t fit every brand identity. But if it does apply to you, it’s worth implementing a regular meme schedule or posting funny things. Remember: people like to laugh, and they’ll return for more content that brightens their days.
- Video – There are still many institutions not using video content on social media. Short, punchy videos are the way to go. Ideally, videos are not talking heads and use varied imagery, fascinating subject matter or (again) humor.
Beauty Counts
A skillfully dyed egg can be a work of art. And so can your community bank and credit union social media posts. A study by Li and Xie found evidence on some social networks "that high-quality and professionally shot pictures consistently lead to higher engagement."
Keep in mind: many people see an image before they see copy. If your image isn’t attractive enough to capture consumers, your post’s message won’t reach them.
You can use illustrations, photos from a professional shoot or your own well-shot pictures. It’s important to note that "high-quality" doesn’t mean you stop using authentic photos. Just double check your iPhone photos are as pristine as possible.
Too many pictures suffer from poor location selection, horrific lighting, everyone having their eyes closed and the list goes on. These types of photos put you at risk of looking outdated rather than attractive.
Treat casual pictures like the world will see them (because the world will see them on social media).
Don’t Forget the Candy
Not everyone cares about pretty pictures. Some people want to crack open the egg and grab the goodies inside. For those folks, your community bank or credit union social media must offer contests or publicize giveaways.
Instagram accounts with contests grow 70% more than ones without contests. And around 62% of participants share contest posts with others. If compliance is ok with it, contests are a great way to draw attention to your brand with tangible incentives.
And if compliance brings the hammer down on your contest ideas?
Well, there are still other ways to offer goodies to consumers. Publicize giveaways at your branches and sufficiently promote upcoming events so people remember them.
And if you don’t have time to handle social media yourself…let someone else do it! On The Mark Strategies creates regular community bank and credit union social media posts on your behalf, giving your consumers the "easter eggs" they want. Book a free consultation now.
