The short answer: you should have a marketing budget. Now let’s talk about the long answer.
Credit unions and community banks are often stretched too thin to devote the proper resources to everything. You don’t have enough time or money to satisfy every demand, so some things get cut. Unfortunately, marketing is usually one of those things.
But as Henry Ford once said, “A man who stops advertising to save money is like a man who stops a clock to save time.” In other words, it just doesn’t make sense. That’s because growth requires new consumers, and new consumers only know about you if you have marketing.
Let’s go over the benefits of making marketing a part of your budget for the coming year.
Benefit #1: It Puts Your Name Out There
No one’s going to know who you are if you never introduce yourself. Marketing is that introduction, that foot in the door of your consumers’ minds. And marketing’s not a one and done, pull-a-bunny-out-of-a-hat magic trick.
In fact, it takes five to seven encounters with your brand before potential members or customers even start to remember it. What does that mean? It means you need masterful marketing content. Consistent social media posts, high quality blogs and great graphics will all make good impressions.
But remember: you need to invest resources – people, time and yes, money – to do these things and make your marketing successful.
Benefit #2: It Enhances Other Areas of Your Business
By its nature, marketing helps your entire credit union or community bank grow.
The obvious enhancements are driving consumers to open accounts or take out loans, but let’s look more closely at the less obvious enhancements:
- Improves Your Website: Webpages often adopt the best marketing concepts (visuals and copy).
- Refines Your Brand: Marketing differentiates you. Copy gives your brand a distinct voice while graphics give it a distinct visual style.
- Supports Your Vision: Local financial institutions do great things, and you need to show it off! Marketing puts your community-changing vision on full display.
Benefit #3: It Doesn’t Mean You Need a Marketing Department
Hiring a whole team of marketing employees is pricey. The average salary for a marketing executive at even the smallest credit unions costs close to $70,000 a year. Add a marketing coordinator to their team, and you add another $37,000 a year to your payroll.
Luckily, you don’t need to spend this extra money. If you already have a marketing person, find ways to take them off non-marketing assignments. Maximize their time to avoid hiring someone else!
And if you can’t afford a marketing professional or a large enough team, hire consultants instead. Monthly creative retainers usually cost less than finding and retaining a full-time employee. They’ll also do the creative legwork for you so you can maximize your time.
Interested in finding some good consultants? Our creative retainer will help promote your brand, enhance your business and reduce marketing personnel costs.
