2024 is a rare year - a Leap Year! February has one extra day, and it only happens every four years. But your community bank or credit union marketing needs to leap ahead too…and it shouldn’t happen only once in a blue moon.
No, your marketing must seek the next path forward every day if you plan on surviving in this competitive market.
Here are five ways for your community bank or credit union marketing to leap ahead this month.
1. Prioritize SEO
Many institutions aren’t paying enough attention to their search engine optimization (SEO). That doesn’t mean they aren’t using SEO (85% of credit unions do some type of SEO, for example). It means they’re using it incorrectly.
Website SEO works best when you give it something to do. The Google crawlers need new or updated content to go through and index in the search engine. However, community bank or credit union marketing strategies often lack a content element. Even if no human reads the content, frequent site updates help your SEO.
Pay attention to all the tiny details too. Target specific keywords for specific reasons. Make sure meta tags exist. SEO isn’t magic…it requires work to truly accelerate your community bank or credit union marketing.
2. Use Video
92% of marketers say videos give them a good return on investment. What are you doing to incorporate videos into your community bank or credit union marketing?
Video testimonials are an effective technique for getting consumers to fall in love with you. Meaningful brand videos perform a similar function. Of course, you can also use videos for social media or consumer onboarding. The important thing is this: incorporate regular video into your community bank or credit union marketing.
Financial institutions try to use video well but come up short. Oftentimes, the videos appear dated or corny or boring. Use the young people on staff to help you create exciting video content and avoid talking heads with empty backgrounds.
3. Employ AI
AI can help make your community bank or credit union marketing more efficient, so you’d be wise to use it in some capacity. But don’t hang your hat on AI doing everything for you.
Around 90% of marketers say AI helpers are either similarly creative or less creative than them. Three out of four marketers can identify when content is not written by a person. That means having AI write your content won’t produce stellar results, and people more easily recognize non-human content than you think.
What can you use AI for?
Brainstorming. Outlining. Listing off headline ideas. Really, anything that speeds your work while preserving the integrity of human writing. Say goodbye to racking your brain or suffering through writer’s block when you have things to do.
4. Revamp Messaging
It’s always a good idea to review your messaging (both written and visual). If your last update was a long time ago, you may no longer resonate with the right audience. Take the time to alter your tone or change out the types of people in your imagery if that’s the case.
There are also some general problems often caught during third-party marketing assessments. Too much copy. Not enough focus on benefits. Inconsistent logo placements and color palettes.
All those little things damage your community bank or credit union marketing more than you realize. Assess your messaging this month and change course if you discover shortfalls.
5. Find Cost-Effective Staffing
A community bank or credit union marketing executive makes anywhere from $67,772 to $147,131 depending on asset size. That’s a chunk of change you might not have to pay (and might not want to pay depending on the quality of the person’s work).
A fractional Chief Marketing Officer or outsourcing marketing to a team of experts are viable options for institutions chafing at the costs of a full-time employee. With these options, you access true experts at what is usually only a portion of the price of a full-time employee.
Budgets are tight these days, so it’s worth examining your investment in salaries versus outsourcing to see if you can save money while obtaining great results.
If you’re ready to hire your own team of experts at a cost-effective investment, book a free consultation with On The Mark Strategies today. Don’t wait…take your leap ahead as soon as possible.
