Three Ways Your Bank or Credit Union Marketing is on Fire (and Not in a Good Way)
Sean Galli
“You’re on fire” usually means you’re doing something right. But it could also mean everything’s burning down around you. Do you have a raging inferno in your marketing department?
It’s time to find out.
Strap on your fire-retardant boots, get the hoses ready and hit the siren, because here are three ways your marketing is on fire (and not in a good way).
1. You Use the “Spray and Pray” Method
Sometimes, the “spray and pray” method dominates your marketing. That means you market everywhere (and maybe to everyone). There’s a lot of activity but little strategy or progress.
Imagine a dog digging a hole in your backyard…it’s awfully busy, isn’t it? But busy doesn’t equal productive. After all, the dog is working hard but going nowhere.
You don’t need to be on every social media platform, and you might not need any direct mail. Or maybe your market’s consumers don’t respond to your blogs, but they love your digital ads. The application will change according to the situation, but here’s the important thing: lead with strategy. Go where you get the best return. Don’t waste valuable bandwidth on avenues or niches that don’t move the needle.
2. You Have a Fifty-Hat Problem
Community financial institution staff members have full plates. The marketing person is also an occasional teller. The CEO is sometimes the marketing person (not recommended). Having so many hats pours proverbial kerosene on your blazing marketing fire.
A consistent marketing cadence is the biggest casualty of the fifty-hat problem. Your social media profile is barren, lacking posts for weeks. Out-of-date website promotions give consumers a negative impression of your institution’s reliability.
Admit when you need help. Marketing partners can take some of those hats off your head, relieve your bandwidth strain and produce incredible collateral. And if you can’t afford a marketing partner? Prioritize the most important tasks and focus on your most visible marketing avenues. Explore how AI can help generate some quick copy or design so you have something to use…rather than nothing.
3. You Miss the Story
Good marketing tells a story where you show consumers solutions to their problems. Those solutions can be physical, psychological or even self-actualizing. For instance, this Duracell commercial displays how something as simple as batteries allows a father and daughter to connect over thousands of miles.
Marketing fails when it just becomes a rate or number. Numbers can provide important support for your arguments…but they rarely convince on their own. What do your services let people do?
Your auto loans let people buy cars, yes, but take it a step further. Those cars get people to fulfilling jobs or to family members miles away. Your home equity loan’s great rate means consumers save money, but what else? They give parents a way to support a child’s college dreams.
Don’t miss the story. Missing the story means missing the point (and the business).
Are you struggling to fight off a monstrous marketing blaze right now? Call On The Mark Strategies to douse the flames! Whether you just need a third party to assess your marketing or a full-on marketing partner, we’ll help cool things down. Book a free consultation today.
