Want to Earn Interest in Your Financial Marketing

Follow these two steps to get started

Is your community bank or credit union marketing driving organizational growth? Is the foundation of your marketing plan built on your business goals? If you are unsure or are looking for ways to earn more interest in your marketing approach, then read on.

The path to success is determined by your organization’s unique needs, but there are some foundational and essential steps that should be taken into consideration no matter what those needs look like. To feel more confident in your financial marketing and communications today, consider strategies that will help increase interest earnings in your marketing portfolio. What does that look like? Follow these two steps to get started:

Step One: Lay the Foundation

This step ensures you have the right message and a solid working strategy in place. As marketers, the pandemic forced us to connect with our audiences differently – and at the flip of a switch. With reactive marketing in the rear view mirror, 2021 should be the year of proactive planning. Step one gives you proactive tools so you can feel more confident in your organization’s marketing and communications strategy and should consist of the following:

• Strategic Facilitation & Message Development: The strategic facilitation process identifies targeted audiences and message points to help support your business goals. The outcome includes a strong, shared vision and consistent message, that over the long term, will establish and build your brand, enhance your reputation, and improve overall awareness.

• Annual Communications Plan : Benjamin Franklin said it best, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” Once you’ve identified your target audiences and established key message points, you must develop a diversified and implementable marketing plan to deliver the most measurable impact. The communications plan should be diversified and include activites such as media relations, outreach, marketing strategies, traditional and digital adversiting, and more. Depending on your organization’s unique needs, business goals and target audiences the strategies will differ. However, to meet people where they are today, every credit union and community bank should include this in their plan:
  • People are spending more time online than ever before. It’s old news, but worth repeating because it’s absolutely essential you have a digital strategy in place. Conduct an audit to determine how you’re connecing with current and prospective customers and members online and strategize from there. For example:
    • Is your website easy to navigate and does it have clear calls to action?
    • Are you regularly writing new content and posting to your website?
    • Are you appearing in Google search results for the products and services you offer?
    • Do you have a social media content calendar?
    • Are you on the same social platforms as your customers or members?
    • Are you investing in any paid digital advertising?

Step Two: Implementation

Once finalized, the last thing you should do with your communications plan is to assume the work is done, and simply stop. Similar to a successful investment portfolio, plans must be working documents and monitored over time. To ensure you are working toward your goals, determine the level of support you need and assign team members to specific strategies and rely on outside experts to fulfill other needs, such as a digital partner.

Are you ready to increase your earnings and generate higher returns from your financial marketing? Consider an interest-earning approach. Take the next step and invest in Chartwell Agency. Financial services is one of our core vertical markets, and we have clients and relationships across banks, credit unions, financial advisors, insurance agencies and more. Contact us today.