Banks and credit unions have made leaps in the way of social media in the last year. But, there's still tremendous opportunity waiting to be seized.
The idea behind social media is that it's simply another method of communicating with your audience. If you'd like to read more about social media best practices, you can read about it here, but that's not the purpose of this article.
The purpose of this article is to help your bank or credit union capitalize on the low-hanging fruit of the social media world.
The 3 Biggest Missed Opportunities of Social Media
1. Consistency
2. Humanity
3. Relevancy
Social media is an investment. It takes time, and even if you're not doing paid ads, time means money. Once your organization has decided to invest in social media, it's worth doing correctly to get the biggest return on that investment.
Consistency
First, it's imperative to show up on social media in a way that your audience - clients and prospective clients - can predictably count on. One-off posts does not an online reputation build. Instead, come up with a social media schedule. This should outline where and how often you'll post, and which kind of content should be scheduled when - if that applies to your marketing objectives. Also, in addition to consistency of schedule and location, it's important to practice consistency of voice and tone. Your brand should appear as a unified front for your company. Ideally, it should sound like a single person were writing every marketing piece, on social media or otherwise.
Humanity
Next, your social presence should be rooted in a human voice. The most unique thing about social media is its ability to allow individuals to engage with one another. That's no different in a B2C social media interaction. Because of this, the "C," or consumer, in the equation has to feel like they're speaking, or engaging with, a real person. That's how deep brand relationships are sparked and nurtured. It's your job as a company to then decide what kind of human voice is appropriate for your brand: friendly, formal, casual, hip, young, etc. Once you pick what's right for your brand, be sure to stick with it universally throughout your marketing efforts to your desired target audiences.
Relevancy
Lastly, the content you're posting must be relevant. Anything that's posted on the Internet is content. Just because it's considered content, doesn't mean it's good content. However, just because it's good content, doesn't mean it's relevant to the audience you're trying to target and build a relationship with. It's your job to identify who your ideal audience is, and what information they crave from you. This can vary greatly, from information that teaches to information that entertains - as long as it's relevant and within the scope of your brand image. It should all fit within your social media marketing plan. And, perhaps most importantly, having relevant content guarantees the highest engagement.
Putting these three opportunities into practice ensures the best ROI on your social media investment.
