S.E.L.L. more with SEM and SEO

"For online advertising, almost half (48%) of consumers surveyed said they trust ads in search engine results, online video ads and ads on social networks. More than four in 10 (42%) trust online banner ads, up from 26 percent in 2007. Forty-five percent of respondents in Nielsen’s 2013 survey believed display ads on mobile phones were credible, and 37% trusted text ads on mobile phones, up from 18% in 2007."

~ Under the Influence: Consumer Trust in Advertising, 09.17.2013

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BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey 2013.
Myles Anderson & filed under Online Reviews, Research, 06.25.2013

~ Only 5% of consumers had not used the internet to find a local business in the last 12 months 

(down from 15% in 2012)

~ 37% of consumers used the internet to find local businesses at least one time per month 

(up from 34% in 2012)

Many of us have new customer acquisition at the top of our wish list for 2014.

• Fact #1: To acquire new folks, you must first have market awareness.
• Fact #2: Awareness takes money that most of us simply don't have.

That said, strategically, you have to steadfastly stick to two strict disciplines:

1. You DO NOT want everyone in your market. So why pay for media that reaches everyone. Identify as narrowly as possible who you REALLY want to walk through your door and focus your money there. Anyone else will walk in organically.

2. You need to reach your target when they care. It would be great to have the budget for a Nike-style blanket awareness effort, but you don't. 

More and more, a focus on electronic media makes more sense than burning your budget on traditional broadcast and print. A serious evaluation of SEM and SEO can make a huge difference in your marketing results.

Search Engine Marketing - (SEM) allows you to quickly identify and serve text ads to individuals as they are looking for information related to local banking options 

SEM is focused on key words, so you reach your target while they are hunting for what you do - but it goes much deeper. For the most part, you can also target your SEM just like you do direct mail: Regional, demographic, lifestyle, etc.

SEM is typically budgeted on a cost-per-click model, so unlike direct mail, you will not pay for simple exposure, but for actual desired action.

SEO - Having a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy is an essential component in being competitive in the search engine realm and providing your customers with the most timely, accurate information about what you do and what you're about. The goal of SEO is to provide an intuitive user experience by communicating with search engines about your products and services so that you rank well within the search results. 

Proper SEO is not a DIY project. It requires regular analysis of web crawler reports, key word rankings, competitive analysis and content review. It also takes updates of keywords generation and meta data as well as social media integration.

The best part is that both SEM and SEO are budget friendly. With a pay-per-click and super-tight targeting, you can create a SEM plan that fits most any budget. And, while SEO is an ongoing effort, you can reasonably expect to pay just a  few hundred dollars per month for the consultation, reporting, analysis and management

We bring these marketing philosophies to credit unions and community banks nationwide, and would love to bring them to your institution too. Contact us to see how.

With more than 280,000 visits worldwide, we hope that you enjoy this blog.  If you find it helpful, please share it with your colleagues. Also, check out our YouTube Channel for short video blogs about financial marketing.  

MarketMatch is also a nationally and internationally requested speaker. Contact us to bring our marketing ideas to your next conference.

Here are the conferences where you can find MarketMatch.

See our story here. (click)

Chat with me LIVE! (click)

Or email me directly (click)

937-426-9848

Follow me on Twitter @egagliano

Don't Begin Your Next Planning Session Until You Can Do This!

The Super-Duper Credit Union/Community Bank member/customer is family focused. She is a married woman with a good job, but (combined with her husband's income) making just enough to support her family's comfortable lifestyle. She has one or two young children and a husband who likely earns a little more than her. They live in a 2 bedroom home in a middle class neighborhood with lots of swing sets and have been there for 5-10 years.

Retirement seems like a pipe dream. Though they invest a little through their employers, it is not the focus. They are more concerned with meeting monthly bills and still squirreling away some savings for their children's future college bills - who's majority will ultimately be financed through student loans.

Her time is divided by maintaining a career that she is proud of, raising children that she loves dearly, supporting her kid's activities, volunteering for community groups, exercising 3-4 times per week, and trying to salvage a relationship with her husband, family and friends where she can find time. She has replaced time on the phone with her friends with frequent pictures and updates of the kids on Facebook.

Because her husband is "busy earning more," or because she's more responsible, she's in charge of most of the family finances. While she is technologically savvy, she received her first email account when she started her first real job, about 20 years ago. That said, she writes more checks than she probably should but is beginning to see the efficiency of online banking and starting to trust it more. She's certainly not an early adopter of technology - but she LOVES her i-Phone.

Though she and her husband each switch cars every 3-4 years, they do not lease. They want the look and amenities of a BMW or Mercedes without the hefty monthly payments.

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The off-site hotel is set and the golf reservations are made. You know how you'll entertain your Board and they are looking forward to a weekend together. Now, it's time to begin the REAL pre-work to your planning session.

As credit unions and community banks, everything we do is 

built around our members and customers ... EVERYTHING!  

You, of course need to be prepared to talk business: How will we decrease loan loss while still being open enough to grow the portfolio? How will the health care act effect us? How do we increase non-interest income without establishing big-bank fees? Are there new markets that we should look at? Do we want to merge (or be merged)? Are we over or under staffed?

This is all vital to discuss, but before you break into THAT agenda ... think about who you're doing it for.

Can you tell a story like the one above? You need to!

The days of being all things to all people is over. Your margins shrank years ago and have little promise of coming back any time soon. Your marketing budget isn't limitless. You need loans NOW and your 65 plus year old members simply aren't borrowing like you need.

So you need to focus! You need to determine who in your market(s) you are attracting now and who you WANT to attract. You need to understand your best customers and what makes them the best. Then learn everything you can about them. 

When you can tell a story about your customer: where they live, where they work, what they do for fun, what drives them, what they fear, what they care about ... then you can start making strategic decisions on your product suite, pricing, branching, tech investments, your website, and your marketing message.

Related Articles:
The Great Storyteller Gets the Audience
You'll Never Get Everyone to Love You
Mirror Mirror

We bring these marketing philosophies to credit unions and community banks nationwide, and would love to bring them to your institution too. Contact us to see how.

With more than 260,000 visits worldwide, we hope that you enjoy this blog.  If you find it helpful, please share it with your colleagues. Also, check out our YouTube Channel for short video blogs about financial marketing.  

MarketMatch is also a nationally and internationally requested speaker. Contact us to bring our marketing ideas to your next conference.

Here are the conferences where you can find MarketMatch.

See our story here. (click)

Chat with me LIVE! (click)

Or email me directly (click)

937-426-9848

Follow me on Twitter @egagliano

8 Life Stages You Should Market To

Do you remember when Gen X was a bunch of flannel-wearin', Nirvana-listenin', baristas living in Mom and Dad's basement -- and that was the extent of their ambition?

Fast forward to today, when Gen X is driving a minivan to their kid's activities, meeting a monthly mortgage payment, trying to save for a seemingly nonexistent retirement and ... well ... writing an amazing weekly blog about financial marketing and consulting credit unions and community banks on how to better utilize their marketing resources!

As marketers, we understand that segmentation is little more than politically correct stereotyping.  

It's our job to stick everyone in the world into some kind of bucket.  Traditionally, we've done this based on generational criteria: The Greatest Generation, Baby Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y, Millennials, Gen Next.

The problem is that generations grow up - they evolve.  Segmentation based on generation is a moving target.

Now, consider this ... when Ben, my first child, was born, EVERYTHING changed!  That week, I picked up the phone and started learning about life insurance.  We bought a minivan for the power sliding doors.  During the "nesting" phase, we remodeled the house, prepares a nursery and did all but pad the walls in child-proofing.  All of this had some financial and banking ramifications.  And you know what?  My needs as a new parent were essentially the same in 2003 as a new parent's needs in 1983 and will likely be in 2023.

As bankers (and credit unioners), we are needed MOST during life's big changes.  Our job is to identify those needs and translate them into product solutions.

If you've been a long-time reader of this blog, you've read it; if you've heard me speak, you've heard it; if you are a client, you're likely implementing it.  Consider segmentation based on Life Stage.

There are certain events in nearly everyone's lives that we can predict and that generate specific financial needs.  This list may not be definitive, but it's a great start to get your brain moving:

School Years
From high school through college, they are building a base for their financial future.  It's time to establish great savings habits and manage any debt accrued in school.

Marriage
As two lives become one, there is often a consolidation of checking accounts, a new home, wedding and honeymoon expenses.

New Home
If you're not automatically bundling a credit card with your mortgage, start today!  Old stuff is never good enough for a NEW home.  They also need to start saving for those surprise expenses that homes have a tendency to through our way.

New Baby
Nothing changes financial priorities faster than the pitter-patter of little feet!  

Empty Nest
With fewer mouths to feed, empty nesters often enjoy extra disposable income.  Will change savings habits and often will looks to downsize their home.

Grandparent
They may want to help secure the future of a whole new generation by helping their children and spoiling their grandchildren.

Retirement
With more time to focus on themselves and on their loved ones, retirees look to stretch the savings that they've worked decades to build.

Owning a Business
Though there are similarities, business banking and personal banking are different.  These entrepreneurs are looking for sound advice and ways to better manage their money.


Once you've identified the relevant Life Stages, think about these folk's needs.

• How do they save and spend?
• How do they borrow and for what?
• What are their needs in the near future?
• What conveniences do they want and need?

Finally, assign the most likely products and services to fulfill those needs, then you can:

• Bundle products, 
• Package your bundles in ways that will differentiate you and facilitate meaningful conversation with your customers (see samples from the above photos),
• Train your sales staff to narrow the focus of their discussions and
• Fine tune your targeting of external and internal communications

FOR ANOTHER BLOG ON TARGETING 

AND SEGMENTATION, CLICK HERE.

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With nearly 185,000 visits worldwide, we hope that you enjoy this blog.  If you find it helpful, please share it with your colleagues.  Also, check out our YouTube Channel for short video blogs about financial marketing.  

We bring these marketing philosophies to credit unions and community banks nationwide, and would love to bring them to your institution too.  Contact us to see how.

MarketMatch is also a nationally and internationally requested speaker.  Contact us to bring our marketing ideas to your next conference.

Here are the conferences where you can find MarketMatch.

See our story here. (click)

Chat with me LIVE! (click)

Or email me directly (click)

937-426-9848

Rabbit Season, Duck Season

“ObamaCare...”

“RomneyCare...”

“We’re growing...”

“The sky is falling...”

Blah, Blah, Blah

We are smack-dab in the middle of the 2012 episode of “Rabbit Season, Duck Season!”

Think about it … no one really knows the truth, there is no compromise and, in the end, you know someone’s going to get their duck bill blown off.

There’s a similar Rabbit Season, Duck Season that’s been playing for years with credit unions and community banks.

In full disclosure, we help both credit unions AND community banks to improve their marketing.  And, aside from some basic, structural and colloquial differences, we are all VERY similar … and VERY concerned about each other.

From one perspective, I get it.  There are roughly 15,000 total banks and credit unions in America.  Of those, about 12,000 are classified as either community banks or credit unions:

• More than 5,000 community banks (Independent Community Bankers of America)
• More than 7,000 credit unions (Callahans’ Peer-to-Peer)

From a sheer numbers perspective, there is a lot to be concerned about.

However, combined, credit unions and community banks only hold about 15% of all assets in the US:

• $1.2 trillion for community banks (Independent Community Bankers of America)
• $963 billion for credit unions (Callahans’ Peer-to-Peer)

While the “Big 4” banks alone: Bank of America, Citi, Chase and Wells Fargo hold 39% of consumer deposits. (Federal Reserve System)

So, today’s discussion … do we spend time and budget resources fighting for 15% of a market against a competitor who’s VERY similar to us, or do we position ourselves against the big, “impersonal” Goliaths and try to get a slice of the larger pie?

The answer, as always, will differ from market-to-market:

• Who has the market share?  Review the FDIC and NCUA deposit data and see who your market is banking with.
•  Are there growth trends?  Is there a mid-level payer who is building branches, increasing online access and making waves in your market?
• Measure awareness.  With a quick phone survey, you can understand who your market thinks of when they think of banking.  Are you in the top 3?
• What’s the marketing activity?  We will never have the total marketing budget of Wells Fargo or Bank of America, but what are the competitors doing in YOUR neighborhood?  If Chase is dropping a huge media buy in your market, you need to consider how to compete against it – or to simply ignore it and focus elsewhere.

In the end, you have to pick your battles and you’ll ultimately have to steal business to grow.  Who has the member/customer-base that you want?  Which one or two institutions should you position yourself against?

As community-centric institutions, credit unions and community banks will ALWAYS have a story to tell compared to the big-banks.

With more than 115,000 visits worldwide, we hope that you enjoy this blog.  If you find it helpful, please share it with your colleagues.  Also, check out our YouTube Channel for short video blogs.  

We bring these marketing philosophies to community banks and credit unions nationwide, and would love to bring them to your institution too.  Contact us to see how.

MarketMatch is also a nationally and internationally requested speaker.  Contact us to bring our marketing ideas to your next conference.

Here are the conferences where you can find MarketMatch.

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MarketMatch is a marketing firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community.  We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the right story that will generate the greatest  MOMENTUM and prove the best RESULTS with our written ROI Guarantee.

See our story here. (click)

Chat with me LIVE! (click)

Or email me directly (click)

937-426-9848