Many community banks are taking a wait-and-see approach to using the web for advertising and client involvement, and missing out on experimenting with other, very low-cost options for reaching a new group of potential clients. "Companies that assume online markets are the same markets that used to watch their ads on television are kidding themselves," says The Cluetrain Manifesto, a book of thoughts on the web and its business uses.
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According to David Saber of Saber and Associates, a strategic planning company, "one of the biggest questions Iwe hear] is "What's coming down the pipeline?' [Banks] are just starting to get their arms around opening a checking or savings account online.
"For banks under $1 billion, they're more focused on account tools. They're not focusing on Web 2.0," although they are looking at options that don't require huge capital investment. Banks have "probed but nobody's really leaped," Saber said. Web 2.0 is the term coined for using the web for business applications and interaction - not just information saturation.
Many banks have in their target markets students who are well-versed on surfing the web and designing web sites. Look for a student who is interested in interning at your institution to design online marketing for your bank - and let the creative fur fly!
Colin Henderson, writer of the blog "theBankwatch.com," lays out a basic plan for banks if they're interested in pursuing interaction on the web. Simple ways to get involved include search engine optimization (SEO), Flickr (photo management and sharing) and YouTube (home videos). SEO makes sure you have key words throughout your web site that search engines pick up on when people do searches. Updating your web site with information, blogs and press releases help ensure your site continues to optimize on those searches. Flickr has a host of pictures on it that people from around the world have uploaded for viewing. First National Bank of Dwight, Ill., and Farmers Bank and Trust Co., Nebraska City, Neb., are on there, as are others - many of you may not even know it!
Bank of America taped a presentation they did with their staff which included a spoof of U2's song One. The spoof made its way onto YouTube about 10 months ago - free marketing that had 384,000 views.
Get your bank on MySpace (a social networking sites) through pay-per-click ads running along the top (banner ads) and along the side. Depending on the site, and how specifically you define your terms for audience, you may pay less than $1 when people click on your ad - and you only pay when a surfer clicks on your ad (Google Adsense).
Henderson also lays out a few ideas that are a little more involved. Maximizing use of Wikipedia and blogging are two of his suggestions. Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia that allows readers to submit edits to entries. Those changes go to an editorial panel that makes the changes after they verify the information. Few banks are checking their entries. There are at least 34 First National Banks in the Midwest listed in Wikipedia currently. Is yours listed? Why not?
Regarding blogging, Henderson said, "Forget corporate blogs - I despise them. Look for someone who gets it, and can be your blogger, talking to customers, non-customers, commenting on other blogs with a link to your blog. Let him talk about what is good about your bank and what needs to be fixed. Let it take its own course, trust it."
Henderson also suggests the bank have its own wiki "that lets customers design bank products. You will be surprised. As much as you will have extremists who want everything for free, you will get sensible, creative, thoughtful ideas, based on willingness to pay. I know this from experience, during the early direct banking days...." Another blog suggests a rate-comparison chart on your site listing the rates you pay or charge for various services and what a few of your competitors pay (including online competitors) like a Progressive Insurance site for banking products.
Henderson does encourage CEO involvement and warns, "The elements of web 2.0 skew towards CEO approval. Without having the CEO on your side, and driving change, the banks' success will be limited."
Regarding expense, "Resourcing costs are basically built in if a bank were to do this correctly," Saber said. "However, I would bet that a few people in some community banks would obtain further job satisfaction if they were empowered to run with an online bulletin board, blog or customer forum. As with all good strategic priorities, it will come down to tapping your best internal people to ensure the social media project ultimately serves a purpose for the bank."
Author: Wheeler, Liz
Previous news: 20 November 2007
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