Don't Miss An Episode, Subscribe Now
Don't Share Products, Share Stories
In today's digital age, consumers use on average 8.9 sources of information when making banking purchase decisions. But what is still their most influential source?... Human interactions, including talking in person with a financial representatives and referrals from friends and family.
Current members or customers and potential new members don't want to be sold to via social media. They want to build relationships with people, they want to connect with friends and family. People are looking for real, authentic engagement. Credit Unions and community banks should have a place in this kind of interaction and this can help grow your financial institution, through storytelling.
Telling your customer's stories is critical to the future of your Bank or Credit Union growth strategy!
What really impacts new member/customer behavior is when someone shares a debt consolidation or bankruptcy nightmare that the Credit Union or Bank helped them solve. Or the college loan that came through when they thought they were out of options.
These are the stories we hear every single day working with Community Bank and Credit Union staff, and these stories need to be told more often!
Why not run a testimonial contest this summer for a few weeks to encourage members to share why they bank with your FI? Give out some nice prizes and meaningful praise for members to encourage participation, and you will end up with amazing user generated content that can be re-purposed throughout the year.
You don't need 50 stories to get your point across, often 5 or 10 meaningful accounts will make all the difference. Including real life member images in these stories is key, so make sure the entries include a photo or selfie. Maybe even a pic with their family in the new home your institution helped them buy, or with the new car they didn't think they could afford at another bank's higher interest rate.
Blog comments