November 03, 2017

Engaging your customers helps increase your brand's loyalty and user base. This is also true for banking systems whose top priority is often generating more business, which means going out to find new customers. Quality customer engagements won't happen overnight but there are many ways that companies can help increase the level of engagement that their customers are having with their business and their brand. This is especially true not only for banks but for credit unions and other financial institutions. 

Some of the top ways that banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions are keeping customers engaged in 2017 include some of the following:

• Bundle Your Products: Banks and credit unions, as well as other financial institutions that are bundling their products, are getting customers to engage in more than just one of their services at a time. This means that customers are more likely to use more than one of the institution's services and thus are more likely to generate more business for that financial institution than if they only used the business for one specific aspect of their finances.

• Use Customer Segmentation: Customer segmentation helps divide the customer base into segments to see what their investing and spending habits include. This helps the financial institution sell the customers customized offers that will help benefit their investing and spending habits. The more personalized the recommendations for a customer are the more likely they are to relate to the services offered and actually try using them. 

• Automating Customer Care: We live in an "instant gratification" society that demands that customers are able to do things for themselves faster and more instantly than ever before. Providing basic automatic self-servicing solutions to customers' most basic problems will help them solve their problems on their own. The less that customers have to wait for business hours to call a representative and the faster their problems are fixed the happier most of them will be.

• Take Advantage of the Digital Revolution: The digital revolution means that connecting with your customers through digital means is more important than ever. Making your apps mobile friendly and allowing customers to access their personal online banking information from virtually anywhere makes the experience customer-friendly and allows you to put the customers at the center of an experience they will not forget. The more the customer feels heard and the more convenient your products are to use the more likely they are to stick with your institution for long-term investments and financial investments.

• Utilize Social Media to Reach New Customers: The age of social media is alive and well. Using various social media channels including the most popular ones such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Reddit allow you to connect with not only your current customers but also with potential future customers as well. Sponsoring your advertisements allows you to reach out to new customers to generate more business.

• Offer Money Incentives For New Customer Signups: Offering holiday bonuses or seasonal contests where random winners are drawn for cash prizes encourage new customers to sign up for your company's services. Money incentives can get a lot of people to sign up for accounts and other services that may not otherwise bother. The fee or prize you award is a small price to pay for the increased business. 

• Offer Customers Free Downloadable Tools: Providing customers with free downloads to help them manage their money such as budget management sheets, interest calculators, etc. free downloads that help customers manage their money more easily may attract more people to use your financial institution to benefit from all of the free perks offered to them to help them manage their money effectively as possible.

• Use An Effective Blog: Running a blog that you post on weekly or a few times per week allows you to share great information about managing finances with customers. This practical advice can help your existing customers and attract new customers to your business. Strive to create an authentic, authoritarian voice for yourself and your financial institution to help others manage their money better. They will seek your company for further advice if you are reputable and sound in the advice you offer.

• Champion A Philanthropic Cause: A financial institution that is giving back to a philanthropic cause is likely to connect with many more customers than an institution that doesn't give back. Consider giving back to a cause that means something to you from a cancer charity to help the underprivileged children have a hot meal or a children's hospital or Humane Society or anything in between. The idea isn't what the cause is but rather that you give back to something and help others who are less fortunate than we are. That will win consumers over every time. Advertise your philanthropic cause and give consumers a chance to join you in helping the cause to make the impact even greater.

• Offer Free Seminars/Workshops: Free educational seminars or workshops are a great way to help customers improve their financial knowledge and therefore boost their own financial well-being. Providing customers a chance to better themselves will likely make customers sit up and take notice Showing you care about their finances and futures and well-being will make you a customer-centered business that more people want to be part of.  

Conclusions:

In the end, remember that customers want to financially benefit themselves by investing their money in your financial practice. Providing educational tools to consumers as well as content that will engage them in taking control of and budgeting their own finances will help them become more aware with their money. These are the benefits consumers seek going into 2018 and what they will continue to seek moving forward. Putting the consumer at the center of the planning and the experience will help you attract new customers and take your advertising to the next level.

For more information on helping your customers take control of their own finances and engaging them in your business please feel free to contact us.