Our year of isolation is hopefully coming to a close, and families are flocking to vacations, theaters, concert venues, and, of course, the stadium for that great American pastime: baseball. Children with baseball mitts brought from home, and brand-new ball caps join the in a chorus of Take Me Out to the Ball Game and sing in unison “… for it's one, two, three strikes, you're out at the old ball game."
This old tune has been a favorite since its début in 1908 for a simple reason: its catchy lyrics capture that win-or-lose moment when a batter walks up to the plate. We can all relate. Like in sports, a lot can ride on the decisions made when the marketing team steps up to the plate. The difference in a swing and a miss versus that homerun hit, can come down to a few key choices. The experts at DeepTarget share three tips to avoid a marketing strikeout this summer.
Strike 1
With the introduction of digital and internet-based communication, marketing has evolved at record paces in the last two decades. Marketing departments can miss the mark completely by advertising products or messages that are not meaningful to their customers. The shotgun approach with mass marketing simply does not work anymore. Communications should be directed to a well-defined target audience that, at minimum, takes into consideration generational preferences. One statistic to support the idea of generational preferences is evident when in a survey in North America only 47.7% of Gen Y customers reported positive experiences, compared to 62.5% of Gen X customers and 75.7% customers of older age groups. This data also clearly shows that financial institutions can unintentionally cater to older customers, which leave younger audiences feeling overlooked by their bank or credit union. Without a feeling of connection to their FI, there is no brand loyalty which often results in switching to another financial institution for a financial product or service, sometimes as often as every six months. DeepTarget takes a deep dive into generational differences in a previous blog, “Five Financial Generation Segments” which offers useful tips to connect with each generation.
Strike 2
We live in an age of consumerism where the average customer can scroll past hundreds of ads in a single day. If FIs are not thoughtfully crafting relevant, memorable ads that are welcomed by their banking consumers, these campaigns can easily be overlooked by their intended audience. This can be especially challenging for banks and credit unions who typically have adopted a more conservative approach to communications. Perhaps, this is due to their long history of working with financial regulations. However, when it comes to customer communications, there has to be a little room for creativity. For a little inspiration, check out DeepTarget’s prior blog “3 Steps To Add Fireworks Back To Financial Services Advertising.”
Strike 3
Last but not least, FIs have to keep score! Tracking campaign success with measurable data is essential to knowing which strategies are resonating with their customers. And, unlike the days of old, as advertising has become more digital, it has correspondingly become more quantifiable. Metrics are key to understanding whether your marketing and communications strategies are working. Living without measuring results is as good as living in a vacuum and hoping things work out for the best. It’s important for a financial institution’s growth and profitability to ensure that banking consumers are being actively engaged digitally. Recent surveys say that there is up to a 300% difference in trust and confidence between customers with negative and positive marketing experiences. Fill in the gaps in your coverage with the data points that matter, outlined in this DeepTarget blog, “Metrics Matter Most.”
DeepTarget is here to help your “batting average”with built-in generational targeting, a Design Once. Engage Everywhere™ promise, and - best of all – the ability to measure and track the results for you.
Help your team hit a homerun with DeepTarget’s Digital Experience Platform (DXP) which unites our AI-based solutions into one platform that easily reaches your accountholders across all digital channels - automate powerful marketing campaigns that are smarter and easier than ever before delivering the right offer to the right person at the right time, anywhere, anytime that your customers bank with you.
