Banking, to many, is considered boring, so finance companies don’t need interesting content to engage their audiences. Right? Deeply wrong. Banks and businesses in the finance industry face a murderer’s row of regulatory obstacles, but those hurdles shouldn’t stop them from producing better content. On the contrary, a stiff regulatory environment just makes it more essential for savvy finance brands to use great educational content to stand out as go-to resources in their niche.
Financial services companies often look at innovative content marketing as an alien world. What they fail to acknowledge is that many of their consumers see finance as equally foreign — and finance companies have the power to change that impression. By creating strong, creative, relevant content for audiences eager to see it, finance companies can shed their fears of rejection and forge lasting relationships with their audiences. Today, social media is critical at every point of the customer journey, from product discovery to purchase, and even to post-purchase care. Customers today crave relationships with their service providers. The quickest path to creating and nurturing positive relationships is content, and financial service providers need to focus on 3 simple steps:
- Create educational content for everyone — including people without MBAs.
- Invest in the right social media to maximize distribution.
- Lean on hard data to maximize content’s reach.
Social media network users reached 2.77 billion in 2019 and are projected to hit 3.1 billion in 2021, according to Statista. No financial institution — regional, national or global — can afford to ignore the immensity of that market reach. While few are ignoring the potential, many financial institutions are unsure how to position themselves on social media even though they realize how important it is to be active on Facebook or Twitter. However, engagement has shifted to Instagram. Instagram is no longer a platform just for fashion, beauty, and auto brands. And it’s never been easier (and more entertaining) to interact with your audience.
With Instagram’s interactive story stickers, direct check-outs, and IGTV supporting landscape videos, businesses can create a variety of content to gain more brand awareness. According to a study by the American Bankers Association, almost 9 out of 10 banks (87%) are very or somewhat active on social media. Younger generations especially have grown accustomed to more intimate relationships with businesses. Personal touches can go a long way when building these kinds of relationships. Just look at Ally Bank, which as part of an effort to provide what customers needed on a personal level, introduced Banksgiving last fall. On one November day, the company granted individual customer wishes, from a $25 gift card to a $50,000 charitable donation.
Any finance company that provides audiences with the guidance, wisdom, and insights they crave — preferably backed up by a brand with some real-world clout — stands to make fast inroads in the public consciousness. Not just any content will do, of course. Consumers are ravenous for authentic content and quick to dismiss the self-serving or bland. That’s not a long-term winning strategy, though. And finance brands that aren’t leveraging it are shooting themselves in the foot.
