A well-designed, user-friendly banking website isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s a financial imperative that can boost your bottom line. According to a study from Forrester Research, a well-designed user interface (UI) can yield a 200% increase in conversions, and an enhanced user experience (UX) can raise that to a whopping 400%. And that’s just the start. In addition to driving conversions, a website built on solid UX principles can transform your institution’s online presence, boost engagement, and more – all while saving you time and money. Still not convinced a website refresh is worth it ..read more

At this point, the word phygital isn’t exactly new; reports on this hybrid of physical and digital marketing go back at least five years. However, the rapid and ongoing evolution of digital technology does mean that the ways marketers can combine physical and digital techniques and experiences are constantly growing. While the future is ever changing, there are two types of phygital marketing poised to become increasingly relevant for brands across industries—particularly in finance, higher education, and healthcare—that are worth exploring: wearable technology at events and a public physical ..read more

If traditional marketing channels don’t fit your product—or your budget—podcast advertising may offer possibilities you hadn’t considered. And, even if you do advertise through traditional channels, a well-placed podcast ad could augment your brand’s marketing profile.  In recent years, podcast advertising has been notable as the playground of direct-to-consumer brands, particularly newer companies. At times, it can seem like any podcast you download is likely to be sponsored by a DTC shaving brand (Harry’s, Dollar Shave Club), an upstart mattress company (Casper, Purple), or a meal-prep ..read more

The COVID-19 crisis has led to an unprecedented boom in digital banking. In fact, from January 2020 to July 2020, there’s been a 67% jump in the number of US adults who consider a digital bank to be their primary bank, and 15 to 20 percent of consumers expect to bank online more often, even after the crisis has passed. And although consumers are generally happy with their bank’s digital offerings, financial institutions run the risk of their customer relationships becoming purely transactional as a result of increased digitization—giving customers and members less reason to remain loyal. Here ..read more

The COVID-19 pandemic has left marketers stumped. This is an unprecedented situation—we can’t consult digital marketing case studies that were conducted during global pandemics for data and guidance because there are none.  Businesses are left wondering how they should market themselves (if at all). While in most cases that answer is yes they should market themselves, there are some follow-up questions you should ask yourself to ensure your digital marketing strategy is still as solid as before the pandemic hit. Is my brand’s messaging appropriate? The fallout from tone-deaf marketing is ..read more

In a digital world full of endless options for financial institutions, search engines are king when it comes to driving organic traffic and potential depositors and borrowers to your site. As many know, there is a ton of value in SEO and keyword research, but what is your SEO actually worth? Well, that depends. If you don’t have the right keywords on your site and you’re ranking for keywords unrelated to your business, all your SEO efforts are worth $0. Although you aren’t paying to rank for these keywords (unless you’ve hired an SEO specialist, of course), there is still monet ..read more

My husband and I just bought our first house and I’m not going to lie, while being a first-time homebuyer is exciting, it’s pretty stressful! This was such an important milestone and we had a lot to consider when looking for a financial institution (FI) for our mortgage. We looked at a few different lenders along the way before deciding on one for our mortgage. So, what went into our decision for the FI to ultimately earn our business? Here are the three key factors that influenced our decision—and what they can mean to your marketing: Rates. Starting with the obvious, rates played a huge ro ..read more

A few days ago, Facebook announced that it will make ads for jobs, loans and credit card offers searchable for all U.S. users. The announcement is the latest move in a years-long battle over the social media giant’s ad targeting capabilities with the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Fair Housing Alliance and other civil rights and consumer advocacy groups. Their big issue is that Facebook’s ad tools give advertisers the ability to target consumers based on age, gender, zip code, national origin and even sexual orientation. While this targeting ability is key to the platform’s appe ..read more

What’s hot in digital marketing for credit unions? Quite a bit, actually. And it’s changing by the minute. But it’s not just knowing about the latest shiny object; it’s knowing what works, what’s going to help convert prospects into members—and turn memberships into lifelong relationships. That was the focus of my recent “Digital Targeting Precision 2.0” presentation at the 2019 Conference of the Marketing Association of Credit Unions (MAC). While written for the credit union marketing professionals attending the four-day conference in New Orleans, its key takeaways should prove valuable to j ..read more

Whether you’re a law firm, an accounting practice, an architectural firm or any other type of professional service, your brand identity is your first calling card. As your business grows and evolves, its identity may need to do so, as well. If you decide that it’s time to enhance your brand, here are some best practices for how to approach its development to ensure that you land on an identity that is true to your DNA, competitively differentiating, and resonates with your audience. 1. Conduct a deep discovery. Because all marketing begins with who, it’s important to conduct research about yo ..read more