In the most recent edition of the ABA Banking Journal, there is a sobering article about all of the bank branch closings over the last couple of years (Time to close under-performing branches). Over 2,300 offices have been closed to date and many more are in the process. Much of this is caused by in-branch transaction volumes dropping by 10% annually in many institutions. … [Read more...]
7 things Chick-fil-A taught us about marketing
If I were the marketing director for Chick-fil-A, I would be buying full-page ads in the Chicago, Boston and San Francisco papers, thanking their local politicians for increasing sales over 100% in one day. With just a few words from Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee, Chick-fil-A had millions of passionate customers all … [Read more...]
Everyone Loves A Birthday Card!
I have written a lot in the past several months about all of the competition that traditional banks face today. In addition to dealing with bad real estate loans and rising FDIC fees, banks are now watching as brokerage and mutual fund firms introduce online bill pay, free checking accounts, and high yield saving accounts. In an article in the Wall Street Journal last … [Read more...]
Build a Killer Calendar: 12 Months of Marketing Ideas that Work!
As you know, I spend a lot of time writing about marketing and advertising plans for financial institutions. The most common response I get is, “Great ideas, but where do I start?” So, today I want to help you put these ideas on your calendar! January: Start today promoting your IRA and SEP’s. Most people in America are starting to think about filing their income taxes … [Read more...]
And The Mobile Banking Winner Is…Google Wallet?
There is a great article in the latest edition of FastCompany.com titled Mobile Melee. It describes the companies and industries that are fighting it out to turn smart phones into “wallets” and who could ultimately control the multi-trillion dollar U.S. payments industry. The interesting thing about the article is that it predicts that banks will be the first ones out of … [Read more...]