In my last post, I talked about the Five Tips to Creating a Winning Marketing Strategy for Your Bank – the key ingredients of success being some old fashioned creativity and common sense. But the real test comes with the implementation of such a plan.
How can you differentiate your bank from your competitors and successfully put your marketing plan into action?
When looking for a way to best implement your plan, the number one thing to remember is this: be creative. The most successful marketing programs are those that are memorable and set your business apart from your competitors.
Try something new and challenge your team to think unconventionally. Offer a seminar that would benefit small business owners, for example. Or, host a series of “Better Business Breakfast” events in your community and bring in experts in marketing, advertising, accounting and human resources to speak to attendees.
Most experts will agree to speak for free just to get in front of business owners and you can gain publicity for your event by co-promoting with the venue.
The key to marketing is introducing customers to your products and services and staying in front of them so that you can develop a stronger relationship.
Don’t underestimate the power of old fashioned relationship building. Remember: every business owner believes his or her business is unique. You want them to know that you understand their unique problems and know exactly how to solve them.
Most marketing collateral out there today makes the mistake of telling customers how great their bank’s products and services are without ever really listening to what the customer needs.
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Neal Reynolds has worked with hundreds of banks and credit unions around the country helping them to grow core deposits and market share without growing their marketing budgets. Contact him at [email protected].
