VIENNA, Austria–When Kaitlin Cleary was 18 and living in her first apartment, there was a water leak that led to an $800 water bill.
She had no idea where to turn for help or whom to ask, so she went to Google for an answer. She received 263 million potential responses, many of which were of no value and even misleading.
Credit unions have lots of Kaitlin Cleary’s among their memberships, she said, and if CUs are smart and respond in the right way, they can become lifelong trusted advisors to most of them.
Speaking to the WOCCU’s World Credit Union Conference here, Cleary, who is co-founder of Team 624 Communications in Philadelphia, outlined the steps credit unions should take to leverage the value of “content marketing,” and also shared the work she is currently doing with one Philadelphia-area credit union.
“Young people are bombarded on a regular basis and empowered to find answers to just about any question in their lives,” Cleary told the meeting. “As leaders of credit unions, it’s probably very frustrating to know many answers are false and misleading. The problem is that young people are much more likely to believe something they find on a Google search than they are their own banking institutions.”
Shift In Marketing
Cleary, speaking at a session titled “Increasing Consideration Through Content Marketing: Providing True Value to Prospective Members in Every Step of the Purchase Plan,” pointed to research among Millennials who were asked “Do you trust financial services companies?” The response: 43% unsure, 30% say no.
“Half of Millennials say they have no one to turn to for financial advice,” she said.
But there is a shift in marketing going on right now that is a better way to reach this audience, according to Cleary. She said it’s no longer about crafting the perfect message. Instead, it’s about providing that value so it’s a better way of reaching those consumers.
Cleary shared an example of a video created by Chase Bank of young people that was part of the bank’s “news and stories” section on its website, which highlights financial advice that is often told from the perspective of internal leaders within Chase. It is part of the New York-based bank’s strategy to use content to build trust.
“The impact of the program was immediately clear. Users who consumed this content spent three times longer on the Chase website, and were taking products at a rate three-times higher than non-users,” said Cleary.
Cleary pointed to the Purchase Funnel well-known to many in marketing (it shows how consumers move from Awareness to Consideration to Conversion to Loyalty to Advocacy), and said what has changed for Millennials is in the space between Awareness and Consideration, as the group is Googling and in contact with friends and families for their advice and experiences. Cleary said that space has become a “critical” for credit unions as decisions are being made.
Making A Mistake
Credit unions are mistaken, she cautioned, if they believe just advertising in online channels is the answer. She noted two-thirds of Millennials use ad-blockers so they never see an ad from anyone. Tools offered by Facebook, for instance, also make it very easy to hide the types of ads the user does not wish to see again.
Understanding this shift, and knowing there is a skeptical audience that doesn’t trust marketing or financial institutions, credit unions need to focus on what they can do, Cleary said, and that’s use the content and knowledge they already have.
“Content marketing is really just storytelling,” explained Cleary. “The focus has shifted to providing value to a clearly identified audience. The good news for credit unions is this is very natural territory for you. You are all about your communities. You are deeply entrenched in them. So, it’s about figuring out how to use that as a marketing tactic.”
Content marketing, added Cleary, “is like being a good party guest. You want your audience to be open and willing to hear more from you.”
Content marketing can include blogs, podcasts, video, e-books and any kind of expert information a credit union can provide, she said. “It’s really anything that entertains, inspires, solves problems, educates or informs. This is about having your marketing department being more of a media department.”
Know Your ‘Personas’
To be successful, a credit union needs to know its audience and the kinds of questions they might ask. To do that, a CU should develop “audience personas.” Once defined, she said the CU should then address top of mind issues, including:
- Their typical workday
- Their decision-making process
- Their purchase motivators
- The information needed at each stage of the buying process
- The language prospects use to describe their problems and aspirations
- Where they turn for information
Make sure you are basing your audience personas on real members, stressed Cleary.
At American Heritage FCU in Philadelphia, with which Cleary is currently working, the content strategy has been built around a blog aimed at providing financial information to Millennial members. To help build that an email survey was sent to all members age 18-34, including questions about their concerns for the next few years, as well as what they would like to read more about.
What American Heritage discovered was the most popular topic was saving money, followed by paying off credit card debt and then paying off student loans.
Using all that information from member survey, the credit union created a persona for the target audience for the American Heritage blog. “We kept this person in mind with every piece of content we created,” said Cleary.
That was followed by the creation of a Blog Content Calendar, so the information isn’t just relevant, but timely.
In May of 2017, American Heritage CU launched the MoneyWise blog on its website. In the first three months it’s driven 500 new visitors to the site. Each post is promoted on social media. The CU has also worked to create “brand advocates” out of younger members who work more closely with AHCU.
Just as important as great content is a great distribution strategy, according to Cleary, especially given all the touchpoints the target audience has available to them.
The top content distribution strategies for 2017 are influence marketing, email marketing, and social media.
Is It Working?
But how does a credit union know when its content marketing strategy is working—or not working?
“One of the most common mistakes CEOs make when looking at a content marketing strategy is goal setting,” said Cleary. “They look at all the time that went into it and if they don’t see people signing up right away, they might give up on it. But content marketing is a much longer-term strategy. It’s about changing hearts and minds.”
Metrics every CU should look at include average attention time, share of voice, completion rate, social actions, and sentiment, she said.
Two-Year Timeframe, Plus Two Questions
Cleary stressed it can take as long as two years for a program to be effective, but also noted that doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be regular goals established for shorter timeframes.
In AHCU’s case, its first goal was to identify two-to-three highly engaged brand advocates who will post on the blog regularly, participate in marketing campaigns (blogs, videos, etc.) to promote American Heritage.
The second goal was to increase social media followers and email subscribers ages 18-34 by 15% in the first year.
The third goal was to increase participation at AHCU events among members age 18-34.
“The consumer journey is much more complicated than just ‘click and buy,’” said Cleary. “Over time, they will begin to trust you and feel that you understand them. And then the next step is when you persuade them why a credit union is the right choice for them.”
Cleary left credit unions with the following questions to ask themselves:
- What is a story your credit union can tell that will captivate a younger audience and make them interested to learn more?
- As a credit union, what value can you give to a young person beyond your products and services?