Step-by-Step Social Media Plan

It’s possible to accomplish all three without driving your marketing department bonkers. In fact, “social” media is the responsibility of the whole company “community.”

 

Unlike print, radio and web banners, if you “sell” too much on social media, you’ll live a short, uneventful, unprosperous online life. You are not competing against thousands of other advertisements, you’re competing against cute kittens falling off things and posts that people voluntarily signed up for. Lets face it … do YOU want ads during your Facebook time? Heck no. You want to catch up with friends and family, and to keep up to date on hobbies and interests, and to learn and be entertained. 

 

 

The easiest way to draw followers in and keep them coming back is to share the wealth of financial knowledge that your bank or credit union already has.

 

~ CEO (4-6 posts per year): The state of local economy; How the bank/CU fulfills it’s mission; Why shop local…

~ Lending Officer (4 posts per year): How to improve your credit report; How to lower your car payment; When to refinance…

~ IT Officer (4 posts per year): Secrets to password security; Avoid online ID Theft; What you may not know about… RDC, Online Billpay, Mobile banking, etc…

~ Business Development (6-12 posts per year): Business customer spotlights; Keys to better money management; Tricks to small business lending…

~ Customer/Member Services (12 posts per year): Examples of how you changes customer’s lives (first home, started a local business, restructure a loan so someone can keep their home). We do these things everyday, the trick is to share the stories internally as soon as they happen.

~ Collections (2-3 posts per year): What to do IF you get in trouble or will be late on a payment…

~ Mortgage (3-4 posts per year): How to stage your home to sell; Sell or remodel; Is a traditional loan right for you…

~ Investments (4-6 posts per year): What to do with your tax refund; How much do you need to retire; State of the economy…

~ Insurance (3-4 posts per year): Is vehicle protection right for your loan; What to look for in life insurance…

 

Right there are  42-55 non-salesy, value-added posts. At least one post per week without too heavy a burden on any one person or department. And notice, Marketing is NOT assigned any of them. It’s Marketing’s job to drive the plan … Assure everyone is on schedule … Provide topic ideas … proof and in some cases rewrite posts based on the team’s input.

 

No matter which social media channels you choose to use or whether your focus is written, video or a combination, create “faces of” your bank or credit union and make them to go-to people for knowledge. 

 

We recommend posting all value-added articles, blogs or videos on your website and using social media to link to them. 

 

This is where marketing and the branches can have some fun. In addition to mandatory messages (branch closings, product updates and fraud alerts), try to have some fun. Hold a bank-wide brainstorm contest of what your staff would like to see from financial social media:

• online only contests
• news from the community
• highlight staff’s role in the community
• highlight staff’s out-of-branch talents
• highlight customers/members community involvement or talents
• raise online funds for a local cause or customer in need (and match them)
• post a joke of the week (personalize it by posting “Susie’s favorite joke from the North Branch”)