No one likes a faker

Slowly but surely, community banks are jumping into the social media revolution. And the reasons why, just keep piling up.

It’s a great idea for banks to at least join the prominent platforms, especially Facebook and Twitter. Not only does this provide an official presence, but you’re reserving your bank’s name. Reserving your name prevents pranksters from impersonating your organization through fake profiles.

The Bank of America knows all about the trouble a fake profile can cause. Soon after Google Plus introduced its company brand pages, some prankster created a fake Bank of America profile.
Their headline? “We took your bailout money and your mortgage rates are going up.” The profile was complete with the Bank of America logo, link to their official website, and the address and phone number of its New York Headquarters.

The prankster, live for about a week, accumulated over 1,200 followers. “Big company party in foreclosed house #2340087 tonight,” read a post making fun of homeowners who couldn’t pay their mortgages. Another one said, “You will sit down and shut up, or we will foreclose on you,” to the Occupy Wall Street protesters.

Although the profile was eventually taken down, the damage had been done.The takeaway idea is even if you may not have the ability to manage numerous social media profiles at the moment, still create that official presence. It reserves your name for you – not for a prankster trying to be funny. 

sources: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/16/bank-of-america-google-plus_n_1096140.html

Written by Codi Mast
Optimum Companies

Building Relationships is More Than Face-to-Face

Community banks urged to join the social media revolution 
Community banks and their customers value trust, security, and relationships. With the changing times it is imperative that banks integrate social media with their customer engagement.  Local banks hold a commitment to their community and need to be wherever their clients are. And now, their clients are on social media. 

Social media simply provides alternate channels of communication that, for some people, are simply more convenient. It offers a method of correspondence with customers in a way that they prefer. If a customer wants to communicate with your bank, Facebook or Twitter may be the easiest option for them. Almost any question should be able to be answered without disclosing any personal information. For example, customers could request the nearest ATM location or support with a lost or stolen credit card. It is important to note that social media outreach should not be a fruitless extra step to redirect customers to call or visit the bank, but a single point of contact to resolve an issue. 

“Word of mouth,” is quickly evolving to “word of web,” and referrals are one of the most cost effective and influential methods of gaining new customers. Social media creates an outlet for community members to share positive experiences about your bank with others. Banks also use these platforms to poll their customers and receive client feedback. Even simple updates about the day or a short blurb of advice keeps the customers engaged. Contests are another way to get people connected. It could be something as simple as a weekly contest where a Twitter follower can win free product or a Facebook fan that shares a link or likes a page. Incentives motivate people and entice them to pass the word on to a friend. We've recently spoken to a banker from West Virgina who says he is generating 6 to 10 new customers per week just through social media efforts. He says with some simple experimentation he has found a formula to get new clients.

This new way of social networking is taking an updated neighborly approach to customer service; it’s simply an alternate channel of two-way communication. Although social media users are thought to be mostly from the younger generation, there are people of all ages and from places taking to the web. According to Blogworld New York, 55% of Americans 45-54 have a profile on a social networking site. In order to foster trustworthy relationships with clients, banks need to meet them on social media and go the extra mile to provide great customer service.



Written by Codi Mast
Optimum Companies