Digital Marketing in the Financial Industry

Financial industry’s products and services are just like any other product or service. They need to be marketed.

The services provided by banks, insurance companies, mutual funds, financial institutions etc. have their customers just like in any other industry. These companies require customers to purchase their securities.

The traditional style of marketing any financial product is publishing through yellow pages, hoardings, advertisements on televisions, magazines, newspapers, etc.

It is not easy to get this age-old business (and often controlled by the government) to adapt to new technologies. There is often tremendous friction. However, the companies which have made (or are making) this shift well are the ones that are thriving in the 21st century.

Let’s explore some ways in which Financial Industry can use digital marketing.

5 WAYS TO USE DIGITAL MEDIA IN THE FINANCIAL INDUSTRY

1) TO FIND PROSPECTS

With the world going digital, it is easy to segment and target very relevant persons who might be interested in specific types of products. Both Social Media Ads and Google Search or Display Ads have very powerful ways to reach people interested in any niche product. Devising a behaviour-based and customized marketing strategy, showcasing the right product to the right person at the right time – can be achieved through digital media.

2) TO GET CUSTOMER FEEDBACK & ENGAGEMENT

Social media is the finest way to assess genuine feedback and concerns. A company that keeps its ears open for social media conversations around their industry will often achieve the best insights and design strategies that alleviate the most customer pain-points. Social media monitoring tools are an enormous resource for any finance-based company.

3) TO HAVE AN ONGOING CONVERSATION WITH THE MARKET

A rational and relevant conversation with the customers can elevate customer experience. Customer issues and grievances can be solved virtually to boost company goodwill. A company that responds quickly online builds enormous trust in today’s customers.

4) TO TELL YOUR BRAND STORY USING VIDEO

People prefer to watch videos rather than read large amounts of text. A business social media page with a lot of videos tends to have more likes and followers. Websites have also been using videos very effectively in the last 6-7 years. They engage customers by posting mouth-watering videos.

ICICI bank posts about numerous activities they perform on their social media channels very effectively.

If a finance company explains its schemes, policies and procedures through videos instead of written content, people will learn more, get attracted more, and get retained more. Good video content is also rewarded by Google and Facebook’s algorithms. You’re more likely to reach your target audience if you use video instead of plain text.

5) TO RESOLVE QUERIES USING CHATBOTS

Customers not only want online services, but also want to solve their minor queries on digital platforms. Companies can now ensure that they are 24*7 available. Using Chatbots , most customer queries can be resolved using a conversational and easy-to-approach tone. The advances in machine learning and A.I. have made the design of effective Chabot extremely viable.

REAL INSTANCES OF DIGITAL MARKETING OF FINANCE INDUSTRY.

1) Yes bank digital diya campaign in 2017.

Yes bank launched a website (http://www.thedigitaldiya.in) where every visit on this website will light up a digital diya. An amount equal to every visit was contributed towards the fund for eradicating rural financial illiteracy. The success was easily measured by counting the number of visits. Following this creative trend, the bank managed to light up over 1 million diyas.

2) ICICI mobile application – iMobile app.

With the world obsessed with smartphones, mobile apps keep you a step ahead. ICICI advertised about its mobile app in a very creative way. ICICI mobile app provides you the travel card and there is no need to get into issues of currency exchange. ICICI has been awarded with India’s best mobile banking app by The Forrester banking wave.

3) SBI-Cashkiaadatbadlo

In the wake of demonetization, it was very needful to go digital for customers. People suffered liquidity crunches. SBI early in that year of demonetization came up with the campaign of CASHKIAADATBADLO. It advertised products like SBI debit card, SBI Pay and SBI buddy mobile wallet. Its advertisements were so real and relatable for the audience that it was more reliable and trustworthy. You can see the video here.

4) Chatbots developed by Indian banks.

Yes bank has Yes robot, ICICI has software robotics, City bank has Humanoid Laxmi, HDFC bank has Onchat. These chatbots help customers by providing various services like checking account balance, tranfering money, opening new accounts, locating ATMs and branches, giving current interest on loans.

About the Author:

Tanushri Saxena is pursuing her MBA from GLS, Ahmedabad. Currently, she is interning as a content writer at WebKow. She enjoys an occasional cup of coffee and is an avid Game of Thrones fan (but not season 8  ).