by. David Hadaway
Credit union marketing professionals face multiple challenges, such as a general lack of consumer trust in the banking industry. The Financial Brand'sannual "State of Marketing in Retail Banking" studysurveyed300 financial intuitions worldwide and found 34 percent of respondentscited their "major challenge" to beinsufficient budgetsor manpower.
Marketers need better tools to measure results
Additional concerns have to do with analytics, return on investmentand strategies. In fact, 30.8 percent claimedmeasuring performance is a major challenge. Assessingreturn on marketing investmentis crucial for knowing whether a campaign is effective. Getting thebig pictureof the campaign will provide financial marketers with insight into which tactics work and which strategies don't. With ROI tools, credit union marketingprofessionals will have access to invaluable information, allowing them to make informed decisions for upcoming campaigns.
Some marketing vendors give credit unionsthe ability to monitor campaigns, pricing and promotional effectivenessover time. They also make it possible tosegment members to optimize promotions anddetermine strengths and weakness associated with the campaign. All of this information will feed into the planning of the next marketing move.
Promotional campaigns succeed with effective strategies
In the next year or so, marketers plan to execute a bunch of promotional campaigns, so many that 32.3 percent of respondents in The Financial Brand survey believe the presence oftoo many initiatives is a major challenge. For example, 68.9 percent of financial marketers cite mobile banking solutions as the top promotional product to implement, while 67.3 percent said they were interested in mortgage loans and refinancing. With so many initiatives on marketers' plates, they need the most lean and effective strategies to increasecustomer acquisition and retentionnumbers.
