Mobile marketing best practices for credit unions

Next time you’re waiting at an airport gate, look around and notice how many people are glued to their cell phones. It isn’t just Millennials or older Gen Y’s, either. According to an April 2015 survey by the Pew Research Center, 64 percent of all American adults have smartphones today and more than half of them use mobile banking. Further, in a 30-day period, 62 percent of the adult population used those phones to handle an impromptu problem or obtain information – such as finding a business, coordinating a meeting, checking a game score or settling a friendly argument.

Meet your members where they are

The point is, your members are on their phones texting, banking, searching, and, yes, talking. And, wherever your members are, that’s where you need to reach them. Going mobile with marketing promotions requires some unique considerations, so here are some best practices to keep in mind when designing your campaign:

• Responsive design is a must. Consumers can access your site from a growing variety of devices – smartphones, tablets, laptops, wearable technology, and whatever new device the future may hold – which means multiple screen sizes. With responsive design, your site can adapt to any screen available now – and tomorrow. The layout changes to fit the size of the device, making it easy to read and use.
• Move over to text and voice communication. Even though people say they check their email continually, many don’t do it more than once a day. But 79 percent of cell phone owners use text messaging. Text and voice communication are more immediate, and more likely to be noticed by your members right away. Further, unlike email, which requires the user to open the message, a text message pops up as it arrives. Research from U.K. marketing analytics firm, Mobile Squared, reported more than two years ago that 90 percent of text messages are read within three minutes. Imagine how that number may have climbed since then!
• Make mobile easy. This may seem like a no-brainer, but many institutions inadvertently make it challenging to find their mobile banking app. When members search, they should easily find your app, recognizing your visual identity. Also, ensure that your mobile banking app’s look and feel are consistent with your online banking app – same colors, same logo and same general navigation. I like a quote from Elliott Brown of Farmers Bank, who wrote this for The Financial Brand (“3 Tips to Drive Mobile Banking Adoption”): The biggest reason mobile adoption is suppressed is simply because most banking apps are either hard to find, hard to use, or both.”
• Leverage advertising possibilities. A growing number of consumers want to see messages from their credit union, provided they aren’t inundated. When members log in to your mobile app, it’s the perfect time to include a teaser or brief offer. According to ExactTarget.com, 16 percent of smartphone users have made a purchase in response to a marketing message sent to their phone. And, half of those surveyed used the phone to make the purchase!
• Add variable data to the mix. If consumers respond to unprompted promotions, imagine how much better they’ll react to offers targeted to their own felt needs. Make your mobile messages personal by taking advantage of the data in your core-processing system and CRM. You can use the Information stored in your database to learn their past purchases, product usage, financial goals and behaviors. This allows you to send dynamic content to members’ mobile devices, customized to each recipient’s interests.

IBM Digital Analytics reports that retail sales from mobile devices increased 27 percent and accounted for 23 percent of the total sales in November and December of 2014. In 2011, it was 11 percent of the total sales. Clearly, consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable with using their phones for more than talking. Mobile marketing is here and financial institutions need to be ready with well-planned mobile marketing strategies to take full advantage of the opportunities available, and to provide your members the services they expect.