Mobile marketing growing in popularity among credit unions

by. Georgann Smith

There’s little doubt consumers are continuing to rely more on their mobile devices to access online content and to shop. According to StatCounter, mobile devices now propel 20 percent of worldwide online activity.

This is evident in the financial services arena, with Pew Research Center reporting just over 50 percent of American adults (61 percent of Internet users) use mobile banking.

In light of this, financial institution (FI) marketers are working to stay competitive by leveraging mobile as a channel to attract new customers. To do so effectively, however, these professionals will need to combine top technology with superior marketing to deliver exactly what consumers want.

Enter mobile marketing. Current trends point toward an increase in the number of FIs utilizing the mobile channel to connect with customers, reach new markets and build brand loyalty.

Text-message or SMS marketing is a particularly popular form of mobile marketing for FIs, as it affords access to a large portion of an FI’s customer base. More than 80 percent of U.S. adults own mobile phones, and three-fourths of those individuals use text messaging. SMS marketing provides FIs access to a wide range of customers, to whom they can deliver specific “targeted” promotions in a relatively low-cost manner.

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