Definitive-Guide-to-Digital-Demand-Generation-for-Credit-Unions

DefinitiveGuideto
DigitalDemandGenerationfor
CreditUnions

©Copyrightedynamic2016.AllRightsProtectedandReserved.
DefinitiveguidetoDigitalDemandGenerationforCreditUnions
1
Acrossallindustries,includingfinancialservices,therehasbeenalargeshiftinhowcustomersinteract
withcompanies.Today’scustomersexpectseamlesscustomerjourneysanytime,anyplace.Theywant
availableinformationthatiseasytoaccessandtailoredtotheirparticularneeds.Withtheincreasing
demandforrelevantandtimelycommunicationstocustomersacrosstheirlifecycle(from acquisitionto
retentionandservice),itisimportantthatmarketersprovidesegmentedmarketingcampaignsacross
multiplechannelsanddevices.Thechallengeforcreditunionsistoorchestrateallcustomertouchpoints
andtransform thesemultiplesilo-edbankingchannelsandlegacyapplicandtransform thesemultiplesilo-edbankingchannelsandlegacyapplicationsintoaconsistentbrand
experiencethatiseasytouseandalwaysavailable.
Asthecustomerlandscapechangesandoursocietymovestooneoflargelydigital,creditunionsmust
balancetheirpersonalizedservicewiththeironlineofferings.Ifcreditunionscanfindtherightbalance
betweenthetwo,theywillimprovetheircustomeracquisitioneffortsandhaveabetterunderstandingof
theirmemberstoprovideabetteroverallcustomerexperience.
Theprocessofshoppingforanewbankingrelationshiphaschanged,withconsumers
usingnewchannelstoresearch,shopandopennewaccounts.Understandingthenew
checkingpath-to-purchaseisthekeytosuccess.
JimMarous,PartneratTheFinancialBrandandPublisheroftheDigitalBankingReport
CustomerAcquisitionStrategywithDigital
1.WhyDigital?Whynow?
HowtoLeverageDigitalMarketing,aneBookfor
CreditUnionMarketers
TheCurrentLandscapeforCreditUnions

2
Whencreatinggrowthstrategiesfortheirbusiness,creditunionscanlooktothedigitallandscapeto
helpdeterminetheircurrentmember’sfinancialneedsandbehaviors.Thiscanhelpthem tomarket
strategyforacquiringnewcustomers.Thecoredata,technologysystemsandanalyticscanassistin
determining:
CustomerRetentionStrategywithDigital
CompetitioninbankingisfieCompetitioninbankingisfierceandthemarketisfilledwithbankinginstitutionsthatarecompetingfor
theircustomer’sloyalty.Sinceitmaycostupto6to7timesmoretoobtainanewcustomerthatretain
anexistingone,itiscrucialthatcreditunionsaredoingeverythingthattheycantomaintaintheir
customerbaseandcreateeffectivecross-sellandup-sellopportunitiestoincreasetheirportionofa
customer’sportfolioandreduceattrition.Aswithcustomeracquisition,digitalecosystemscanhelp
creditunionswithcustomerretention.
Onlineandmobilebankinghasmadeasignificantimpactonthebankingindustry;itcanstrongly
influencethesatisfactionandretentionofacustomer.CreditUnionsthatdon’tmakeasignificant
investmentintheirtechnologyandonlinepresencewillquicklyfindthemselvesnolongercompetitive.
Thisinvestmentshouldbeacomplimenttothefundamentalservicesthatareprovidedbytheirbranches
sothattheycanservicethetechnologyneedsoftheirmembersandthosethatconsiderin-person
servicestobeessential.
Theright,bestofferforaparticularcustomerorsegment
Therightbankingratesthatwillcompetewithotherbankinginstitutionsorlendingsources
Rewardsprogramsthatwillattractcustomers
Identifytrendsthatcanimpactnewcustomeracquisition
Developsegmentationandcustomerprofilesthatmatchwithyourcurrentmembersandoffers
Waystogrowcardportfolio
Haveabetterunderstandingofmemberswithsegmentationandmodeling
Provideready-fitoffersthatalignwithcustomerproductinterest,spendinghabitsandlifestyle
Developanoptimalcontactstrategyforcustomers:wheredotheybank,whattoolsarethey
usingandwhatdigitalpropertiesdotheyvisit
Offerpre-approvedcreditdecisionsthatarealignedwithyourcustomer’scharacteristics

3
CFIGroup,anAnnArbor,aMI-basedproviderofcustomerfeedbacktechnologyandservice,has
releasedanannualCreditUnionSatisfactionIndex(CUSI)forseveralconsecutiveyears.TheCredit
UnionSatisfactionIndexfoundthattherearesevenkeydriverstoensuringwhetheraCreditUnion’s
customersarehappyornot.Theseincludeproductsandservices,informationandcommunications,
ratesandfeesandonlineandmobilebanking.Thisstudyalsonotesthatanyimprovementsacross
thesesevendriverswillincreasememberloyalty,driveupthenumberofreferralsandhelpcross-sell
otherCreditUnionsproductsandservices.
CustomerSatisfaction,CreditUnionSatisfactionIndex
Online&MobileBanking
OnlineandMobileBankingistheleadingdriverofsatisfactionformembers,infact,82%ofmembers
nowdoatleasthalftheirbankingelectronically.SoitisimperativethatCreditUnionsmaintainand
continuallyimprovetheirmembersdigitalexperience;ifcreditunionsdonothaveasignificant
presenceinthisarea,itwillbedifficulttostaycompetitiveinthemarketplace.
TwoofthesesatisfactiondriversaredirectlywithinaCreditUnionmarketerscontrol-themembers’
onlineexperienceandinformation/communications.
Figure1:CFIGroupCreditUnionSatisfactionIndexModel2015
SatisfactionDrivers FutureBehaviors
Products&
Services
Information&
Communications
Branch
Staff
Branch
Convenience
ATMs
Rates&Fees
Online&Mobile
Banking
87
88
92
87
78
83
9191
Credit
Union
satisfaction
Index(CUSI)
87
Likelihoodto
remainaMember
UseAdditional
creditunion
Services
Recommend
93
90
90

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Information&Communications
MembersfindiMembersfindinformationandcommunicationstobeahighfactorforcustomersatisfaction.They
wantinformationonaCreditUnionsproductsandservicesandtohaveaccesstorelevantinformation
attherighttimeandplace.WhilemostCreditUnionsaremeetingtheirmembers’expectationsinthis
driver,CUSIidentifiedthatbasedonrespondentslackofawareness,theremaybeanopportunityfor
creditunionstoimprovetheirmarketingandcommunicationsaroundloyaltyprograms.36%ofsurvey
respondentswerenotevenawareiftheywereenrolledinaprogram.
Thereareseveralstepsintheprocess,butultimatelyacreditunionneedstoalignwiththeabilityto
haveaseamless,onetoonecustomerjourneyacrossallchannelsanddevices.Whenwekeepthatin
mind,youneedtobuildastrategyandinfrastructurethatcansupportcreditunionsacrossalldigital
platforms.
ThisincludescapturingmarThisincludescapturingmarketingandbusinessgoalstoexecuteapurpose-drivencustomerexperience
strategyandtheconsistentcustomerexperienceformembersacrossallchannels(includingdigital,
branches,ATMsandphone).Thenbasedonyourcustomerexperiencestrategy,developbuyerjourneys
andpersonasthatalignwiththecurrentcustomerbaseandthecreditunionplansforgrowth.
ResearchbyHBRfoundthatcompanieswhocaneffectivelymanageandexecutecustomerexperience
strategiesgainuntoldbenefits.Theyachievehighercustomersatisfaction,reducedchurn,increased
revenue,andgreateremployeesatisfaction.
OncethOncethatcustomerexperienceisdefined,thenextstepistodeterminewhatyourleadmanagement
strategywillbeacrosscustomeracquisitionandretentionincludingleadarchitecture,contentstrategy,
datastrategy,governanceandcampaignstrategyandacrossallplatformsandmediumsincluding
online,mobile,email,directorsocial.
ThenidentiThenidentifywhatthetechnologyneedsarerequiredtoexecutethatstrategyandfacilitatecustomers’
experiences-whetheritwillrequireadditivetechnology,technologyintegrationortechnology
upgrades.UltimatelythattechnologyblueprintshouldincludeaCustomerRelationshipManagement
(CRM),ContentManagementSystem (CMS)andMarketingAutomationtool.DataManagement
ProcessorSystem (DMS)andAnalyticstoolcanalsoprovideincrementalbenefits.Ultimately,thiswill
requireamarketingandITroadmapthatcanaligntheseneedswithatangible,executableplanthatcan
beexecutedtoresourcesandfinancialbudgetsofallteamsinvolved.
2.DevelopingaDigitalStrategy
Sowhatisthebestwaytoleveragedigitaltofacilitatenewgrowthandretaincurrentcustomers?

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3.CreateyourCustomerExperiencePlan
Theimportanceofcustomerexperience,especiallythedigitalcustomerexperiencecontinuestogrow.
Companiesrecognizethatexperiencesarebothpowerfulandprofitable.Asthedigitalrevolution
providesnewwaysforcustomerstointeractwithcompanies,expectationsofcustomersforthose
companiesandtheirservicesonlygetsgreater.Statisticsandinsightintothegrowingfieldofcustomer
experienceonlyservetoillustratehowtheworldofmarketinghasbecomecustomer-centricand
bankinginstitutionsthatcancapitalizeonthatcanreapbenefits.
NolongerispricethemainNolongerispricethemainreasonthatclientsdropabrand,thequalityoftheirexperienceandthe
perceptionofyourbrandarekeytotheirdecision;throughsuperiormemberserviceorasuperior
memberexperience.Ifyoucanultimatelyprovideanoutstandingcustomerexperienceyouwillachieve
thebusinessgoalseverycompanyhopestoattain-engagement,loyaltyandclientsthatadvocatefor
thebrand.
Whetheritspringsfromaproduct,process,service,project,newstartuporpersonal
performancestrategy,it'stheexperiencethatmattersmost.It'stheexperiencethat
stayswithusandmakessomethingmeaningful.Focusingontheexperienceputsus
intouchwithmoreemotionalsideofideas.Understandingthehumanfactors
involvedinproducinganexperiencethatfundamentallyimproveshowwethink,
feelorbehaveiswhatmakesthedesignofanyparticularthinginterestingand
engaging.
MatthewE.May“The4MomentsofTruththatCreateanUnforgettableCustomerExperience”
Intheretailbankingindustry,customerswhoarefullyengagedbring37%more
annualrevenuetotheirprimarybankthandocustomerswhoareactively
disengaged.Fullyengagedbankingcustomersalsohavemoreproductswiththeir
bank,fromcheckingandsavingsaccountstomortgagesandautoloans.Plus,they
havehigherdepositbalancesintheiraccountsthanlessengagedcustomerswiththe
sameproductsdo.
bySusanSorensonandAmyAdkins,WhyCustomerEngagementmatterssomuch,Gallup

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KeyFactorsforcreatingtherightCustomerExperience
Whendefiningyourcustomerexperience,itisimportanttoworkthroughthefollowing:
ValueProposition:Whenstartingtodevelopanoptimalcustomerexperienceforyourmembers,itis
importanttounderstandyourcompany’svalue.Whatdoesyourcompanyoffer?Whatisthecore
valuestatementforyourmembers?Thiswillultimatelyunderscorewhattypeofexperienceyouwant
toprovidethem.
UnderstandUnderstandyourCustomers:Anyeffectiveplanshouldstartwithanin-depthknowledgeofyour
customerbaseandwhatyouunderstandabouttheirneeds,wantsandmotivators.
Sincemanymembercommunicationsaremanagedandcontrolledbythecreditunion'smember
customerserviceandsalesgroups,itishighlybeneficialtoprovideanadvancedcustomer
relationshipmanagementandanalyticssystem (CRM)thatcantrackkeysales/servicemetricson
calls,serviceandsalesconversion.
9%ofcustomershavestoppeddoingbusinesswithacompanyafterexperiencingapoorcustomer
experience.
64%ofpeoplethinkthatcustomerexperienceismoreimportantthanpriceintheirchoiceofa
brand.
55%ofcustomersadmitthattheywouldgladlypaymoreforabettercustomerexperience.
Theprobabilityofsellingtoanewcustomerisbetween5and20%.Theprobabilityofsellingtoan
existingclientisbetween60and70%.
Itcosts6timesmoItcosts6timesmoretoattractanewcustomerthantoretainanexistingone.Customersare2
timesaslikelytosharetheirbadcustomerserviceexperiencesthantheyaretotalkaboutpositive
experiences.
Ittakes12positivecustomerexperiencestomakeupforonenegativeexperience.Itwilltake2
yearsforyourcompanytorecoverfrom abadexperience.
50%50%ofcustomersadmitthattheyusuallyshareanegativebuyingexperiencewithfriendsand
family.Findinginnovativewaystoconnectwithyourcustomersismandatorytosurvivein
ever-changingmarkets.
A10%increaseincustomerretentionlevelsresultsina30%increaseinthevalueofyourcompany.
Anddon'tforgetthattechnologyisessentialforengagementbecausecustomerslovecompanies
thatuseemergingplatforms.
TheBenefitsofaDefiningyourCustomerExperienceStrategy
(Gartner&ForresterStatscompiledbyNeosperienceTeam)

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Advancedmarketingtechnology,includingaclosed-loopreportingsystem,willalsohelptobetter
deﬁneandsegmentyourmembers.Youcanutilizedemographics,survey,individualbehavioralor
takerateinformationonyourproductsandservicestounderstandyourmemberbase.
UnderstandUnderstandyourownSalesCycle:Whatisyoursalesfunnel?Howdonewopportunitiespass
throughthefunnel?Whatisyouraveragesalescycle?Alloftheanswerstothesequestionswill
becomecriticalasyoudeﬁneyourcustomersexperienceagainstyourinternalprocesses.Theremay
beroom forimprovementsinthesalescycletomeetyourcustomerexpectationsoritmayprovide
insightsinhowtocraftyourcustomerjourneys.
ExtendExtendyourreach-bewhereyourcustomersare:Withthedigitalexpansion,yourcreditunion
shouldprovideyourmembersanexperienceacrosschannelsandsocialcommunities;serviceyour
customerswheretheyare.Inadditiontotraditionalbranch,callcenterandATMsstrategy,this
includesdigitalchannelssuchasyourwebsite,customer/cardportals,mobile,searchengines,
communitysites,chatandemail.

8
Onlineisaneffectivechannel.Whencustomersareextremelysatisfied
withonlinebankingexperiencetheyare6-7% morelikelytobefully
engaged(thanthosecustomerswithlessthansatisfyingexperiences.
Online
Satisfactionwiththemobilebankingexperiencedoes
impactthecustomer'soverallengagementwiththe
bank,althoughtoalesserdegreethanmostother
channels.However,theseengagementeffectsarelikely
togrowinthefutureasbanks'mobileofferingsbecome
moredifferentiatedintermsoffunctionality,usability,
andfinancialintegration(forexample,withpayment
syssystemsormobilewallets)andmorecustomers
continuetoadoptmobilebanking.
Mobile
Amongcustomerswhohavecommunicatedwiththeir
bankonFacebook,satisfactionwiththatinteraction
hasameaningfulimpactonengagement-both
positive(9% lift)andnegative(-13% drag).Infact,
amongcurrentusers,theimpactisonparwithcall
centers,onlinebanking,email,andATMs.
Facebook
Twitterappearstobemoreofanoveltywithcustomers
-thereislittleimpactonengagement,evenamong
thosewhotweetwiththeirbank.
Twitter
Creatingthe
RightChannelStrategyinRetailBanking
TheoverallchannelstrTheoverallchannelstrategyforcreditunionsmustbegintointegrateboththedigitalandphysical
channelsintoasingle,seamlessexperience.Thequestionforcreditunionsiswhichofyourchannels
isdrivingthemostvaluablecustomerengagement?Thisquestioncanvarywidelyacrossthe
customer,industryandthespecificinteraction.Asabankexpands,thegoalisultimatelytobecome
effectiveacrossallchannels,buttogetthereitcanbeusefultoviewtheoverallindustrystatistics
(andyourspecificperformanceineachchannel)fordirection.AccordingtoGallup,“EveryChannel
MattersWhenEngagingBankCustomers”,thefollowingaretheimpactofspecificchannelsonretail
banking:banking:
AccordingtoaMcKinsey&Companyresearchstudyentitled,“TheFutureofU.S.Banking
Distribution,”65percentofcustomersinteractwiththeirbanksandcreditunionsthrough
multiplechannels.Asopposedtomovingcompletelyawayfrombranchtransactions,customers
usingmobileandonlinebankingmorethanonceaweekarealsoover60percentmorelikelytobe
activeretailbranchusersthanthosewhodonot.

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Intotal,whencustomershaveasatisfyingexperiencewithanychannel,theyaremorelikelytobe
fullyengagedwithyourcreditunion,andthereverseisalsotrue,whentheyhavea
less-than-satisfyingexperience,theyarefarlesslikelytobefullyengaged.Soifyouchooseto
engageinachannel,thereshouldbeafullcommitmenttomakingthatagoodexperienceforyour
customers.
ListentoListentoyourCustomers:Providemethodstocollect,consolidate,analyzeandactonfeedback
from yourcustomers.Neverassumeyouknowtheconsumer,youmayhaveassumptionsthatcan
guideyouinaparticulardirectionbutitpaystogatherfactsaboutconsumersshoppingfortheir
servicesbytalkingtofrontlinestaff,loanofficersandbusinessdevelopmentstaff.However,this
approachoftenleavesoutimportantelementsneededtodefineconsumerpersonas.
TTogainaclearunderstandingastowhatquestions,concerns,hopes,dreams,valuesandbehaviors
(notidentifiedbydata)consumershave,ithelpstotalktothem.Surveysandsocialmediaareuseful
toolsthatprovidereal-timefeedbackonhowcustomersfeelaboutyourcompany.Itcanallowyou
tolookatthedifferenceintheexperienceyouwanttogivethem andwhattheyareactually
experiencing.Itcanpresentopportunitiesforimprovementandevenidentifydifferentiators.
AneffectivesociallisteningstrAneffectivesociallisteningstrategycanexposeweaknesses,butitcanalsoprovideseveralbenefits
anddirectionforthefutureincludingwhototargetbasedonreceptivity,relevanceandwhatis
compelling.Youcanquicklytestbroadermessagingandoffersquicklyandgetreal-timefeedback.
Belowisthebreakdownofchannelusebasedontypeofbankinginstitution
Source:Jim Morous,OmnichannelBanking:MoreThanaBuzzword,FinancialBrand

Whencombiningdifferentdatatypes,suchastransactional,psychographicand
digitalbehavior,CUscanbegintoputtogetherdigitalpersonasandprofilesthatcan
beusedaspartofagreaterdigitalmarketingandleadgenerationstrategy.These
profilescanprovideafocusfordevelopingspecificcontentthateducatesconsumers
andcomplementsdifferentfinancialproductsorservices.Furthermore,these
profilescanhelpindesigningconsumerjourneystonurturealeadfromintentto
conversionandbeyondinthedigitalbuyingcycle.
JamesRobertLay,HowtoEstablishDigitalPersonasforCreditUnionsandBanks,CUGrow
Whyarecustomerpersonasimportant?
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EstablishKeyMetrics:Howdoyouknowifyouareprovidingtheexperienceyouwant?Itisimportant
formarketingtocontinuallygatherinformationonthecurrentcustomerexperienceandlookforways
toimprovethatexperience.Itiskeytodefineandtrackthosemetricswhichwillshowyouifyouare
meetingthecustomerexperiencethatyoudefineasyoursuccess.Thiscanincludenewmembership,
renewals/turnover,referrals,C-SAT,conversionsorattach.Fundamentally,allofthosemetricsreinforce
thedesiredcustomerexperienceandshouldaligntheentireorganizationaroundyourcreditunion’s
customerexperiencegoals.
Maintainasolutionoriented,Maintainasolutionoriented,evergreenstrategy:Acustomerexperienceshouldbedynamicand
shouldallowyoutochangedirectionbasedontheresultsyoureceivefrom yourefforts.Asyoubuild
thebeststrategy,allowforchangesindirectionandacontinuousfeedbackloop.Yourcustomerswill
dictateyourdirectionandasyouknow,theyandthebankingindustryareeverchanging.
AllAllofthesepointscanhelpyoubuildorre-defineyouroptimalcustomerexperience.Asyoudefine
them,youwillexamineyourmemberinteractionandthatcanhelpyoulookforwaystoimprovethe
qualityandefficiencyofthemembercontactexperiencewhileloweringcosts.Alloftheinformation
uncoveredduringthisanalysisstagewillbecriticalwhencreatingpersonalized,specific
customer-centricexperiencesandwillbeusedwhenyoudefineyourspecificcustomerpersonasand
customerjourneys.
BuyerpersonasaBuyerpersonasarerepresentationsofacustomer,theyarearchetypaldepictionsofwhobuyersare,
whattheyaretryingtoaccomplish,whatgoalsdrivetheirbehavior,howtheythink,howtheybuy,when
theydecidetobuyandwhytheymakebuyingdecisions.Usually,theyareresearch-basedandarean
aggregateofdata,factsandinterviewswithbuyers(oreventhosethatchosenottopurchase).
4.CustomerPersonas

Consumerpersonascanlowerthetotalcostofacquisitionfornewmemberswhileincreasingproduct
adoptionandoverallprofitabilityofcurrentmembers.
CreditUnionscanuseprofilestoeffectivelyofferproductsorservicestoamemberaspartofan
onboardingorcross-sellingprocess,itcanhelpcreditunionspinpointifmembersareshoppingfora
carorahome.
Creditunionscangeneratereferralsbyofferingpersonalizedreferralincentivesbasedupona
member’sbuyinghabits.member’sbuyinghabits.
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Personasaren’tjustasimplesegmentationofyourdatabase;theyhelprevealtheattitudes,feelingsand
goalsthatmotivatecustomersduringthebuyerjourney.Awell-developedbuyerpersonacanassistin
determiningwheretofocusyourtime,whichareasofthebusinessneedinvestmentandallowfor
alignmentacrosstheorganization.
Source:MarketingSherpa

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Thesestatisticspresentarealopportunity.Ifyouhaveadeepunderstandingofyourbuyerpersona(s)
thatcandrivebettercontentcreationandproductdevelopment,aswellasimprovedsalesfollowupfor
bothcustomeracquisitionandretention.Thismeanscreatingpersonasiftheydon’texistorexpanding
yourpersonastoincludenotonlydemographicbuttransactional,behavioralandpsychographic
components.
WWelldefinedandresearchedpersonasallowyoutopersonalizeyourmarketingfordifferentsegmentsof
youraudience.Eachcommunicationwithacustomerinyourdatabaseistailoredwithmessaging
alignedwithwhatyouknowaboutthosedifferentpersonas.Whencombinedwiththerightcustomer
journey,buyerpersonasalsoallowyoutomapoutandcreatehighlytargetedcontentforbothyour
digitalmarketingandin-personorprintcommunications.
AccordingtotheStateofDigitalMarketingforCredit
UnionsandCommunityBankresearchbyCUGrow,
52percentofcreditunionsrespondedtheyhavenot
yetdefinedmarketingpersonasoftheirideal
members.70percentofcreditunionssaidthey
segmenttheirmembershipusingdemographicdata
andonly32percentofcreditunionsused
transactiondtransactiondataforsegmentationwhileonly13
percentofcreditunionsrespondingused
psychographicdata.

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LeverageyourDatabase
andDigitalTouchpoints
Viewyourcustomer
TransactionalBehaviors
TalktoyourStakeholders
andyourcustomers
Aspartoftheprocessofunderstandingyourcustomer,youwill
discovertrendsinyourcontacts/memberdatabase.Thisincludes
whotheyare,wheretheybank,whatcontenttheyconsumeand
whattheypurchase.
Digitalbehaviorscanalsoprovideinsightintowhatmembersand
consumersaredoingwithinyourdigitalchannelsandsocial
networks.Utilinetworks.Utilizeuniquetrackingcookiestodiscover,pageviews,
channels,loanabandonment,downloads,videoswatched,
engagementwithemail,memberratingsonyourproductsor
servicesandreferrals.
Ifyouhavealimitedviewofyourcustomer,youcanusecustomer
touchpointstogathermoreinformationaboutthem.Collectdata
pointsfrom yourdigitalpropertiesthroughform fillorviaphone.
Leveragetransactionaldatatoviewhowyourmembersshopand
buy.Transactionalbehaviorscanbefoundbyusingdebit,credit
cardorbill-paydataaswellasdataaggregatedfrom withinfinancial
managementplatforms.
Effectivedataincludesloanpayments,feespaid,spendingpatterns,
howtheyuseonlinebankingandnumberofproductspurchased.
Takeintoconsiderationyourteam'sfeedback(Sales,Marketingand
CustomerServiceEmployees)ontheleadsandcustomersthatthey
areinteractingwith.Whatgeneralizationscantheymakeaboutthe
differenttypesofcustomersyouservebest?Whataretheircustomer
painpoints,questions,opinions?
Ifyouleveragesocialmedialisteningtoolsusetheinsightsgleaned
ffrom thatprocessaboutyourcustomers.
HowdoIdevelopcustomerpersonas?

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Conductinterviewsto
specificallydevelop
CustomerProfiles
Interviewcustomersandprospects,eitherinpersonoroverthe
phone,todiscoverwhattheylikeaboutyourproductorservice.
Leveragesurveydatatogetyourcustomer’sdirectfeedbackon
theircurrentexperiences,futureoffersorideastoimprovetheir
service.
Nowyoucanuseallofthisinformationtoputtogetheryourprofiles.Theyshouldhaveatleastthree
components:
Profilesshouldbeconsistentinwhatdefinesthem andtheyshouldalsobedifferentenoughto
createauniquecustomerjourneyandstrategyaroundthem.
Acustomerjourneyisaprocessofdevelopingamapofthecustomer’sexperience.Itencompassesall
thestepsusers,prospectsorcustomersgothroughwhenengagingwithyourcompanyfrom yourinitial
contactwiththecustomerduringconsideration,intothepurchaseandthroughyourlong-term
relationshipwiththem.Theidealresultisthatasabrandorcompany,whatyouareofferingisaunique
experienceforyourbuyers-yourspecificcustomerexperience.
BefoBeforethedigitalandcustomer-centricmarketing,journeyswereoftenconsideredlinearwith
customersmovinginadirectpaththroughthecompany’ssalesfunnel.Withsomanychannels,options
andresearchpaths,peopledon’tmakepurchasedecisionsinexactlythesamemannerandeach
customergoesthroughdifferentstepsandprocessestoconsiderandpurchaseaproduct.Therearean
exponentialnumberofexperiencesandjourneysthatcanbedevelopedtoprovidepersonalized1:1
experiences.Nowcustomersexpecttheirjourneytobehighlypersonalizedandspecific.
AsmarAsmarketers,thiscanpresentachallengeasit'shardtodevelopindividualizedexperienceswithafinite
amountoftimeandresources.Whatwecandoisconsolidatetheprocessbyleveragingbuyerpersonas
todevelopspecificpaths.Byusingdifferent,uniquebuyingpersonas,wecandevelopcustomerjourneys
thatallowforradicallydifferentpathstoawareness,interest,consideration,intent,evaluation,purchase
andnurture.
1.Abroaddescriptionwithkeythingsspecifictothisprofile
2.Identifytheirwantsandneeds
3.Identifywhichchannelstheyfrequent
5.DevelopingCustomerJourneys

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Whenyoucreateyourinitialjourneys,youshouldfocusonyourcustomer’smotivations-something
thatisdefinedbyyourcustomerprofilesandthentrackedalongthejourney.
But,justknowingwhoyourcustomersareandtheirstateofmindisnotenough.Beingabletoalign
whattheywanttoaccomplishwhentheycometoeachofyourchannelsiskey.Mappingouttheirpaths
from firstinteractiontothelastwillshowiftheyareachievingtheirgoals.
Youcanusetheprocesstoidentifygaps,pointsinthecustomerexperiencethataredisjointedor
painful.Including
Whatistheultimategoalateachstagealongthefunnel,whataretheylookingtoachieveandwhat
aretheirexpectationsofyouasacompany?
Howisyourcustomerfeeling?Whataretheythinking?
Gapsbetweendevices,whenausermovesfrom onedevicetoanother.
Gapsbetweendepartments,wheretheusermightgetfrustrated.
Gapsbetweenchannels(forexample,wheretheexperienceofgoingfrom socialmediatothe
websitecouldbebetter).

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THECUSTOMERJOURNEY
Creatingajourneymaprequiresalotofcarefulthoughtandconsideration,andmayseemsomewhat
overwhelminggiventhemassiveamountofdataandpotentialinteractionpointsalongthejourney.
Intricatejourneysarecreatedovertimeandtheygetmorecomplexasyourorganizationadds
capabilitiesthroughnewmarketingtools,channelsandcommunicationpoints.Initially,thereareafew
stepsthatcanhelpstarttheprocessorrefineonethatalreadyexists.
1.
Theinitialstageofyourjourneymapwillbeatriggerthatyouhaveidentifiedthatalertsyou
whenthebuyingcyclehasbegun.Byunderstandingyourbusinessandfeedbackfrom your
customersyoucanidentifyproblemsthatyourcustomerneedstosolve,reasonsthattheymay
havetoswitchbanks,orevenanexternaltriggersuchasanewjob,carorhomepurchasethat
maybegintheprocess.
2.
Identifyyourcustomerpath,thestagesofyoursalesandmarketingsalesfunnel.Thestagesyour
customerswillgothroughwhilenavigatingdigitalorphysicalpathsmaybedifferent.Afterlooking
throughyourpersonasbuiltonyourinitialqualitativeandquantitativeresearch,youwillhavea
prettygoodideatheprocessyourcustomersgothroughfromawarenesstoeventualpurchaseand
subsequentinteractions.Usethisinformationtolearnhowcustomersareguidedtotaketheirnext
stepsfromawarenesstoconsiderationandevaluations.Howdocustomerjourneysunfoldbasedon
theinformationthatcomesbackintheirdiscoveryprocess?
3.
AlignCustomergoalsandbehaviorwiththedifferentstages.Putthoughtintowhatyour
customerswanttoachieveastheymovethrougheachphase.Then,you’llbeabletoseeifyou
havethenecessaryinformation,content,supportorservicetoachievethosegoals.
4.
Depictthechannelsthatmightbeinvolvedorusedateachstageandtheresourcesthebuyers
aremostlikelytouse.Thiswillhelpyouensurethatyouremembertodevelopplanstocapture
behaviorsinthesechannelsandutilizetoolstocreateadatabasesoyoucanactonthese
interactionsanddeliveracustomexperienceinthesechannels.Whoaretheexperts?Whatare
thecommunitieswherepeoplego?Whoinfluencesthem?Whatdotheyfindandlearn?What
technologiesandservicesdotheyuse?Whathappensasaresult?
5.
Determinethecustomertouchpoints.Thinkofthetouchpointsasboththeplaceswhereyour
customersareengagingwithyouandwhereyoucansupportthecompletionoftheirgoals.These
touchpointswillbegroupedattherelevantstageinyourcustomer’sjourney.FocusingonMo-
mentsofTruthcanbeagoodstartforthisstep.MomentsofTrutharepointsinacustomerlifecy-
clearemoreimportantthanalltheday-to-dayinteractions.Byconcentratingonthesekeymo-
mentsoftruth,youhaveabiggerimpactonacustomer’slevelofsatisfactionandcaninfluence
theirretention.

17
Thinkthroughanyquestionsorconcernsthatmayarise.Awell-thought-outcustomerjourney
exerciseshouldberesponsive.Ifyoutakethetimetoforeseewhatcouldbecomeconcernsorthe
potentialprocessgapsweidentiﬁedabove,youcandevelopresponsesinadvanceincludingnew
contentorprocessesthateliminateconcernsbeforetheyevensurface.Basedonwhatyoudiscover,
youmayhavetoadaptprocesses,strategiesandtechnologyinvestmentstoimprovetheexperience.
From StateofDigitalMarketingforCreditUnionsandBanks
Whatprocesseshaveyoumappedoutthedigitalconsumerjourneyfor?
Source:CUGrow
The
customer
recognizesa
needand
looksfora
solution
Hasaproblem
tosolve
Goestoa
tradeshow
Readsan
article
The
customer
looksfora
solutionto
satisfytheir
Searches
Googlefor
solutions
Visitsastore
Accumulates
knowledgeof
optionsoptions
The
customer
weighsthe
alternative
solutions
Researches
vendors
Talkstopeers
Engagesa
discussion
forum
The
customer
commercially
commitsto
thesolution
Compares
pricing
Talksto
references
Commitsto
thevendor
The
customer
realizesthe
valuethe
vendor
Valueis
realized
Differentiation
isappreciated
Thecustomer
communicates
thevalueof
products
Talkstopeers
Engagesina
discussion
forum
Further
commitscommitsto
thebrand
RetentionAcquisition
1 2 3 4 5 5
Awareness Search Evaluate Commit Value Advocate
Samplebuyingjourneyformanufacturingcompanies

18
Thinkthroughanyquestionsorconcernsthatmayarise.Awell-thought-outcustomerjourneyexercise
shouldberesponsive.Ifyoutakethetimetoforeseewhatcouldbecomeconcernsorthepotential
processgapsweidentifiedabove,youcandevelopresponsesinadvanceincludingnewcontentor
processesthateliminateconcernsbeforetheyevensurface.Basedonwhatyoudiscover,youmayhave
toadaptprocesses,strategiesandtechnologyinvestmentstoimprovetheexperience.
Belowaresomeofthekeymomentsoftruthforcreditunions.
Source:McKinseycustomerexperienceresearch
MomentsofTruth
ANorthAmericanbankfoundequallypowerfulevidenceofthelinkbetweencustomer
loyaltyandvaluecreationwhenitsetouttoexplainstrikingdifferencesintheperformance
ofitsbranches-amorethan50percentgapbetweenthebestandtheworstasmeasuredby
shareofwalletandcustomerretention.Surveysconductedbythebankpointedtoa
distinguishingfeatureofitsbetter-performingbranches:theabilitytoturnmomentsof
truthtoadvantagebysolvingproblemseffectivelyandawillingnesstoemphasizethe
financialneedsofcustomersoverthebranch'ssalespriorities.Growingloyaltytowardthe
banktranslbanktranslateddirectlyintoabiggershareofthecustomer'swallet.
MarcBeaujean,JonathanDavidson,andStaceyMadge,McKinseyQuarterly
Receivedgood
financeadvice
Receivedproactiveproposal
appropriatetomyneeds
Frontlinestaffactivelycaring,
referringtomyneeds/history
FFrontlinestaffhadgoodtrouble-
shootingandwasflexibleonrules
Accountopeningwas
aneasyprocess
Negotiatedmortgageloan
withacceptableconditions
Bankwasconvenientlyaccessible
BankgavegoodlevelBankgavegoodlevelof
informationofchangesatbank
PositiveMomentsofTruth
%ofcustomersexperiencingpositiveMOTs
33
13
11
10
9
6
44
4
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Receivedfinancialadvice
notappropriatetoneeds
Bankfrontlineitselfhadno
troubleshootingskills/wasinflexible
Proactiveproposaltobuy
productsnotappropriatetoneeds
FFrontlinestaffunfriendly
anddidnotpayattentiontoneeds
Unexplainedpricechange
Noactable
mortgageconditions
Bankmadeamistakeand
tooktoolongtosolve
BankwasnotBankwasnot
convenientlyaccessible
NegativeMomentsofTruth
%ofcustomersexperiencingnegativeMOTs
14
12
11
11
11
10
88
5
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Needs-basedselling

19
Createstrategiesandpursuetechnologyinvestmentstomakeourcustomerexperienceareality
NowthNowthatyouhaveacomprehensivecustomerexperiencedefined,thenextstageishowthis
experiencewillbeexecuted.Thisprocessshouldbedependentonyourdiscoverysessionsduringthe
customerexperienceprocessandthesubsequentcustomerexperienceoutlinedincludingthe
customerpersonasandjourneysyouidentified.Inthebelow,Iwillfocusmoreonthedigitalsideof
customerexperience,butaholisticstrategyshouldincludehowthedigitalcomponentswill
intertwinewithyourphysicalbranch,callcenterandATMstrategy.
Thefirststageofyourdemandgenerationprocessistotakealookatalloftheinformationyou
collectedduringthecustomerexperienceplanning.Whatwillberequiredtoexecuteyourplan?
Whatchangeswillyouhavetomake?Whatstrategies,campaigns,toolsortechnologywillbe
needed?
6.DevelopingDemandGenerationStrategy
Momentsoftruthareconsideredthepointsandanyrelationshipthatcanstrengthenacustomer’s
satisfactionorperceptionofsatisfaction.Ifacreditunioncandrivetherightcustomerexperienceat
these“momentsoftruth”candriveupcustomersatisfactionandprovidethecustomerimmense
loyaltyandvalue.CreditUnionsthatconcentratetheirresourcesonthesemomentsratherthan
everysinglecustomerinteractioncanmanagecostsmoreefficiently-returnsonthesemoments
aremuchhigherthanotherregularinteractions.
ForcForcreditunions,thesemomentstendtobeatthebeginningofthecustomerrelationship(account
opening),duringproblem resolutionandduringimportantlifemoments(homeloanprocessing).
TheThekeyisforthecustomerexperiencetobeapositivemomentinthemindsofyourcustomer-not
anegativeone.Whendesigningyouridealcustomerexperience,itisimportanttoaccountforthese
pointsinthecustomerjourneyandfocusoncreatingthebestpossibleoutcomeforyourmembers.
Youcantrackacustomer’ssatisfactioninthesemomentsthroughconscientiousfollow-upfrom a
member’sbranchorsurveys.Besides,effectiveandover-communicationwhentherearechangesto
accountsandwhenmistakesoccuriscritical.

20
Herearesomestepstohelpyouwalkthroughdefiningyourgotomarketdigitaldemandgeneration
strategy:
Re-defineanddocumentyournewdemandgenerationprocess.
Whatisthedefinitionofalead/prospect?AnAgreementshouldbetherebetweenalllayersofyour
organization.
Howshouldleadsbequalifiedandrouted?
Formarketing,howdoesyourtargetmarketlooklike?Forsales,whatprospectsareyou
speakingto?Whattypesofbuyersareclosing?
CustomerAcquisitionStrategiesandNurtureStrategiesshouldbeidentified.
Howwillyouacquirenewcustomers?
Whatisyourcustomeronboardingprocess?
Howwillyouretain,cross-sell/up-sellyourcurrentones?
Whatcanyoudowithcustomersthatleave?
Haveaplanforhowyoumanage,store,andarchivedata.
Systemsthatwillbeinvolvedarekey
Howdatawillbepassedbetweenyoursystemsandsales/marketingwouldneedtobedefined.
Createacontentmanagementstrategywithyourpersonasintegrated.
Whatcontentdoyouhave?Whatwillneedtobedeveloped?
Doesyourcontenteducate,inspireorbegtobeshared?
Whattypesofcontentareneeded?
Whataretheneededrequirementsandagendasofyourbuyers?
Howcanyoualignpersonaswithyourstrategy?
Basedonyourcustomerjourney,identifychannelsanddevicesthatyouneedtoinclude,improveor
scale-back.
Channels:Website,Landingpages,Portals,Forms,Social,SEO/SEM,Email,Community,Direct
MailandEvents
Devices:Computer,TabletorSmartphone

21
Identifythemetricsthatcanmeasureandwhetheryouaremeetingyourcustomerexperiencegoals.
Stakeholdersshouldagreeonmetrics.Howcanyoutrackthem?
Howdoyourgoalstranslatetohowyoumeasureyourstrategy?
Whatactionswillyoutakebasedonyourfindings?
Doyouhaveawaytotrackrevenue?Canyouassociatethatrevenuetoactualchannelsand
campaigns?
Toolsandtechnology
Whatwillneedtobeautomatedtomaintaintheseprocesses?
CRM,MarketingAutomationandCMStoolsshouldbestandardinthedigitalenvironment.
Automatedleadnurturingshouldbeconsideredamust-have.
Understandingthecontactandcampaignhistoryassociatedwitheveryleadiscritical.
CRMandmarketingsystemsshouldcombinedatatodeliveracomprehensiveactivityhistoryto
maintainagoodcustomerexperience.maintainagoodcustomerexperience.
Identifytheresourcesandbudgetyouwillneed
Thisprocesscanbeinitiallytimeintensive,soyouneedtoplanaccordingly;eventually,youwill
automatetheseprocessessothatmuchofyourday-to-daycustomercommunicationsareplannedand
executedwithoutmanualintervention.
Basedonyourplan,howwillthistranslateintoyourplanningandrequestprocesses?
Remember,IT,SalesandMarketingwillbeinvolvedwithdifferentpartsofyourplan.Technology
orimplementorimplementationlaunchmayrequireaheavyhandfrom IT.
Doyouhavetheexperiencetoexecuteordoyouneedtolookforexternalresourcesoragencies
thatcanhelpwithpartsofyourplan?
Whilethesearedirectional,theywillgiveyousomestartingpointsforacomprehensivedemand
generationstrategy.Someofthecomponentsofthisplanwillbemorecomplexthanothersandmay
requirespecificresourceswhetherinternalorfrom anagencytomoveforward.Asanextstep,Iwillgo
morein-depthforafewoftheseconceptsandhowtheymayrelatespecificallytocreditunions.

22
7.DigitalLeadManagementFramework
Onceyouhaveidentiﬁedyourcurrentleadlifecycle,youcanoptimizeitforyourgrowthgoalsofyour
creditunionandtoalignwithnewcustomerexperiencestrategy.Therearethreeessentialactivitiesthat
youcancenteryourfocusonwhenputtingtogetheradigitalleadframework.
TopoftheFunnel
WhileyouweWhileyouweredevelopingyourcustomerexperiencestrategy,mostlikelyyouwereabletoleverage
yourdatatogetabetterviewofyourcustomersandwhatcustomerswillalignwithyourcreditunion
corestrategicvaluesandgoals.Aspartofyourcustomerpersonaandjourneyexercise,younowhavea
segmentedviewofyourmembershipandwhatchannelsthattheyleverage.Thiscanhelpyoufurther
identifyandsegmentmarketstotargetthroughavarietyofdigitalmarketingchannelsatthetopofthe
funnel.
Source:Marketo
Topofthefunnel(ToF):Generateorre-activateleads
Middleofthefunnel(MoF):Convertleadsforloansandaccounts
Bottom ofthefunnel(BoF):Increaseproﬁtabilityandwalletshare

23
Marketingactivitiesthattypicallyoccurduringthiscustomeracquisitionphasearethecreationofcon-
tent,SEO,SEM,event,generalemail,blogsandsocialmedia.Creditunionscanprovidevariousadvertis-
ingorconsumerresourceswiththebestfitofferforcustomersincludingthefavorablebankingrates
thatwill
competewithotherbankinginstitutions,rewardprograms,loanorcardoffers.
Duringthisphase,financialinstitutionscancaptureaconsumer’sbasicinformationwhilestoringitin
yourCRM,MarketingAutomationorDataSystems.Thisinformationwillbeusedtonurturethe
consumerwithadditionalrelevantcontentandtouchpointsastheymovethroughthebuyingprocess.
Customersdonotmoveoutofthisphaseuntiltheyhaveameaningfulinteractionwithyourcompany.
Thisisusuallyanindicatorthattheywanttohearfrom youinthefutureorhavesomepurchase
intention.
MiddleoftheFunnel
Atthispointinyourfunnel,yourprospecthasdisplayedbuyingbehavior,engagedwithyourcontent,
andispotentiallyasaleslead.Theyarenolongeranonymousandyoucanstarttoidentifytheirprofile,
providesegmentationandalignthem withtheirinterests.Theywillnowpotentiallyhaveadefineddigital
journeyandyoucanmapoutadigitalnurturestrategyforeachdefinedprofileandproductoffering.
Thisprovidesaconsumerwithahighlytailoredandcustomizeddigitalexperiencethatbuildsadigital
rrelationshipovertimethroughrelevantcontent.Atthisstage,youcanstarttoemployleadscoringand
takeaproactiveapproachbyusingyourCRMandMarketingAutomationtoolstoalertsalestoreachout
toaconsumerwhoisgettingclosertoconversion.
MarketingActivitiesatthisstageprimarilycenteraroundnurtureandincludepersonalizationthrough
thewebsite,MarketingAutomation(Email,LandingPages,Forms),webinars,training/instructional
informationandvideo.Whileyouroffersmaystillbeeducationalatthisstage,theywillbemoregeared
towardsbuying.
BottomoftheFunnel
Atthebottom ofthefunnel,youareeitherconvertingtheopportunityorcreatingtheexperienceand
customerlifecycle.Everytouchpointandcommunicationareopportunitiestobuildcustomer
satisfactionandmaintainalong-term,mutuallybeneficialrelationship.
Somekeyopportunitiesduringthisstageareonboarding,cross-sell/up-sellandreferral.Muchofthe
advancedopportunitiesarewaystoconvertyourcustomersintoadvocatesandextendtherelationship.
AdigitalonboardingpAdigitalonboardingprocesscanbepersonalizedforeachmemberbyusingspecificpiecesofcontentin
apredefineddigitalconsumerjourney.Whileitisimportanttohandleonboardingatthebeginningof
therelationship,itcanbeanongoingeventtohelpimprovememberretentionandengagementby
offeringtailoredcontentandrecommendationsbasedonspecificdigitalbehaviors.

24
Thedatacollectedonyourmemberscanalsoprovideadditionalconsumerinsightstohelprecommend
otherrelevantﬁnancialproductsandservices(usuallybasedonbehavioralmodelingfrom othercus-
tomersinyourdatabase).Besides,providingadviceandassistancetohelpgetthemostoftheiraccounts
orservicesprovidesadditionalopportunitytoincreasetheshareofwalletandtotalmemberlifetime
value.Third-partyloansandcreditcarddataprovidedthroughaPFMorotheronlinebankingplatform
canprovideadditionalcross-sellopportunities.
ReferralsfReferralsfrom yourcustomersdemonstratethepowerofastrongcustomerexperience.Theyhelp
creditunionsarealizealoweroverallconsumeracquisitioncostssincetheycanbeautomatedaspartof
thedigitalleadgenerationprocess.Creditunionscanalsogenerateleadsforloansandnewaccounts
from currentaccountholdersbyprovidingawaytofacilitateandincentivizethesereferrals.

25
Toolsandprocessesneededtomanageyourdata(now,shortandlong-term)
KeydatapointsrequiredforallofyourinternalgroupsincludingmarketingandsalesANDwhich
system thattheyreside
Theprocesstocapturerelevantdata
Theprocesstorefineyourdata,whatwillbeactionable,whatwillbeusedforsegmentingpersonas.
Howthedatawillbeminedforactionableinsights
WhWhattheprocessistooptimizeyourdataprocessesovertime
Dataisthefundamentalbuildingblockofthedemandgenerationstrategy.Itiskeythatthereisa
comprehensiveplaninplaceforhowdatawillbeconfigured,managed,storedandhowthatdata
willbeleveragedthroughoutthemarketingdigitalstrategy.
Itiscriticalthatdigitalmarketershavethecapabilitiestoperform advancedlevelsegmentation,
personalizationandleverageinsightsontheircustomersfrom aggregateddata.Ifcreditunionsare
abletoeffectivelyleveragethatdata,theycangainthebenefitsofadigitalcustomerjourneyfor
theirmembers,determinetheprioritiesoftheircustomersandtailortheirsolutionsincluding
pproductsandservicestotheirlocalmarkets,memberbasesandindustriesserviced.
CreditUnionsneedtohavetheabilitytocollectandanalyzeitsnumerousdatatransactionsand
theactivityofitsmemberacrossitsdigitalproperties.Thesetransactionsandactivityforallofthe
CreditUnionsaccountholdersarefullofdetailedinformationaboutcustomerpreferencesand
theirspecificneeds.Theproductandmarketingteamscanusethisinformationtodevelop
particularoffersandmarketingteamscanleveragetodevelophighlycustomizedcustomer
journeys,communicationsandoffersfortheircreditunion.
UnUnfortunately,managingandcoordinatingdatacanoftenbeasizabletaskespeciallyacross
marketingplatforms.Oneofthelargestissuesisthatmostdatastillsitsinsilosandtheyarenot
abletoleveragedataacrossmultiplesystems.Italsorequiresthecapabilitiestohandlethesizeand
frequencyofdatainadditiontoaninfrastructuretoeffectivelymanagethedataandacomprehen-
siveanalyticstooltoevaluateanddecipherinsightsfrom thedata.
Thekeyisthealignmentofdataneedsthroughoutyourentirestrategyandplanningprocess.Here
aresomekeythingstothinkthroughasyouplanfordatathroughoutyouroverallmarketing
strstrategy.
TheDataChallengeforCreditUnions
AccordingtoCreditUnionJournal,onefinancialinstitutionsawa244%increaseinfunded
autoloansbyusingpredictiveanalyticstodeterminewhenindividualswerelikelytobuy
acarinthenearfuture.Bigdatacanturnmemberinformationintoactionable
intelligence.
HenryAdaso,HowCreditUnionsCanDriveBigRevenuewithBigData

26
Contentisthefoundationofyourdemandgenerationstrategy.Itisessentiallythefrontline
communicationwithyourcustomerandhowyoucraft,developandpresentthatcontentcandictate
whetheracustomerhasconfidence/trustinyou,hasasatisfyingcustomerexperienceandultimately
leadstoaprofitableconclusion.
8.BuildingaContentStrategy
Transitioning/nurture/scoringofleadsfrommarketingtosales
Contentmarketingisanextensiveprocessandwilloccuratallpointsofyourmarketingstrategy.During
planning/conception,itisimportanttoidentifyyourbrandmessaging,contenttypes,howthatcontent
willbedelivered,whoiscreatingandeditingthecontentaswellaswhomanagesthatcontentonan
on-goingbasis.
Complianceisalsocriticalwhenitcomestofinancialservices;contentmarComplianceisalsocriticalwhenitcomestofinancialservices;contentmarketingshouldworkwith
compliancetomakesurethateverythingcreatedincludesfulldisclaimersandmeetsallregulatory
standards.Whenregulatoryconcernsarekeptinmindthroughoutallofthecontentmarketingphases,
therevisionandapprovalprocesscanbeafluidpartofyouroverallstrategy.ForCreditUnions,that
meansworkingwithinFINRAandFSAregulationsaswellasthoseidentifiedbylegalandregulatory.
Source:ChristopherRinaldi,The6CsofContentMarketingforBanksandCreditUnions,TheFinancialBrand
Banksandcreditunionsshouldbeutilizingcontentmarketingtoprovidetargetaudiences
withusefulinformationthatdrawsthemtoawebsiteorintothelocalbranchformore
details.Financialcontentmarketingworksbestwhenitisreadilyavailableandengages
audiencesincreatingmeaningfulconnections.Goingbeyondtraditionalmarketing
techniques,financialmarketersshouldusecontentmarketingtoeducatebothexisting
andpotentialcustomers.
ChristopherRinaldi,The6CsofContentMarketingforBanksandCreditUnions,TheFinancialBrand

27
Inordertohaveaneffectivecontentmarketingstrategy,theremustbeawell-defined,consistent
curationprocessthatisusedtocreateanddistributecontent.Typically,contentcantakeonmultiple
forms,butitwillprimarilyfallintotwobroadcategories-promotionalandthoughtleadership.
Promotionalcontentisasalesmessagethatisgearedtowardsaproduct,serviceoractionwhile
thoughtleadershipiseducationalandcanaddresscustomerpainpointsandguidethem towarda
solution.Effectivecontentmarketingshouldhaveamixofboth.
Onceyoudeterminethetype,youcanleveragewhOnceyoudeterminethetype,youcanleveragewhatyouknowaboutyourcustomerstodeterminethe
form ofthecontent,whatyoucanre-purpose,whatneedstobecreatedandorganizethesamefor
distribution.
WhatFormCanMyContentTake?
Thecustomerprofilesandjourneysthatwerecreatedaspartoftheoverallexperiencearethefirsttwo
componentsofyourcuration/channelcontentstrategy.Onceyouidentifythecontentthatwillbe
requiredforthesecustomersacrosstheirjourney,itistimetodeterminewhichchannelsyouwill
leveragetodistributethecontent.Contentproductionwillbedeterminedbyhowyourcustomer
profilesconsumecontent.Aretheleveragingsocialmedia,websites,whatdevicesaretheyleveraging
andwhatarethecomplementaryproductsandservicesaretheyattractedto.
Forexample,youngprofessionalsforyourcreditunionmightbemorelikelytoleveragemobile
technologyandvisitlocalnewssitesonlinedailtechnologyandvisitlocalnewssitesonlinedaily.Thismaylenditselftoresponsivecontentthatisavail-
ablethroughweboremailontheirsmartphoneandyoumaywanttoadvertisetothem throughre-tar-
getingonyourlocalnewssite.
Attheendoftheprocess,convertingcontentmarketingintorevenueistheultimategoal.Youcan
measurethesuccessofyourcontentstrategythroughbehavioraldata,subscriptions,socialmediasta-
tistics,leadsandwebsiteperformance.Thebestwaytodothisisbyleveragingtoolssuchasmarketing
automationplatform (MAP),SocialListeningandacustomerrelationshipmanagementsystem (CRM)to
maketracking,engagingandclosingleadseasier.

28
ThenextstageistoanalyThenextstageistoanalyzeyourdigitalchannelsandmakedecisionsonwhatmakessensewithinthe
contextofyourcustomerjourneys.Basedonsomeoftheindustryinformationsharedearlieryoumay
haveanideaofwhatworksforcreditunions,butitalwayshelpstodomoreresearch.Lookatwhat
channelshaveperformedforyouinthepast.Comparethatwithyournewcustomerexperience,isthere
alignmentorwillyouneedtoaddmorechannels,improveperformanceinyourcurrentchannelsor
scale-backentirely?Whatyouaredoingnowmaynotmakesense,buttestingandcontinualoptimiza-
tioncanreduceriskasyoumovetowardsnewavenuesformarketinginvestments.
9.EffectiveDigitalChannels
Source:SFDC2015StateofMarketing

29
Iwillbrieflydescribehoweachofthesecanbehelpfulforyournewstrategy,butthereiscertainlymore
tolearn,soithelpstoalignwithexpertsineachofthesedigitalstrategies(orevenbecomeanexpert
yourself).
Website
Mostlikelyawebsiteissomethingthatyourcreditunionhasalreadyinvestedin,butcriticaltodigital
strategyistheeffectivenessofthatsite.Itisimportanttocontinuallyupdateyoursiteandprovide
ongoinginvestmentincreatingthebestoveralldigitalexperience.Twopartscrucialpartsofyour
websiteexperienceishowyouawebsiteexperienceishowyouaredoingwebdevelopmentanddesign.Areyouusingacontent
managementsystem forscalabilityandpersonalization?Whatisyourwebsiteusability?Isyourwebsite
designedtocreatememberinteractionandconversions?Howareyoucollectingyourmemberor
potentialcustomerdata?HowdoesyoursitealignwithSEOstrategy?Thereareseveralcomponents
thatyoumustconsiderasyoulayeroncomplexdigitalstrategy.
Therearealsocertainwebsitecomponentsthatarecriticalfordemandgeneration,belowareafew
musthavesforyoursite:
CalltoAction-CTAsshouldstandout,sothatyourcustomerknowsexactlywhattodo.Contact
informationsuchasyourphonenumber,emailaddresses,faxnumbershouldbeeasilysearchablein
casecustomersareinterestedinreachingouttoyouregardingyourservices.
Navigation-Websiteswitheasynavigationaremoreeffectivesincevisitorscanfindwhattheyare
lookingfor.Theconventionalwisdom isthatavisitorshouldbeabletofindwhattheyarelookingfor
ontheirsitein3justclicksorless.
ResponsiveDesign-Withtheincreaseincustomerswhousesmartphones,tabletsandothermobile
devicestobdevicestobrowsetheinternet,itisimportanttocreateawebsitethatoperatesonmultipleplatforms.
Forms-Formsarerequiredtoconvertyourleadsfrom someanonymousvisittoaknownvisitor,they
areamusttomovesomeonethroughyourdigitalsalescycle.Agoodleadcaptureform mightaskfor
firstname,lastname,emailaddressorphonenumber(shorterformstendtohavebettersuccess).
Theworkofawebsiteisneverfinishedas65%ofconsumershavehadadigitalexperience
changetheiropinionaboutabrand.Evenifafinancialinstitutionhadtheirwebsite
developedinthepastyear,anongoinginvestmentinawebsitecanhelptoensureitis
continuouslyoptimizedtoconvertleadsforloansandnewaccountsinahumanizeddigital
economy.Inaddition,theuseofvideoonlandingpageswithrelatedformsandcallsto
actionscanincreaseconversionsby80%.
JamesRobertLay,7StepstoCUGrowinaHumanizedDigitalEconomy”CUGrow

30
SEO&PaidSearch
Criticaltosuccessindigitalishowyoursiteisrankedviaorganicorpaidsearches.Thehighertherank-
ing,themostlikelytofindandconvertprospects.WhenlookingatSEOandpaidsearch,thebeststrate-
gyistodesignyourwebsitewithyouruserinmind.
Ultimately,ifyoucreateacustomerexperiencedrivenwebsite,thiswillalignwithGoogle’salgorithm
(whateveritisatthetime)sincetheirsuccessrestsontheirabilitytoprovidethemostrelevantlinksto
whattheuserrequested.TherewillalwaysbecontinualupdatesinSEO,butGoogle'salgorithmswillbe
astepaheadofthemarketersthataretryingtoplaythem.Designasitethatyourmembersandvisitors
canuseeffectivelyanditshouldresultinstrongerstandings.
SocialShare-Ifyouarecommittedtosocialmedia,itisimportanttoplaceyoursocialsharebuttons
inaprominentlocationonyoursite.Also,remembertochoosesocialchannelswisely.
Opt-ins-Thiscanbeusedfornewmembersorpotentialcustomersthatareinterestedinyouroffers.
Opt-inscanbeusedforavarietyofcommunicationvehiclesincludingnewsletters,alertsorblogs.
Content/Assets-Contentiscriticaltocreatingvalueforyoursite;ifyoudonothavemuchcontent,
makesureitiswell-placedonyoursite.Agoodstartingpointforquickcontentgenerationisasimple
blog.
Source:NeilPatel,“HowtoscoreyourWebsite'sSEOin10minutesorless”,Quicksprout

31
Hereareafewthingstokeepinmindwhenworkingwithsearch:
BounceRate-thepercentageofvisitstoyourwebsitethatleavewithoutgoingtoanotherpage
onyoursite.Googleconsidersthisanindicatorofapoorlydesignedwebsite,soitis
importantthatcontentisrelevant,timelyandgrabstheuser’sattention.
WWebsiteContent-Searchindustryexpertsagreethatnewsearchenginealgorithmshavemade
contentqualityacriticalfactoringaininghigherrankings.Contentshouldbewell-organizedand
currentwithnewcontentaddedregularly.Imagesshouldbealignedwithkeywords(nameyour
images)andthecopyshouldbeclearandpersonalized.Stayingrelevantismucheasierifyour
websitehasaCMS(CustomerManagementSystem)tomakeeasyupdatesonthesite.
ResponsiResponsiveDesign-AccordingtoGoogleresearch,61%ofusersareunlikelytoreturntoa
mobilesitethattheyhadtroubleaccessingfrom theirsmartphone.Thatincludessitesthatuse
fontswhichareillegibleonmobiledevices,orsiteswhereusershavetozoom inorpanaround
excessively.GooglerecommendsnotonlyResponsiveDesignasthebestwaytooptimizefor
mobileusers,butalsofavorsresponsivesitesinsearchesthataremadeonamobiledevice.
Businessverificationandvalidation-“Landingpageswithtitletags,localcopyand
descriptionsandhyperlindescriptionsandhyperlinkedmapsthatallowsearcherstoclickondrivingdirectionsdemon-
stratemorerelevanceforsearchersandsubsequentlyrankhigher.Validationthroughbacklinks
from trustedsourcessuchasYelporAngie’sListenablethesearchenginetoverifyhoursand
servicesandareboostingqualityscores.”EnterpriseSEOPlatforms2015:AMarketer’sGuide,
Brightedge
Keywordresearch/rankanalysis-Itisimportantthatyouknowthekeywordsthat
consumersusetoaccessyourwebsiteandusethem inyourwebsitecopy.
Links-Linksarenowasignificantrankingfactorusedbysearchenginestoimprove
relevancyandcanquicklyhelpyoursiteriseinthesearchrankings.Themosteffectivecontent
strategytechniquesforlinkbuildingarecontentoutreach,infographicpromotionandbroken
linkbuilding.Essentially,inordertobuildaneffectivestrategyhere,youhavetocreatecontent
thatpeoplewanttolinktoandkeepyourcontentcurationandsocialsharingtopofmind.
SocialSocial-AsSEOandsocialareincreasinglyintertwined(especiallygiventheimportanceof
link-building),Googleusessocialsignalstodeterminehowyourcompanyranksinsearchresults.
Engagementfrom yourfollowersandsharingofcontentfrom yoursiteonsocialcanboostyour
SEO.

32
LandingPages
Alandingpageisaspecificwebpagethatyousetupforthesolepurposeofconvertingvisitorsintoleads
andshouldbetargetedtovisitorsinterestedinparticularinformation.Ultimatelyyouwantvisitorstofill
inaform forcontactoropt-informoreinformation.
Somecomponentsofgoodlandingpagesinclude:
Simplicity-Simplicity-Keepthemessageandactionfrontandcenterandcreateaminimalistdesignwithalot
ofwhitespace(andnonavigationlinksoffpage).Youwantyourreaderstofocusonthe
informationyouhaveandtakeadesiredaction.
Onepurpose-Haveasinglepurposetodecreasevisitorsthatarenotinterestedinyouroffer.Youcan
haveasmanypagesasyouneedtoensurethateachcommunicatesasinglemessage.
Content-Fortheuser,thebenefitsofwhatyouareofferingshouldbeclearandevident.Content
shouldbesparseorbulletedifneeded.Becauseofthesimplicityrequiredyoucantestvarious
headlinesandbodytodeterminehighestconversions.headlinesandbodytodeterminehighestconversions.
Video/Multi-media-Videocontent,becauseofitssimplicity,canbeapowerfulvehicle.Mostlanding
pagevisitorspreferwatchingvideostoreadingthetext.
CTA-TheCTAshouldstandoutandbefrontandcenteronyourpage.Makesurealsototest
differentbuttons,coloursandlocationsonthepage.
Forms-Shouldbesimpleandrequestonlythebasicinformationneeded.IfyouuseaCMSorMAP
thathasprogressiveprofilingcapabilities,youcanstarttogatherafewdatapointsinevery
interactionwithyourcustomerastheypinteractionwithyourcustomerastheyprogressthroughthefunnel.
Social
Forsomegreattechnicaladvice,checkoutNeilPatel’s,“HowtoscoreyourWebsite'sSEOin10minutes
orless”onQuicksprout.Therearesomesimplewaystotestoutsomeofthetechnicalaspectsofyour
sitethatcanimpactSEOperformance.
Socialmediaisn'tatraditionaladvertisingchannel,butitisanexcellentplacetoestablish
andreinforcebranding.Whileboomersstillwatchtheeveningnewsontelevision,88%of
millennialsuseFacebookasanewssource.Whatanopportunityforcreditunionsto
positionthemselvesasfinancialexperts!Socialmedianetworksarealsoagreatwayto
spreadthewordaboutcreditunionmembership.Onaverage,millennialshave250social
mediafriendseach,GenXershave200andboomershaveabout100.
HeatherAnderson,SocialMediatoCreditUnions:EvolveorDie,CreditUnionTimes

33
Socialmediacangivecreditunionsthetoolstoinitiateorguidemarket-drivenbrandandproduct-
relatedconversations.Forsocial,itisimportanttohavecleargoalsorstrategicvisioninplaceforeach
socialplatform;first,youmustunderstandtheaudienceofeachthroughresearch,surveyandonline
tools.SocialAnalyticsisavaluabletoolfrom Googlethatshowsyouhowoftensocialsharingcontrib-
utestoreferraltrafficandwebsiteconversions.
Likeallotherchannels,youmusthaveasocialstrategythatengagesyourtargetaudience,communi-
catesyourvision,andisinlinewithyourtotalcustomerexperience.Yoursocialgoalsshouldsupport
withyouroverallgoalswhetheritisgrowingyourbranchmembershiporprovidinganoutletortoolsfor
currentmembers.
Allcommunicationsonbehalfofyourcreditunionshouldcarryaconsistentvoiceandbeguidedby
yoursocialbrandingguidelines.Thatincludesposts,images,productsandresponsestonegativecom-
ments.Youwillgetthem,sobepreparedaheadoftime.Theworstresponsetocriticism isnothing.
Whichsocialchannelstouseisoftenalargepartofdeterminingthebestsocialstrategy.Whilethereare
multipledifferentwaystoapproachsocial,thekeyisfindingtherightfitforyourmembers.Beloware
thebreakdownsandoverallefficacyofindividualchannelsforcreditunions.
100
90
80
70
60
50
4040
30
20
10
0
Percent
Website Online
banking
Facebook Twitter Youtube Blogs
Use Don’tuse
UtilizationofDifferentSocialMedia SocialMediaEfficacybyChannel
Successful
Highly Minimally
MinimallyHighly
Measurable
Source:HopeSchauandPerIvarSchau,From PresencetoPurpose:DevelopingSocialMediaStrategies
andMetricsforCreditUnions,Filene

34
Emailisoneoftheprimarytoolsinthemarketer’sarsenalandcanbeusedinavarietyofdiffering
capacitiesateverystageofthefunnel.Ithasbecomesuchanimportantandwidelyusedtoolthat
inboxesareinundatedwithemailsfrom avarietyofbusinesses.Thekeytostandingoutinacrowded
inboxiscreatingpersonalized,specificengagingemailcontentthatmembersandpotentialcustomers
areinterestedin.Thisrequiresthecreationofarelevantemailmarketingstrategyacrosstheentire
customerexperiencefrom prospectswhohavevisitedoneofyourdigitalpropertiestocurrent
customersthcustomersthroughouttheirentirelifecyclewithyourcreditunion.
Intheageofpersonalizationandhyper-targeting,consumersexpectbrandstodirectlytargettheir
needs,toknowwhotheyareandprovidecontenttheycareabout.MarketingAutomationin
combinationwithanintegratedmarketingeco-system canhelpdeliveronthatpromise.Itprovidesa
centralmarketingdatabase,anengagementmarketingandanalyticsengine.
Email
Belowaresomespecificconsiderationswhencraftingyouremailcampaigns:
SubjectLines-Subjectlinesarethegreetingandtheyareyourfirstopportunitytoyou’reyour
memberorprospectengaged.AccordingtoExperian,emailswithpersonalizedsubjectlinesare26%
morelikelytobeopened.Craftingtheperfectsubjectlinecanbetrickyandrequiresrepeatingtesting
andoptimization.
Segmentation-Segmentation-DMAreportedthatmarketershavefounda760%increaseinemailrevenuefrom
segmentedcampaigns.Segmentationisthemostefficientwaytogroupcustomersbyspecific
demographicinformation,purchasehistory,andbrowsingactivity.Thiswillbeimportanttomarketto
specificcustomerpersonasbasedonthesecontactattributes.Segmentationcanbeasgranularas
neededtotailoryouremailsothosepersonasacrossthecustomerjourney.
Dynamiccontent-AJanrainstudyreportsthat74%ofonlineconsumersgetfrustratedwith
websiteswhencontent(e.g.offers,ads,andpromotions)appeartohavenothingtodowiththeir
inteinterests.Thesameistruewithemails;emailblastswithone-size-fits-allmessagesarenolonger
effective,dynamiccontenttailoredtoacustomer’sspecificinterestisnecessarytocutthroughthe
clutter.
Atargetingenginemustbebuilttoguidetherightmessagetotherightperson.And
operationsneedtobereadyforthechange;creatingandsending3,000e-mailsadayisvery
differentfromsendingonemasse-mailblast.Althoughit’salotofwork,itdrivesreal
returns:onefinancialinstitutionincreasedrevenuefromtargetsegmentsby20percentby
usinglife-cycleeventstotriggerpersonalizede-mailstoexistingcustomers.
NoraAufreiter,JulienBoudet,andVivianWeng,McKinsey

35
Emailautomation-Emailautomationallowsmarketerstocreateworkflowstosendpersonalized,
timely,relevantemailstocustomersattherighttime.
ResponsiveDesign-AccordingtoCampaignMonitor,emailopensonmobiledevicesgrew30%
from 2010to2015toastaggering53%oftotalemails.Giventhenumberofcustomersusingmobile
ortabletstoviewemails,mobile-readydesignisamusthave.
Thecorecomponenttoallemailmarketing,whetheritistargetedcontenttomoregeneric,isthe
databasethatisusedtosendthoseemails.Theaverageemailpenetrationofbankandcreditunion
accountholdersis37%(HarlandClarke)andbasedonindustryaverageestimates,30%oftheemail
addressesinyourdatabasewillvanisheachyearthroughnon-engagement,bounces,
abandoned/changedemailaddresses,unsubscribes,andspam complaints.
MaintainingandgMaintainingandgrowingyourdatabasewillbeasuccessfactorinyouremailmarketingcampaigns.You
canacquireemailaddressesthroughoutawidevarietyofactivities.Duringcustomeracquisitionyoucan
collectthem onyourwebsiteorlandingpagebyofferingtoprovidemoreinformation,assetsorthought
leadership,sinceonlyasmallpercentageofyourvisitorswillconvertduringtheirfirstinteraction.
Youcanalsocollectemailsfrom in-personcommunityevents.Onceanemailisobtained,youcanguide
them throughthecustomerjourneybyprovidingfollow-upnurturetouchpointsthatwill
encouragethem toconvert.Forcurencouragethem toconvert.Forcurrentmembers,youcanleverageopt-informsandoffersonyour
website.Theseopt-informscanbecustomizedforspecificsegmentsandcanoffertoprovide
customizedcontentorbenefitstoeachmember.Youcanalsomakeemailandotherdatacollectionas
partofyouronboardingprocess.
Traditionally,bankandcreditunionlandingpagesincorrectlyusedirectcallstoactions,
whichaskforthebusinessimmediately.“ApplyNow”or“OpenanAccount”arethe
standarddirectcallstoaction.However,only1%-3%ofwebsitevisitorsconvertontheir
firstvisit.Anddirectcallstoactionsareonlyapplicableforthosewhoarereadytoapply
foraloanoropenanaccount.
JamesRobertLay,8SimpleWaystoResurrectYourEmailMarketingtoGrowYourBankorCreditUnion,CUGrow

36
Metricshavealwaysplayedasigniﬁcantpartindevelopingandmaintainingagoodmarketingstrategy.
Nowthatmarketingisresponsibleforagreaterroleinthesalesprocess,thefocushasshiftedfrom ana-
lyzingcampaignperformancetocalculatingmarketing’soverallcontributiontorevenue.Sincemarket-
ingownsthemajorityoftherelationshipwithself-educatingprospects,itmustbeheldaccountableasa
corepartofacompany’srevenueengine.
Whendealingwithdigitalmetrics,hundredsofuniquedatapointscanbeusedtogettoactionable
insights.AccordingtotheSalesforce2015StateofMarketingReport,mostcompaniesﬁndthegreatest
valueinmetricsfocusedonrevenuegrowth,customersatisfaction,returnoninvestment,customerre-
tentionratesandcustomer/audienceacquisition.
10.TrackingyourPerformance

37
32%
23%
23%
30%
23%
Revenuegrowth
Howdomarketingactivitiesgeneratequalifiedmarketingleadsthatareconvertedtosales?Thefirst
stepistodobaselinetestingincludingmeasuringsaleslevels,preandpost-marketingoreventesting
digitalcampaignsforrevenueandprofitagainstpreviousoroldercampaignsstillin-market.
ReturnonInvestment
ROIshouldbemeasuredholisticallyacrossmultiplecampaignsforabuyingdecisionsincemost
customershavemultitouchpointswithyourcompanyalongtheircustomerjourney.Somekey
measurementsforROIincludeincrementalrevenue,marketingspendandgrossandnetmargin.Most
marketingAutomationtoolscanhelpmeasureyourmarketingROI.
CustomerAcquisition
Withcustomeracquisitionyouaretrackingyournewcustomersandgetagoodviewoftheirstages
acrossthejourney.Metricsforthiscategoryincludenumberofleads,conversionandcloserates,Aver-
ageCustomerValue(ACV),numberofdaystocloseandCustomerAcquisitionCost(CAC).CACisthe
costofacquiringanaveragecustomerandisaviewofgrossmarginofnewrevenueminussalesand
marketingexpensesduringtheaveragetimetoconvertacustomer.
Customersatisfaction“Howdoesyourbankorcreditunionmeasureyourcustomer/memberloyalty?
Asdiscussedearlier,customersatisfactioncanbeakeydifferentiatorforcustomeracquisitionand
retentionincreditunions.Financialmetricsthatcanpointtocustomersatisfactionareaverageprofit
marginpercustomerandthecustomerlifecyclevalue(CLV).
CustomerRetentionRatesCRRisusuallymeasuredbythecustomersthecompanykeepswithrespecttothecustomersatthe
startoftheperiodminusanynewcustomersacquiredduringthatperiod.CRRcangaugeyourcustom-
erloyaltyandtheeffectivenessofcustomerservice.Tangentially,youcantrackNetPromoterScore,
cross-sellingattachtoyourbase,upgradesandrenewalrates.
Top5DigitalMarketingMetricsforSuccess

38
Dealingwithsomanysingulardatapointscanbeoverwhelmingbutmostofthedigitaltoolsinthe
marketingecosystem havesetmetricsandtrackingthatyoucanleveragefortheuniqueviewsyouwill
needtomeasureyoursuccess.
Aswegothroughtheplanningprocessforallofthesestrategies,processesandcampaigns,onething
becomesclear-thecapabilitytoprovideaone-to-onemarketingstrategyandeﬀectivecustomer
experienceplan-willexperienceplan-willrequiremarketingtoolstoexecuteallofthevariousmovingcomponents.And
therearequiteafewtochoosefrom.Withthedigitaltechnologyboom,automating,measuringand
standardizingtoolshavegrownexponentiallyeveryyear.ScottBrinkerrepresentsthemarketing
technologylandscapein2015with1,876vendorsrepresentedacross43categories.
11.ToolsandTechnology
Source:chiefmartec.com
MarketingTechnologyLandscape

39
Whileeachtoolandvendorhavetheircapabilitiesandstrengths,itiswidelyacknowledgedthata
marketingecosystem’sfoundationisestablishedwiththreecoretools-CustomerRelationship
Management(CRM),MarketingAutomationPlatform (MAP)andaContentManagementSystem (CMS).
Asyoudeterminethechannels,measurementsandactivitiesthatwillbepartofyourcustomer
experienceandjourney,othertoolsmaybeneededtoachieveyouroverallplanandstrategy.
CRMorsalessystemsthatkeeptrackofcurrentleadsandcustomersincludingalloftheirpertinent
contactdata:names,emails,phonenumbers,purchasinghistory,andallcommunicationsbetweenthe
companyandthosecustomers.Salesandmarketingcanaccessallofthisinformationtodevelop
strategiestoconvertprospectsandretaincustomers.Thisonesystemsalignsbothgroupsaroundthe
samegoalsandgivesthem accesstothesameactionableinformation.
InconjunctionwithCMSandMAP,aCRMcantellthesalesteam customersthathavebeenactivein
variousmarketingchannelsincludingweb,emailanditcantailorthesalesconversationbasedon
behavioralclues.Itwillalsogiveyouasamarbehavioralclues.Itwillalsogiveyouasamarketerthecompletepictureofyourprospectsand
customersandhowtoengagethem aspartofyourcustomerexperience.
CustomerRelationshipManagement(CRM)
OnlyhalfofcreditunionsandbankssharedtheyhaveadoptedaCRM.Thisisoneof
threekeycornerstonesinadigitalmarketingandleadgenerationsystem.
JamesRobertLay,CreditUnionsandBanksareinCriticalConditionandDyingfromDigitoolitus,CUGrow
CreditUnionsandBanksareinCriticalConditionandDyingfrom Digitoolitus
Customer
Relationship
Manager
Marketing
Automation
Content
Marketing

40
AccordingtoEthanDunhillinUsingCRMasaPartofYourMarketingStrategythereareawidevarietyof
benefitsofaCRMforbothsalesandmarketing.
Marketingautomationisalsoreferredtoas‘revenueperformancemanagementsinceitsapproachisto
programmaticallycoordinateandoptimizemarketingactivitiesacrossoneormorechannels,suchas
email,websitesandsocialmedia.Inshort,itallowsmarketerstodigitizemarketingprograms,trackand
targetusers,automatecontentdeliveryandtriggerautomaticresponsestouserbehaviors.
Marketingautomationhasawidevarietyofuses,whileitwasoriginallyrootedinautomatingwork
flows,consolidatingdataandreplacingemailserviceproviderplatforms,anincreasingnumberof
capabilitiesarebeingaddedtotheplatforms.
Knowasmuchaspossibleaboutyourcustomersandprospects
Providerapidresponsestoinquiriesandissuesanddocumentalloftheseinoneplace
Deliverareallypersonalexperiencetoanyonewhoisatanypointintheconversionprocess.
Allowaccessbyeveryonetoindividualcustomer/leadinformationaswellasaggregatedatathat
candrivemarketingdecisions
Allowanenterprisetomoveawayfrom inefficientspreadsheetswhicharealsoimpersonal.
KKeepallaspectsofthecustomerlifecycleinoneplace.
Ensurethatcustomersandleadsdonotfall“throughthecracks.”
Promoterelationship-buildingbypersonalizingcustomerexperiences.
Canschedulefollow-upwithleads,“lookers”andcustomers
Canrefineemailandsocialmediacampaignsbasedupongroupingsofcustomerprofiles.
TheleadingvendorsforCRMareSalesforce(SFDC),MicrosoftDynamics,NetSuiteandSugarCRM.
MarketingAutomation
Only21%ofcreditunionsandbanksrespondedtousingamarketingautomation
platformtoautomateandimprovedigitalmembercommunication,akeystrategic
prioritytooverhalfofcreditunionsandbanksin2014.
JamesRobertLay,CreditUnionsandBanksareinCriticalConditionandDyingfromDigitoolitus,CUGrow

41
Marketingautomationcanhelp:
Whenassessingmarketingautomationtools,thereareafewmajorfactorsthatdefinethedifference
betweenthem andwhatisrightforyourcreditunion.
Bridgethegapbetweenmarketing,salesandcompliance:itisaplatform thatgivesmarketersa
waytoquicklymodify,implementandtrackallcommunicationsandremaincompliantwithindustry
regulations.
SeamlesslyintegratewithCRMandothermarketingsystems:awell-selectedmarketing
automationplatform willseamlesslyintegratewithanyothermarketingplatform.
Managetheirfunnels:moveprospectsandclientsthroughtheircustomerjourneyswithlead
qualificqualification,leadscoring,nurtureandhandoffprocesses.
Personalizetheircustomerinteractions:providemorefrequent,meaningful,personalized
communications.
Segmentandcustomizetheircommunications:providemultiplecommunicationstreamsfor
bothdigitalwealthmanagersandclients.
Passoninsight:drivekeyinsightsfrom yourcustomerstoyouradvisorsthatpreparethem better
toserviceandnurtureleads.
Usesalesenablementtools:Usesalesenablementtools:marketingautomation’ssalesenablementtoolsgivewealth
managersthecontroltheyneedtomanagebrandsandregulatorycompliances,whileproviding
individualadvisorswiththeflexibilitytheyneedtocustomizecollateralandmessagingwhichworks
bestfortheiraudience.
Leveragethoughtleadership:provideevaluationofyourcontent/collateralassetsandmap
them towhatprospectswouldlookforatdifferentstages,basedontheirdifferentpersonalneeds.
Thebusinesssize,verticalsorcustomertypethattheyfocus
Thespecificfeaturesthatareoffered.
Thestaffrequiredandlevelofcomplexityofsegmentation,automationandworkflows
Integrationwithothertools.
System interface
Emailmarketingfeatures
TTestingfeatures

42
Marketingintelligenceandanalytics
Webmanagementandlandingpagecapabilities
Connectedandintegratedmarketingcampaignmanagement(oftenmulti-channelcampaign
management)
Leadmanagementandcustomerexperiencemanagement
Advancedpersonalization,testing,segmentationandoptimizationfeatures
A/Btesting,MultiA/Btesting,MultiVariateTesting(MVT)
LeadingvendorsinthisspaceincludeOracle’sEloqua,Marketo,SFDC’sPardotandExactTarget.
ContentManagementSystem
CMSisoneCMSisoneofthefundamentaltechnologiesneededinyourmarketingecosystem toconsistentlydeliver
anexcellentcustomerexperience.Contentmanagementsystemsarethesystemsthatdrivethemostof
thewebsitesthatyousee.Theyseparatethedetailsofhowwebsitesaredraftedbywebdevelopers,from
theworkofcreating,reviewingandpublishingcontentthatisusedwithinthoselayouts.Theycanalso
delivercustom,personalizedcontentbasedoncustomerpersonasfrom datagatheredfrom user’sactivi-
tysuchaschannels,campaigns,visitorinformation,andperformancemeasurements.
ACMScandriveaconsistentwebexperienceforyourcustomerssinceitcanpublishcontentacross
channelsandthroughoutyoursite.Thisprovidescontentconsistencyacrossotherchannelslikeemail
andsocialbyinterfacingwiththoseotherplatformsintheecosystem.CMScanalsointegratewiththe
CRM,MAP,ad-servingsoftware,videostreamingapplicationandanyothersystem thatwouldbeneﬁt
from sharingcustomerdataacrosstheenterprise.
WhendeterminingtherightCMSsolutionforyourbusiness,DouglasMalanin‘6TipsforPickingtheWhendeterminingtherightCMSsolutionforyourbusiness,DouglasMalanin‘6TipsforPickingthe
RightContentManagementSystem forYourBankingWebsite’,outlinessomefactorsthatmighthelp
creditunionsinselectingtheCMStoolthattheywilluse.
1.TypeofFunctionality-Willyouneedlogins,onlinechat,ratesdatabasesordoyouneedasimpler,
lessexpensiveoption.
2.OngoingCosts-AnnualCMSlicensefeesalsoshouldbetakenintoconsiderationandalignwiththe
leveloffunctionalityyouneed.
3.FlexibilityandScalability-CanyourCMSgrowwithyourbusinessandneeds,canitadjusteasilyand
eﬃciently.

43
4.Third-PartyIntegration-Keepinmindthetoolsthatyouwillneedtointegrateandthecapabilitiesof
thesystem.
5.DigitalAgencyInvolvement-Understandthelevelofinvolvementbetweenthein-houseteam anda
digitalagency,whatresourcesyouwillneedvsthecomplexityofthesite.
6.ComplianceConsiderations-Formostbanksandcreditunions,complianceisaprimaryconcern.
TheCMSyouchooseshouldprovidecompliancefunctionalityandtheabilitytomaintainalogof
whenthoseactionswewhenthoseactionsweretaken.
ThetwoleadingvendorsareAdobe(Java)andSitecore(.net)andavarietyofcommercialandopen
sourceproviders.
PlanningfortheFuture
Asyourdigitalecosystem growsorchanges,youshouldhaveastandardframeworkforplanning,
selectingandadoptionofthesetoolsandwhatparttheywillplayinexecutingyourcomprehensive
strategy.
Somekeycomponentsoflaunching,maintainingorchangingatoolinclude:
SupportStaﬀ(ITinvolvement)
CostforlicensinganddevelopmentdollarsCostforlicensinganddevelopmentdollars
Agencyinvolvement
Fitofthetoolnowandaftergrowth
Capabilitytofullyleveragethetool
Themarketingecosystem isalivingandeverchangingenvironment.Itiscriticalthatyoukeepthatin
mindandcontinuetolearnandadapttoinsightsdiscoveredduringtheentirecustomerexperience
pprocess.Itshouldbeadaptiveandinformalandviewedfrom bothup-closeandadistance.Asyougrow,
itwillbeinter-wovenwitheverystepofthisprogressionandbeconsideredpartofyouroverallplanning
process.

44
WhileeverythingdetailedinthiseBookcanseem overwhelmingintotal,itshouldbeconsideredoneof
manytoolstohelpguideyouroveralldigitalmarketingstrategyandplanning.Whilepresentedlinearly,
muchofthisprocessisdoneintandem andinoverlappingworkstreams,afterallmarketingmovesfast-
andsodoourcustomers.Forcreditunionsthatarelookingtodeveloparobustcustomerexperience
strategythatresultsineitherimprovedcustomeracquisitionorretention,hopefullythishelpedtogen-
eratesomeoverarchingideasorgiveguidanceonsomeoftheprogressionofdevelopingorevolving
youroverallstrategy.
12.Roadmap
DevelopaDigitalStrategy
Createyour
CustomerExperiencePlan
Developing
Buyer
Personas
andJourneys
DigitalLead
Management
Framework Tracking
YourPerformance
ToolsandTechnology

AbouttheAuthor
45
CarolineSchmidisanaccomplishedmarketingleaderwithover15
yearsofexperienceinmarketingstrategiesincludingthecreation
ofintegrated,bestpracticedrivenglobaldemandgenerationand
multi-channelmarketingprogramsforseveralFortune500
companiesacross50+countries.Shehasstaﬀedanddeveloped
successfulteamsandinfrastructureintheB2B,B2Candchannel
spacesacrosscustomeracquisition,leadnurtureandloyaltywith
marmarketingautomation,digitalbranding,SEO/SEM,social,content,
eventsandanalyticsdashboardcomponents.
CarolineSchmid
VicePresident,DemandGenerationPractice

Definitive-Guide-to-Digital-Demand-Generation-for-Credit-Unions

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