Noise

The marketing shake-up: social media in financial services.

Fact 1: 78% of the UK consumers are positively willing to interact with brands to develop their products and services (otherwise known as co-creation).

Fact 2: 45% would be ‘much more likely’ to tell others about the company if they were so engaged with the brand.

Fact 3:  6% of UK organisations are ready to integrate social media into their marketing plans to engaged with their target audiences

Social media is re-writing the rules of marketing by empowering consumers to make or break brands. The reach, connectedness and speed which powers social media communications means products and services get real-time web coverage. Your target audiences exchange opinions, compare products and services, and interrogate brands.  They are talking 24/7 about the good, bad  and downright ugly experiences of your brand, products and services - and of your competitors’ brands. The b2c one-legged monologue, where you talk to your target is getting a serious re-make with the addition of your audience talking back (c2b) and audiences swapping views between themselves (c2c).

The question each marketer must answer is: can I afford not to listen to what is being said? Am I happy in the passive listener role – or should I be part of the multi-way social media dialogue?

Combined with data collection techniques, social media equips marketers with tools to respond, create a dialogue and engage consumers on a positive peer-to-peer level.  Social media also drives traffic to websites, and can generate sales.

In May 2010, bakehouse held a social media in financial services event. Some of the leading financial services providers and commentators joined us for a discussion of their plans and strategies, and participated in a discussion on how FS can utilise the learnings of existing social media success stories. The forum offered a unique opportunity for FS marketers to share the thinking on the use of social media in their businesses, and the opportunities and challenges social media creates for them.

Whether you are already planning to integrate social media with your marketing strategy - b2b or b2c -, or want just to explore its potential for your business, we would love to talk to you. And, if you list IFAs amongst your target audience, we will be happy to share the findings of our recent IFA social media research with you. Please contact Eva Krydowska on evak@bakehousecommunications.com or 0207 631 9732.