| Kippreport.com

Banking and social media: the conversation they don’t want

January 24, 2011 2:46 by shafeer

Banking brands have been slow adopters of social media, and it’s not hard to work out why. Not to put too fine a point on it, consumers have the nasty habit of asking awkward questions, which banks have the habit of not wanting to answer. In the new, always-on digital world, transparency is king. And evasiveness and vacillation will get you noticed. Banking brands should sit up, take notice, get connected – and engage on their customers’ terms.

Back in the mists of digital time, First Direct – a UK retail bank with an honourable history of personal service (albeit on the phone and online) was one of the first to dabble in social media when it created a microsite enabling customers to answer questions and post comments. This inevitably led to some uncomfortable moments. When the bank asked the honest and open question “What do you really want from your bank?” the floodgates opened, and First Direct forum moderators were caught short. Honesty is always a good start.

One questioner, for instance, asked why First Direct offered better rates to new customers rather than rewarding loyalty, going so far as to make helpful product suggestions. PR puffery won’t wash in these kinds of circumstances, but the bank’s responses sounded like the waffle of a corporate machine in action. And all posted live, in real time, in the public domain.

Developing and nurturing an effective brand presence in social media channels takes a combination of relevance, light touch… and genuine emotional intelligence. Empathy and honesty rule. Because there’s clearly a balance to be struck between delivering the agreed line on an issue (like the difficult issue of ‘teaser rates’ for new customers), and genuinely engaging with loyal customers as equals.

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Tags: banks and customer relations, banks and social media, banks social media, business and social media, customer relations social media, customer relatiosn via Twitter, social media, using social media