Everybody's Reviewing It! Why Gen-Y Depends on Other People's Opinions Online

by Ron Daly 

Ah, Gen-Y - the "El Dorado" of marketing demographics. People are hazy about where they are, what they do, and the richness of the treasures they possess. And after about five years of hearing how critical it is to win over the Gen-Y crowd, we get a little insight into how they buy and behave with their money.

One of the critical things a business (or credit union?) must do, according to a study done by Bazaarvoice, is point Millennials to user reviews (which they describe as "user generated content", or "UGC"). The opinions of other online users of a product or service weight heavy, particularly with regards to electronics. They're more eager to hear from people with "relevant experience" and they're three times as likely as the Baby Boomers to ask for people's opinions on a social media network. 

Why would the opinion of someone a Gen-Yer has never met mean more than their real-world friends and family? Well, in the real world, maybe not. If someone runs up to you on the street and screams "BUY AN iPHONE!", it might not make you break out your wallet right then and there. But when Bazaarvoice means "stranger", I'm pretty sure they mean a "reviewer". And what does a review have? 

• A star rating - Quick and easy. If there are five possible stars and three of those stars are filled, that's a metric. There are typically a row of those stars followed by a number in parentheses indicating how MANY people have responded/rated that product. If a product has four-of-five stars and a thousand reviewers, well, that product is probably pretty good.
• Short write-ups - A short review says a heck of a lot. If it's thoughtful and fully formed, it tells you the reviewer took their time and is a smart, well-informed consumer. If it says "Dis produkt is h0rrible, teh wackness"? That person's probably not so trustworthy. 
• A link back to more information - Some online channels will give you permission to see other things that reviewers have reviewed on that site. This helps you figure out whether a person is ALWAYS negative or just negative about the thing you want to buy. 

Online reviews are interesting and helpful because not only are you evaluating a product, you're evaluating its users. But you don't see a lot of online reviews on a CU's website, do you? At least, I don't. 

Why is that? 

According to that same study (presented in a friendly little infographic on this site), 29% of millenials won't make a decision about credit cards or insurance without feedback from other users. Maybe more important: 

"Most Millennials say companies that include customer feedback on their websites are "honest" (66%) and "credible" (53%). "

Pretty great first impression, right? Think that could work for CUs? Who's willing to start this out? We know of a few CUs over on Facebook that let Facebook users review their products, but who's going to up the ante and include a place for reviews on their actual website? Is some CU out there already doing it? 

And before you go on about how you want to manage all your content and control every aspect of your "online presence", consider that over six hundred thousand people in the US moved their money in the past three months and attributed that switch to Bank Transfer Day, an online event that largely happened TO credit unions, not BECAUSE of them. 

Food for thought. 

Want to "review" this article? Have some insight? Talk to us in the comment section. 

 

 

Go Ahead, Stay Under the Covers - the Monsters Can Still Get You.

by Ron Daly 

A while back, the credit union Twittersphere had a conversation about blog comments and whether a blog is really a "blog" if it doesn't allow any feedback. 

"A blog without comments is still a blog, it's all about frequency of posting," some said. "A blog without comments might as well be a static web page," said others. Good examples on either side, but my question was always, "why block comments?" 

So...why block comments? I think I know why. It's because someone might say something bad. 

I've heard a lot of hubbub about "negative feedback" in the past five years. With the emergence of social media and the acceptance of blogging as a medium, people immediately skim over all the basics and jump right in on asking, "What if someone says something negative?" 

What if, indeed? 

The Monsters Are IN the Bed 

The idea of "monsters under the bed" isn't new to any parents out there...we've all had to check for them at some point. We know the truth, but if it makes our little ones feel safer? Sure, we'll check. We'll put in a nightlight, or we'll buy an extra teddy bear. We'll make sleep possible and, hopefully, lasting. 

When the "monsters" are not monsters but are instead an unsatisfied member? Don't worry about them being there or not being there. They're there. There IS a monster there, not under the bed, but in the bed. The question is, do you want to DEAL with the monster or PRETEND it isn't there? 

I think the term of choice for bloggers/social media managers/marketing people who consciously ignore bad feedback or go out of their way to hide it is "tone deaf". I also think there's something really sad about wanting to "go after" commenters or social media users who say something negative. Want to see where that gets  you? Read this story about Boners BBQ attacking someone for leaving a bad Yelp review [ABC News]. 

And while we're on the topic, what about social media from INSIDE the workplace? "We don't want people saying anything that might make us non-compliant!" 

And you manage that...how? Turning off social media? You turn off social media on their network, that's not going to stop anyone from doing something anti-compliant from home or on their phone.

"What if they complain about the credit union or our members?" So, let me get this straight - that's something you DO NOT want to know about, AT ALL? 

Monster Resistant, Not Monster Proof

The truth about business is, you'll never make everyone happy. You'll make some people really happy, you'll be fine with a lot of people, and you'll get a couple of folks good and angry. Getting the angry folks back on your side isn't a matter of just throwing money at them - sometimes, complaints and gripes are solved through careful evaluation. 

Let's run this down: 

• The complaint is anonymous and full of cuss words - Probably not something you need to burn a lot of energy working on, as it's just some punk playing with your comment fields or being a jerk on Twitter or Facebook. Moving on...
• The complaint is angry, but seems to be about a genuine problem and has an email address attached - Why not reach out to that person via their email and ask them more about the problem? For every one of these complaints you get, you're probably not hearing several more; this complaint might actually solve a problem you've been overlooking.
• The complaint is addressing a very specific problem, relative to that member - Then deal with it and follow up with that member, who will be VERY appreciative of your time and attention. 
• There are sixty complaints, all dealing with the same problem - Odds are, unless you are a top ten credit union with billions and billions in assets, you won't have enough members for this level of feedback. But if you find yourself dealing with a mob scene on your blog, figure out where they're coming from - who's got a good point, who's just gloming on, who's a defender of the brand. 

I think that's the worst part of the decision to completely block out feedback - this idea that you're holding back a tidal wave of negative people saying negative things. We've run this blog for about three years now and we've never had seventy comments to moderate at once. We do moderate, one comment at a time, and we post the ones that meet all our guidelines. Haven't seen our guidelines page? Here it is. Go look at it. That's been here from day one. 

As for social media, we take our own medicine - we use Social Sentry. It tracks social media usage on your office network, public and private, and also tracks public posts from users outside of the office all the time. When I, as the admin, see social media use I don't think is fit for the network, I intervene. When I see an account I want to follow, I follow that account and I get their public feed. I don't spend a lot of time worrying because I stay on top of things. Better than being in the blind, right? 

Managing the expectations and the reactions of members is easy. Just be clear, be consciencious, and be fair. When a problem arises, solve it. But don't think ignoring comments or completely disallowing them will stop people from talking about you. 

Be in charge of your repuation.  

The Pony Express Returns! -or- Why Electronic Delivery Makes More Sense Than Ever

by Ron Daly 

Nostalgia is bringing back some interesting things nowadays. The Smurfs are in my DVD player (my daughter's choice, not mine), the Muppets are back in theaters, and I could swear I've seen the New Kids on the Block on TV recently. Everything old is new again. 

Which is why the post office is returning to delivering mail via pony. Yes, the USPS has invested what's left of its money in the purchase and upkeep of a fleet of ponies to deliver the mail that keeps our country moving. Yes, it will take longer to get your mail. Yes, rates are going to increase. But hey, at least you get to pet a pony once in a while? 

...Huh. Wait a second. I think I have my facts wrong. Service on first-class mail is going to slow down, and postage is going up, but...no ponies? No, the USPS is just gumming up the works as a cost-saving measure. According to the video below, they lost $4 billion in the last year, they've got to stem the loss of funds somehow.

[Can't access the video? Click here to watch it on the Today show site.]

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I guess we've played a part in their trouble...in the past ten years, we've delivered more than 27 million eStatements for financial institutions across the country.  

Is the American postal system dead? No, it still has its place. And it's pretty impressive that you can send a letter from anywhere to anywhere else in the U.S. for 45 cents. But as any project manager, CEO or business pro can tell you, the three choices are "good, fast, cheap", and you can only pick two. You want it good and cheap? You can't get it fast. You want it good and fast? You can't have it cheap. You want it fast and cheap? You can forget about quality. You just can't have it all.

...or can you?

For month-to-month statements and daily notices, encouraging members to switch to e-delivery means you can hold all three corners of the triangle at once. Think about it:

• Good - eStatements and notices can be presented in a way that's identical to printed statements and notices. You don't sacrifice the "look" or readability and the e-docs are compliant with all regs (ours are, anyway). 
• Fast - electronic documents are processed on your schedule and are available whenever members want them. Just send them an email and they can log in to a secure host that shows them an archive of docs that they can print out for themselves (if they want), or just keep online to reduce clutter. 
• Cheap - Printed, mailed documents cost a minumum $.44  .45 cents - you're already saving  that much per user, and that's not even counting what you save in printing and paper costs. With the right company and the right e-documents model (ahem), the MORE e-document users you have, the LESS you pay per statement/notice. What's not to love?

We've been saying it for years and, by George, we keep getting it right; the Post Office's business model can't sustain cheap, speedy, quality delivery. They don't have a war chest to help with the cost - they have to charge more. But e-documents? They've been the same price for a good long while now and they keep providing the same benefits. It's easy to get more members using eStatements - the hard part is not kicking yourself when you see what a HUGE difference it can make on your bottom line!

The truth is, there are very few - if any - documents that used to go in the mail that can't be sent and stored online. Need to get more electronic document users at your business? Click here to get in touch with me. Just ask for Ron! 

The Unengaged Member- Whose fault is it? The Credit Union or the Member?

Reactivation and growth from unengaged members seems to be one of the hottest topics in credit union marketing circles. Why?

Most credit unions just received their annual report on member profitability. Executive Teams and Boards are staring at a section that lists the percentage of their members that are considered "unengaged" by the profitability model. From the clients we've talked to, the percentage is staggering - ranging between 20% and 30% of total members. To put that in perspective, if you are a 50,000 member credit union, you’ve got 10,000 to 15,000 of those members unengaged! 

So now the bigger debate - whose fault is it that most credit unions have a significant number of unengaged members? The member’s or the Credit Union’s? 

I recently found out that a colleague had gotten his last car loan indirectly from a credit union through his car dealer because it offered the lowest rate. He took the credit union up on the offer and put $5 in an account to get the loan. After the loan was paid off he became the typical “unengaged” member. When I asked him why he didn’t do more with the CU he replied "I heard from the CU once or twice over the course of the four years when they sent me a paper newsletter. As far as I’m concerned, it’s their job to let me know what products and services they could offer and they didn’t do a very good job." 

Key take-away, don't assume members know your product set as well as you do and that they all use the same communication channel.

Want to get engaged?

A recent article on the Bank Marketing Strategy Blog "Collecting Behavioral Insights Increases Value of Relationship" states that best-in-class financial organizations supplement traditional new account opening with an onboarding process that includes a short survey of needs and behaviors of the new customer. While this survey can also measure customer satisfaction with the new account opening experience, most banks focus on gathering insights into the reason for opening the new account, communication channel preferred, the financial goals of the customer and what financial services the new  customer holds elsewhere.

In addition, some banks ask questions to determine key life events that may be on the horizon and determine who in the household will be in charge of managing the new account. 

Forget whose fault it is!

 If you believe the saying that "It is cheaper to get an existing member to do more with you than it is to find a new member", then marketing should be focusing heavily on the unengaged number in their reports.

As Jim Marous points out in the Bank Marketing Strategy article:

A deeper knowledge of the customer's financial goals, channel preferences, product usage, preferred channels and reason for coming to your institution is needed to personalize the onboarding communication and move the customer from product engagement to relationship entrenchment.

Think about it, an unengaged member could be viewed as a new member that may not even know about all the products and services available to them. The same on-boarding email engines and surveys used to educate new members could be turned towards unengaged members to learn more about their original reason for joining the credit union, gather current financial needs and to introduce them to the benefits provided by the CU. Click here to see some actual onboarding examples from one of our clients.

Bring us your Tired, Poor and Unengaged.

 Technology offers a fast, inexpensive way to reach your unengaged members. We’ve built an online survey to see what we can learn from unengaged members to help credit unions just like yours. If you’ve got the list of unengaged members and can supply ones that you have email addresses for, we’ll supply the online survey and email engine to try and reach out to them. We’ll survey you members and provide you with the feedback. It’s FREE for the first ten credit unions that take advantage of the offer. Simply go to our Onboarding page and click "Ask for more info". We'll contact the first ten credit unions that apply and get them started.

Want to share your re-engagement strategy? Let us know about it in the comment section.

Are you Delivering Financial Telephone Books and Newspapers?

by Ron Daly

Some things just never change, but should. Two examples.

My family and I returned home this week from our west coast vacation. As we turned into the driveway my daughter spotted a large plastic package with items inside leaning on the mailbox. Being nine, she naturally assumes that every package delivered to the house is something for her. As I exited the car I saw her struggling to carry the package with two large yellow books and one large white book inside. Dropping the 1,000 page books at my feet she asked “Dad, what are these?”

To which I replied, "Those are telephone books, sometimes referred to as 'yellow pages'."

If you have a nine-year-old you know there are even more questions to follow...I believe it went something along these lines.

Q: What are they used for?

A: People use them to look up up the telephone number of someone they want to call or a businesses they might want to hire.

Q: You mean they don’t Google them, look them up in their Outlook contacts or call 411?

A: Guess there are still some folks out there that need them.

Q: Did you pay for these books or ask for them?

A: No, dear.

Looking down the street at all the bags of books lining the driveways as far as the eye could see–

Q: Why did they print all these books, waste all this paper and leave them on everyone’s driveway if no one pays for them or uses them?

A: Guess it’s a conspiracy.

Thumbing through the A-L Yellow Pages she stopped in the “D” section

Q: Dad, why isn’t DigitalMailer listed in the Yellow pages?

A: Well, we are a digital communication company and it doesn’t make sense to spend money this way. Besides, any person that has to use the yellow pages to find us is probably not ready for the products and services we offer.

Q: What good is this ad on this page? It’s in black on yellow paper. There are no moving images and nothing interesting about it. I can’t click the website address to learn more and I can’t hit the phone number and have my cell phone dial the call for me.

A: Not everything keeps up with the changes going on. This is just an old-fashioned way people use to find information.

Her final comment as she walked the books directly over to our recycling bin and dropped them in… "What a waste of good trees."

One more example to share, from a conversation we had with a lovely lady I’ll refer to as “Marge” at the large national newspaper in our area. We decided rather than to stop the Sunday paper while we were gone, we’d just cancel it altogether. After waiting in the call queue for a while Marge was lucky enough to get our call. Here goes:

Ron – We’d like to cancel our Sunday paper subscription.

Marge – Why?

Ron – We get our news from other sources, we never read it and we wind up just recycling it each week.

Marge – What if we give you weekdays free?

Ron – (Thinking to myself – OK Marge, I don’t read Sunday and now you want to give me six more days not to read and recycle?) No thanks, we just want to save the $15 per month by cutting out something we don’t need.

Marge – You know, if you use just three coupons per week from the Sunday coupon section the paper will pay for itself with the money you save.

Ron – (Thinking to myself – Ok Marge, I’m not a “35-cents-off-of-ground-round-cut-that-coupon-out” kinda guy, but I do like that song. Besides that, my yellow and white flowered coupon organizer was retired about two weeks prior to my marriage, never to be resurrected again.) No thanks, we can get coupons and discount codes online for most of the stuff we need.

Marge – What if we just charge you 59 cents each week of the Sunday paper? Will you stay?

Ron – (Now I’m starting to boil realizing that I’ve been paying $15 per month for at least ten years for something that Marge is now selling to me for just over $2.40 per month) No thanks, just cancel the subscription.

I can remember which one of us hung up on the other, but the paper has stopped showing up.

Some things just never change, but should. So, my question is… Are you still delivering financial telephone books and newspapers? Are you relying on old systems and technology to reach customers faster and in the communication channel they want? Have you looked at the organization to make sure that you are not? Do you have any idea where financial services are going on the web and in the branches? Is your Virtual Branch even open?

We’ve launched an eStrategy presentation on the future of financial services that is perfect for senior management and Boards of Directors. Contact me at rdaly@digitalmailer.com for more information.