Sorry bankers, your customers do not want to be your Facebook friends, or follow you on Twitter, or see your Pinterest or Instagram pictures.
According to findings released yesterday by Carlisle & Gallagher Consulting Group, the consultancy, fully 87% of customers find banks’ use of social media “annoying, boring or unhelpful.” The findings show negative attitudes toward interacting with banks on social media for problem-solving, and show that customers doubt the overall effectiveness of banks’ use of social media.
Here are the numbers:
- 90% of consumers prefer to discuss their problems in private with their bank;
- 68% of consumers would never use a social media channel to solve a problem with their bank; and
- 52% of consumers believe banks’ use of social media is ineffective.
It is not explained in the survey results what effective use of social media might mean, but presumably it involves photos of cats.
But just because customers don’t think much of what banks are doing on social media and don’t think that banks can help them with financial problems in the channel, does not mean that customers ignore their banks on social media. For example, 1 in 3 customers responded that they would use social media to complain to a bank. The majority of those complaining would choose Facebook for that purpose, followed by Twitter and LinkedIn:
- Facebook – 54%
- Twitter – 18%
- LinkedIn – 12%
- Blogs – 10%
- Other – 6%
Banks need to be on social media to field complaints and protect their brands, in other words, and perhaps to move discussions about problem-solving to a more secure channel. The large banks, by and large, do this well:
@emaker_ I called and left a message for you. Please return our call at the number provided or DM us when you are available. ^er
— Bank of America (@BofA_Help) March 18, 2014
It should also be noted that, though the survey indicates customers don’t want to be Facebook friends with their banks, JPMorgan Chase’s Community Giving Facebook page has 3.7 million likes. Counting 45.5 million FDIC-insured deposit accounts, this works out to 1 Facebook like per 12.3 customers. Bank of America’s Facebook page has about 1.7 million likes versus 62 million FDIC-insured deposit accounts, or 1 like per 58 customers.
Jason Vitug, CEO of social media startup Phroogal, told Bank Innovation that while some financial matters must always remain private, social media is making other things that were once private more public. “Whom people seek to do business with or continue to do business with will be increasingly more public.”
Phroogal, which was the top vote-getter in the Bank Innovation DEMOvation Challenge earlier this month, is a community where users can ask each other for advice on questions about their finances, anonymously or not, as they choose.
Vitug added that he agrees with the survey results that banks are misfiring on social media. “I agree that banks’ use of social media has been focused on selling rather than helping,” he said. “It’s been focused on marketing the bank rather than educating. Social isn’t a place to sell. It’s a channel to educate that may ultimately mean your consumer chooses an alternative. But, that information is important in creating products that bank consumers will find more valuable.”
Is anyone surprised by this? Customers perceive banks as not providing value. It’s been this way for a very long time and aint going to change soon until some FI breaks through the commodity clutter and figures out a way to provide some compelling value.
The article is somewhat misleading and not very illuminating. I’m sure customers and banks are in agreement that neither wants to resolve financial issues or divulge personal information online. Plus, there is a role banks can play on Facebook as evidenced by the number of Chase likes. We just have to be thoughtful and strategic. But that’s not new either.
It is really very difficult to ‘like’ a bank , at-least in its current form. Its like ‘liking’ a highway. It’s far more natural to ‘like’ a brand like Apple or a product like Moto G, one feels connected either aspiration-ally or a genuine delight with the product, none of these apply to a bank. Once the loan or the deposit is booked, bank’s want to stay away, and I like them that way too..
This story hits home to me because I wrote a social media policy for a credit union out here in Tucson. The problem is that the corporate structure is to rigid for social media. Our policy was designed to interact with our members and answer questions. This is rarely what happens with banks social media sites. In fact, I have since left the CU because of this lack of interaction. Banks need to remember that it is “Social” media, not just media. If they allowed employees to socialize, the numbers might be different.
Finally someone has put some data around this notion of consumers allegedly waiting for an FI’s digital strategy to include a prerequisite ‘SM’ component. FI web ecosystems are a bad mash-up of stale brochureware and an uninspired entry point for online banking services, period. I don’t believe that will change until bank’s have the courage to ask themselves a simple question – ‘What am I willing to offer to my customers in my digital eco-system in exchange for their digital attention, their engagement and their permission?”
We think customers want an online eco-system that supports their financial services needs just like they get fromOverstock.com or Amazon.com for their shopping, comparing and buying of commodities. We need to create an E-Branch where consumers can shop, compare, buy, enjoy a single check-out, and have a post-sale online account that captures records of what they bought, how they paid for it, information about their account, and if needed again, account information that will be automatically stored and retrievable. Think Amazon Prime or Overstock’s Club O. And allowing consumers to comment and share their experiences inside this ‘financial services’ digital store —- with ratings/stars/likes —- now we’d be onto something.
It will be interesting to know what was the age group and demographics of the banked customer population that was targeted for the study. Per some other studies, usage of social media for banking is expected to be quite popular with the Gen Y population.
I just don’t see why an Apple should be “liked,” but other brands, including financial services brands, should not. There has been precious little thought put into how social media can play a role in financial services beyond it being a channel for bitching and moaning. More thought is needed, considering the volumes of consumers getting their information and recommendations via social media.
The big issue I see within financial services industries is trying to be liked for the sake of being liked. There is a perceived envy of brands that are worn like badges by the consumers. However, we see why consumers become huge fans and advocates for those brands because they deliver on an intended promise.
FIs want to emulate how others are using social to have discussions with their consumers. I definitely think there is a better way of doing so that increases an FI image of openness and engagement.
Consumers want private matters private but they will be influenced by public information. I remember tweeting to United Airlines about a bad customer service experience at check-in counter. When I got to the gate United Airlines had upgraded me and tweeted with their apologies. I was amazed and excited. I tweeted once to a bank I was doing business with and a day later received a response that I had to call to resolve a very non-private issue. I never bothered to respond.