It’s no question that continued growth is a key part of any financial institution’s success. To achieve this, it’s important to not only gain new accountholders but also retain existing ones. Makes sense, right? But for many institutions, that's easier said than done.
Engaging with new accountholders and staying top-of-mind with existing ones can be time-consuming and complex. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed without the resources and manpower to execute your plan. That’s where onboarding and accountholder retention marketing strategies come in – and we’re here to explain it all!
Let’s Start With Onboarding!
So a new accountholder joined your financial institution – congratulations on bringing better banking to a new individual! Oftentimes, new accountholders join to take advantage of a specific product or service, whether that's an auto loan thanks to your institution’s great rate, a certificate featuring a high dividend or a credit card that earns impressive rewards. However, products like loans or certificates are temporary. Once the loan is paid off or the certificate term is up, your accountholder may jump ship.
To keep them from leaving, it’s important to engage with a new accountholder early on. That’s where having an onboarding program is beneficial. By staying engaged with a new consumer, you can more effectively encourage them to sign up for other financial products and services that meet their needs. Essentially, it’s a great way to cross-sell! Pitching additional products and services tends to be more effective soon after someone becomes a customer – you have more of their mindshare just after they join. (Engaging with them further down the line can pay off but is usually tougher, but we’ll talk more about what we call reboarding in a little bit.)
So how exactly does an onboarding program work? First, you’ll want to partner with a marketing expert, like image.works, that is skilled at creating an onboarding program. At image.works, we’ve found that one of the easiest ways to do this is through marketing automation.
Marketing automation is a program that establishes a custom series of communications through automated drip email campaigns. The beauty of automated emails is that there is little to no effort on your end. Each month, a list of new accountholders is uploaded to image.works’ onboarding program, triggering a series of automated emails welcoming them to your financial institution.
The Welcome Email
In the welcome email, the accountholder is informed of the benefits of banking with your institution; you can also choose to direct them to a landing page with a survey that asks about the financial products and services they are interested in learning more about. The best part? When the reader clicks a link in your email or fills out the survey, they become trackable on your website – you can view which pages they visit, giving you insight into what financial products or services they may be actively shopping for.
Marketing Automation Example: If your new accountholder clicks a link in an email about high-yield checking accounts, and 2 weeks later they visit your website and look at credit cards and auto loans, you can see that they’re interested in those financial products.
The Survey
If you choose to include a survey in your welcome email, its results will give you an idea of what products the recipient is interested in. Depending on which financial products and services they select, accountholders will then automatically receive email drips containing further information about their interests, and as result, marketing those financial products to them.
Additional Emails
Your new accountholders will also receive emails 30, 60 and 90 days after joining, helping to keep your financial institution top-of-mind.
Customize Your Customer Journey
It’s important to note that the onboarding roadmap outlined above is just a general example. It can be customized in many different ways to fit your institution’s unique needs, whether that be incorporating a 120-day email, adding additional onboarding emails that get triggered if an accountholder doesn’t have a checking or savings account or adding in an anniversary email to congratulate them on being a member for an entire year! Needless to say, there are many cross-selling opportunities to connect with your accountholders.
Interested in learning more?
View our onboarding and marketing automation services. Plus, check out our marketing automation webinar.
Want to check out some samples?
Take a look at our onboarding email examples and marketing automation examples.
Onboarding and Marketing Automation not the right fit for you?
Consider a welcome kit instead! Welcome kits are an effective strategy to promote your products and services right off the bat in a way that makes the member feel welcomed and taken care of. Easily view our welcome kit services or take a look at our welcome kit examples.
Retain Existing Accountholders
What about existing accountholders? Great question! Your existing accountholders are the backbone of your financial institution – without them, you wouldn’t be where you are today – so it’s just as important to give them ample attention and care. There are many good retention strategies to encourage existing accountholders to engage with your brand. Let’s dive into them!
Reboarding
Much like onboarding, reboarding uses marketing automation to connect with accountholders through a series of automated emails. However, this time you’re connecting with existing accountholders in an attempt to re-engage with them. Through strategic messaging, the ultimate goal is to encourage loyalty and strengthen the relationship.
When looking to reboard accountholders, you might consider:
- Providing educational resources to re-establish value and trust
- Promoting new or underused financial products or services
- Encouraging appointments with financial advisors
- Introducing incentives and rewards to spark re-engagement
- Asking for feedback through surveys to better understand why accountholders have become inactive
Through re-engagement and cross-selling products, accountholders reconnect with your brand and are encouraged to continue engaging with your institution.
Want to check out a sample?
You can view a reboarding program example here.
SmartTrack
Want to discover who is actively shopping for a new loan near you so you can recapture current loan-seeking accountholders who may be shopping elsewhere, while also acquiring non-accountholders who are shopping in the area? Then SmartTrack is the perfect choice for you!
SmartTrack utilizes the three major credit bureaus to track loan inquiries within your set parameters, allowing you to see active shoppers in real time. Within 24 hours of your creditworthy shoppers showing interest in a loan, they’ll receive a jumbo postcard and email blast from you, placing your financial institution at the forefront of their mind. Talk about perfect timing!
Interested in learning more?
You can learn more about SmartTrack here.
Want to check out some samples?
You can view SmartTrack examples here.
IP Targeting
To keep your accountholders engaged and informed about the financial products and services you offer, sometimes you need the power of repetition. That’s where IP targeting comes in. IP targeting is a strategy that uses the IP addresses of homes to send digital ads to your audience.
Your target audience will see your ad around 15 times, because the more times they see your ad, the more likely they are to take action. These ads can be part of a bigger marketing strategy, allowing you to stay top of mind even after your target has tossed a postcard or left your branch. Plus, the beauty of a digital strategy like IP targeting is that it allows you to quickly and easily update your messaging or change the focus of your campaign.
IP targeting also allows for convenient ROI analysis, so you can see the quantifiable impact of your campaign.
Interested in learning more?
You can learn more about IP targeting here. Plus, check out our IP targeting webinar.
Want to check out some samples?
You can view IP targeting examples here.
Newsletters
Another great way to engage with accountholders is by positioning your institution as a resource. Finances can be daunting and overwhelming, and many people are unaware of the tools and resources available to them. That’s where a newsletter comes in.
Newsletters often serve as a more educational approach to promoting financial products and services. By becoming a resource to your accountholders, you become a trusted source for financial information while also establishing a sense of loyalty.
You have many options when it comes to newsletters. A quarterly newsletter is one of the most common frequencies among our clients, with options for print, digital flipping books and email newsletters.
Interested in learning more?
You can learn more about newsletters here.
Want to check out some samples?
You can view newsletter examples here.
Phew! That was a lot of information! When it comes to accountholder growth and retention, there are many programs and strategies at your disposal. It’s all about finding the right one for you! Did something catch your eye? Reach out to one of our account managers to discuss your goals one-on-one! Contact us today at 800.777.1663.
Interested in learning even more about accountholder growth and retention? Check out our accountholder growth and retention webinar.