Recently I spoke at a credit union conference and raised the subject of social media as a critical tool for connecting with those who will be your future members. The response from several members of the audience surprised me.
While I’m well aware that there are some true ‘facebook, myspace, and twitter haters’ out there…people who don’t get it, don’t like it, and think it has no useful purpose, I was truly unaware of the almost paranoid level of concern that some in the credit union world have about these potential marketing tools.
The concerns expressed by the group centered around three things:
1. Social media is a waste of time and produces no results.
2. Social media makes it too easy for people to share negative things about us.
3. Social media is not for business, it is for personal communications.
Each of these arguments has its merits, and it is not surprising that some folks find them to be strong enough reasons not to explore the power of these still emerging media tools. But as with most things, there are at least two sides to each of these concerns.
Sure, social media efforts take time, but so does everything else that you do to connect with your members. And unlike broadcast messages, expensive brochures, and direct mail pieces, the social media tools are very low cost and reach those who have in essence raised their electronic hands and said “Please keep me informed.” That makes the contacts and communications more valuable to the recipient and the sender, which builds the relationship and creates loyalty that cannot be matched with traditional marketing methods.
Yes, it is easy for those who wish to say negative things about your credit union to do so via social media. But I would much rather be part of the conversation and in the loop where I know what is being said, than to dismiss the tool being used to share the message. By listening and learning, then being proactive to correct the problems, you develop a collaboration that allows you to become better in serving all of your members, not just the ones who come to you and complain, and that makes your credit union more appealing to a broader range of members.
OK, even the name suggests that social media is personal and not business focused, but the fact is that being social and collaborative is a way of life today, especially for the Gen-Y members that every credit union needs to attract to build a foundation for long term success. If you take a quick look around you’ll see many business that have thrived by leveraging the desire that individuals have to share their experiences with others…would Amazon.com have such loyal customers if it weren’t for the access they give them to reviews from other customers for every product they sell?
The bottom line: Social media may not pay off immediately, it may allow those who don’t like you to sing it from the cyber-mountain tops, and it may seem more personal than it should be, but for now it is here to stay. Fearing the medium and avoiding it makes about as much sense as believing that the world needs only one computer as some did in the early days of computing. Instead, why not embrace it, learn about it, and explore it…that will reveal how it best fits into your longer term plan and how it can work for your credit union!
