In the wake of teenage influencers and TikTok bloggers, social media has struggled to capture the eyes of people in business accurately and fairly. Social media and other forms of online marketing have shifted into the entertainment realm and changed the way businesses operate in advertising, and sometimes their entire marketing team. Just like any field, banks and credit unions have had to adapt and change techniques to adhere to the digital world. Often, this means banks and credit unions increasing social media activity and going as far as hiring specialists to ensure that posts are leaving the desk and effectively entering the hands of clients.

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Samantha Lund, social media manager for Desert Financial Credit Union, manages a team of three people that run accounts on Instagram, Facebook, X and TikTok. But for Desert Financial, the goal is to interact with members. As a credit union, each member holds shares in the company when they apply for an account.

“We take care of your money and we take care of you,” Lund says.

Utilizing social media

This is also seen through their social media strategy as they have continued to follow trends and focus on community engagement through those platforms.

Lund explains that the most active posts on their Facebook page are simple questions asked to their followers that allow them to comment on their answers — and research can tell us why.

Andrew Stephen from Oxford University is a professor of business and marketing and has studied consumer behavior. His report from 2012 studies behaviors on social media and how companies succeeded in their attempts to engage with followers and clients. His research explains that often when customers can see one another’s opinions it drives engagement and creates a community effect causing them to seek out one another and a tool — usually a business — that can help assist with this.

Lund explains how to create the best social media strategy with goals in mind. This includes identifying an audience, studying the competition, developing content and adjusting strategy in order to adhere to the analysis and response from the audience. Lund explains how she and her team have worked to execute this and have it work toward their goals of increasing membership.

She notes that their social media strategy changes often. “You’re trying to fit in with what people are already saying on the platform, but also trying to stand out on something that they haven’t seen from everyone else. It’s a balance.”

Lund also says that the main difference in choosing between a bank or a credit union is the brand. She explains that rates and benefits are similar if not identical to a traditional bank. 

Engaging students

Lund says Desert Financial’s partnership with Arizona State University has helped the social media strategy and membership with students.

Aside from opening branches on ASU’s Tempe campus and the downtown Phoenix campus, the credit union is the official banking partner of ASU, including issuing an ASU debit card, exclusive access to student-athletes and sponsorships for Sun Devil sports at the Desert Financial Arena. Students can also combine their student ID with a Desert Financial debit card for even more convenience for students who purchase items on campus. 

The social media scene for banks isn’t much different for the national audience. Western Alliance Bank, a national bank with a regional footprint, has served the Southwest since 1994 and has built up more that $70 billion in assets since then.

Stephanie Whitlow, chief marketing officer for Western Alliance Bank, says that their main focus is on LinkedIn. Western Alliance Bank is the largest locally headquartered bank in Arizona and serves Arizona, California and Nevada. Since 2003, the bank has served its Arizona customers and provided financial advice and services to its customers. Western Alliance mainly assists with commercial banking and has chosen LinkedIn to target that audience.

Whitlow says that in 2023, the business saw a 48% increase in impressions from its Facebook and LinkedIn pages. The company also began using X in 2021 as a customer service and advertising tool. X has also been a promising platform for Bridge Bank, a division of Western Alliance based in Northern California that serves businesses all throughout the U.S., specifically those with a tech focus.

Although a larger institution, Alliance Bank only has one associate who manages social media. As the director of the digital team, Whitlow says that they plan their focus on strategy and outcomes. Many of their posts consist of banker profiles, special announcements and upcoming events that are curated to spark community engagement.

Targeting stakeholders

This often looks like graphics of holidays and celebrations such as Pride Month and Memorial Day, as well as advice for small business owners or startups that are looking for a bank to fit their needs. Bridge Bank was started as a technology-focused brand to help with private equity and startups specifically in the technology field. Whitlow explains how X has been a helpful tool for this space because it targets that audience, which reflects on the stakeholders.

“We have to continue to evaluate where we are with our stakeholders,” Whitlow says.

She explained that part of the strategy is to not only cater to clients, but to shareholders and others who evaluate success. Alliance Bank has clients and stakeholders across the nation who are looking for ways to feel connected to the company.

Additionally, Western Alliance has bankers who are experts in aerospace and defense and government contracts, entertainment and media business, commercial real estate, gaming, healthcare and many more niches that cater to a range of services. Whitlow and her team are dedicated to the expansion of clientele and helping existing clients feel informed.

“We want our social media channels to be multifaceted and a place to engage,” she says.