The digital landscape is changing, and community banks must adapt to keep pace. One of these changing aspects is the art of customer acquisition. Traditional methods might not cut it anymore, but one strategy is proving particularly effective – retargeting.

Retargeting is a form of online advertising that enables banks to stay connected with their audience, even after they leave their website. In essence, it’s the digital equivalent of a friendly reminder that nudges potential customers back to your bank’s services.

So, how can community banks leverage retargeting?

Understanding Your Audience

Firstly, it’s necessary to understand who your audience is, and what they want. With modern digital tools, it’s possible to gather valuable data about your website visitors. This data includes which pages they visited, how long they stayed, and which services they showed interest in.

Retargeting works by utilizing a simple Javascript code, often referred to as a pixel, that is embedded in your website. This pixel is unseen by your site visitors and does not impact your website’s performance. Each time a new visitor arrives on your site, the pixel adds an anonymous browser cookie. Later, when your recent visitors browse the web, the cookie lets your retargeting partner, like Facebook or LinkedIn, know when to serve your targeted ads, ensuring that this content is served only to people who have previously visited your site. This makes retargeting an effective tool for optimizing the return on your online advertising spend.

Tailoring The Message

Once you know your audience, you can tailor your retargeting ads to meet their interests. If a visitor was checking out small business loans, retarget an ad about your competitive rates for these loans. If they were browsing mortgage services, highlight your home-buying assistance programs.

But How Does That Work?

With the help of retargeting data, you can ensure that your tailored message reaches the right people at the right time. When a visitor explores a specific service on your website, such as a small business loan or mortgage, the retargeting pixel drops a cookie into their browser. This cookie tracks their online activity, allowing your retargeting provider to display relevant ads based on their interests when they browse other websites. This precision-targeted approach ensures that potential customers see ads for the services they are most interested in, thereby increasing the likelihood of conversion. By delivering tailored messages to a relevant audience, retargeting optimizes your advertising efforts and boosts return on investment.

Offering Value

Present value in your retargeting ads. It could be a complimentary financial planning session or a waived account setup fee. Special offers compel visitors to return and take the next step.

Examples of Special Offers for Retargeting Ads

1. Cash Back Offers: Another enticing special offer is a cash back scheme on certain banking services. For example, offering cash back on the use of a newly issued debit or credit card can encourage visitors to return and apply.
2. Free Financial Consultation: Providing a complimentary one-hour financial consultation with a bank advisor is another compelling offer. This allows potential customers to get a taste of the personalized service your community bank provides, which can prompt them to become long-term clients.
3. Reduced Interest Rates for Business Loans: Offering reduced interest rates for a limited period on business loans can be an effective strategy to attract business customers. This special offer can encourage businesses who are contemplating securing additional funds for operations or expansion to take the plunge, thereby driving new customer acquisitions for your bank.

Tracking and Refining

Track the success of your retargeting campaigns and refine them over time. Not every strategy will work the first time, but with careful tracking and analysis, you can understand what resonates with your audience.

Methods to Track the Effectiveness of Your Retargeting Campaign

1. Conversion Tracking: This involves monitoring the actions users take after clicking on your ad. This could include signing up for your email newsletter, completing a purchase, or filling out a contact form. By tracking conversions, you can identify which ads and strategies are most effective at driving desired actions.
2. Click-Through Rate (CTR): This is the percentage of individuals who click on your ad out of the total number of people who see it. A high CTR indicates that your ad is attractively designed and well-targeted.
3. Cost per Acquisition (CPA): This measures how much it costs you to acquire a customer through your retargeting campaign. A lower CPA indicates a more cost-effective campaign.
4. Return on Investment (ROI): By comparing the revenue generated from your retargeting campaign to the cost of the campaign itself, you can calculate your ROI. A higher ROI signifies that your retargeting efforts are profitable.
5. Time Spent on Site: Tracking the amount of time users spend on your site after clicking on a retargeting ad can indicate the level of engagement and interest in your products or services.
6. Bounce Rate: Monitoring your bounce rate, or the percentage of visitors who navigate away from your site after viewing only one page, can help identify any issues with your landing pages or the relevancy of your ads.

Remember that tracking is an ongoing process. Adjust and refine your retargeting strategies based on the insights you gain from these metrics.

In conclusion, retargeting represents a powerful tool for community banks to acquire new customers. As the digital environment continues to evolve, community banks that embrace such innovative strategies will stand out from the crowd, attract new customers, and strengthen relationships with their existing clientele.