There are plenty of financial services marketing tools out there. Email marketing tools. Social media schedulers. AI integrations meant to power marketing messages. And then there’s the one you might not often think about: your people.
Your best marketing tools are not pixels or paper, but flesh and blood.
Collateral (in whatever form that takes) brings consumers to you, but they only commit for the long run if the right people are in place. Even in this digital era, it’s highly unlikely someone will never have to interact with your team. When they need to visit a physical location or call your representatives, the experience they receive communicates a lot about you.
Financial Services Marketing Isn’t Always Glamorous
Big, bombastic financial services marketing displays make headlines…but marketing isn’t always glamorous. It’s often as simple as meeting a pressing need.
USAA discovered in its recent market research that 47% of American adults used reward points to pay for essentials versus 26% who used them for special expenses. So, it launched cards geared toward cash back on essential purchases. That’s not a shiny, jazzed-up marketing effort, but it is an effective one.
The folks encountering your frontline staff have pressing needs. How your team addresses those needs is (although not glamorous) a powerful marketing message.
The Attitude Adjustment
The biggest detriment to your staff’s interpersonal marketing skills are their own attitudes. According to data aggregated by Greg Cook, 68% of consumers who leave do so because of an employee’s attitude of indifference. Note it’s employee “indifference” that drives people away. Not employee anger or blatant rudeness.
The small things matter. The small things tell others who you are.
Transform indifference into engagement. Train your staff to pay attention, stay positive and solve consumer problems as efficiently as possible. Problems are unavoidable during your time with a consumer, so your attitude must be in tip-top shape when they arise. Tell people who you are – an engaged organization that cares about making life better.
Have the Courage to Cross-Sell
In his book “Selling Boldly,” Alex Goldfayn discusses how more money is lost from fear than you realize. The fear of rejection or looking foolish or somehow sabotaging the relationship keeps you from maximizing your business. And it’s often fear that keeps your staff from marketing relevant services (or cross-selling).
The thing is…your current consumers simply don’t know what you offer. To assume they know and actively want to avoid doing more business with you is the wrong assumption. If you have a service relevant to them, tell them about it!
You don’t need to be sleazy or pushy. Just give them the information. Their interaction with your team members might be the only time to hear about something that can improve their lives!
Don’t Lose Further Down the Funnel
Marketing collateral is still important for attracting business. Those tools mentioned at the beginning of the article are still important for attracting business. But neglecting your people as a financial services marketing tool means you risk losing business further down the funnel (even when the consumer already works with you).
Make your team into the best financial services marketing tool possible. Book a consultation for consumer experience training, and we’ll help you do that.
FAQS: FINANCIAL SERVICES MARKETING & YOUR FRONTLINE STAFF
Why are employees considered a financial services marketing tool?
Collateral and digital tools bring consumers in, but people keep them. Even in a digital era, most consumers will eventually interact with a team member — and that experience communicates as much about the organization as any ad campaign. Your best marketing tools are flesh and blood, not pixels or paper.
Does financial services marketing always have to be big and flashy to be effective?
No. Some of the most effective marketing simply meets a pressing need. When USAA discovered that 47% of American adults were using reward points for essential purchases, it launched cash-back cards for everyday spending — no flashy campaign, just a relevant solution. Frontline staff who efficiently solve consumer problems are doing the same thing: unglamorous, powerful marketing.
What is the biggest attitude problem that undermines frontline marketing?
Indifference. According to data cited by credit union CEO Greg Cook, 68% of consumers who leave do so because of an employee’s attitude of indifference — not anger or rudeness, just disengagement. The small things tell people who you are. Training staff to stay present, positive, and solution-focused is one of the highest-leverage investments a financial services organization can make.
Why don't frontline staff cross-sell more, and how do you fix it?
Fear. As Alex Goldfayn argues in “Selling Boldly,” more revenue is lost to fear of rejection than most leaders realize. Staff assume consumers already know what’s available and don’t want to seem pushy. In reality, most consumers simply don’t know what else you offer. Sharing relevant services isn’t sleazy — it’s genuinely useful, and a frontline interaction may be the only opportunity to do it.
What happens when financial services organizations neglect their people as a marketing tool?
They lose business further down the funnel — sometimes from consumers who are already customers. Marketing and digital tools can attract people, but a poor frontline experience drives them away regardless of how strong the top-of-funnel effort is. Investing in consumer experience training protects the return on every other marketing dollar spent.
