Category Archives: Commercial Banking

A Strategic Framework for Search Engine Optimization

Search engine marketing can be an analytical direct marketer’s dream: it’s quantifiable, trackable, and easy to scale up or down. However, scalability can quickly result in SEM becoming an exercise in “pruning the forest”—a never-ending tactical effort with little bottom-line impact. Raising or lowering bids, concocting new text ads, trying new landing pages—which all have value and can be effective tools for optimization—become random acts of tweaking unless they are applied on a strategic basis.

A strategic approach begins by establishing an analytical structure for organizing SEM performance data so that it brings to light the ad groups or even keywords that should be the target of performance-boosting initiatives like text ad and landing page testing. For example, a strategic approach to managing an organic/paid blended initiative could focus on balancing “click share” (the percent of impressions resulting in a click-through) with cost-efficiency. This would enable a manager to find sub-optimized keywords or groups—ones that are either generating few clicks or very expensive clicks (i.e., high CPC paid)—and to develop specific, targeted tests/changes for improvement.

In addition to enabling you to keep the big picture in view without losing sight of the details, having a strategic approach is a great way to demonstrate and quantify results. Overall search engine performance should go up as a result, but it is the keyword(s) targeted through the approach that will make the most powerful cause-and-effect case.

The return of relationship banking

We have heard much in recent months on banks going “back to basics” and pursuing a relationship banking approach. One of the recent manifestations of this approach is the provision of financial needs assessment, which enables the banker to develop a closer relationship with the customer, as well as providing a platform for marketing financial products and services.

–In introducing new checking accounts, Fifth Third Bank is placing a good deal of emphasis on its free Financial Needs Assessment

–A recent U.S. Bancorp presentation highlighted that it is pursuing a relationship banking approach by offering relationship reviews as well as product packages. Almost half of new U.S. Bank DDA customers are selecting a Consumer Package.

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Banks cannot just automatically switch from a product-centric to a relationship banking model.  In effecting this transition, marketing and sales support (in particular, training and providing support tools to branch personnel) play key roles.  In addition, product development needs to switch from a silo-based approach (often with different product units within a bank competing for the customer’s attention), to a solutions-based model, centered on customer needs and behaviors, and a longer-term payoff.

Are Banks Lending to Small Businesses?

The media has been quick to point out instances where banks have stopped lending to small business clients, either by reducing or eliminating lines of credit, changing terms, upping APRs, or simply refusing loans. The truth is that lending demand has also slowed appreciably, at the same time that banks are looking for ways to reduce risk.

But given all the bad press that is out there, banks are making sure that prospects and clients alike are seeing them less as the villains in a down economy, and more as partners who are in it for the long haul.

Today, to help manage its image despite its crippling losses, Citigroup announced that it is using its TARP monies to fund nearly $45BN in loans. While it is making loans to local governments, municipalities, universities and non-profit hospitals to stimulate local growth, Citi points out that it has been making loans to small businesses as well as consumers.  According to the report, “New lending to U.S. individuals and families, small and mid-sized businesses and large corporations, along with underwriting activity, totaled $120.1 billion in the first quarter of 2009, up from $81.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2008.”

So what does that mean for small businesses specifically? According to Citi, small business loan balances outstanding rose from $1.1BN in March 2008 to $1.3BN in March 2009. Not much of an increase in the grand scheme of things, but $200MM is enough for Citi to report that it is lending, just like its peers.

The full report, which has the catchy title, “What Citi is Doing to Expand the Flow of Credit, Support Homeowners, and Help the U.S. Economy,” can be found on Citi’s website.