Pub. 4 2014-2015 Issue 6

O V E R A C E N T U R Y : B U I L D I N G B E T T E R B A N K S - H E L P I N G C O L O R A D A N S R E A L I Z E D R E A M S May • June 2015 17 actively involved in social media. Seeing corporate participation in community activities, service projects, and people like myself makes me think I made a good choice by investing in them. On the other hand, I can only take so many promotional posts for laundry detergent before I’m “All” worn out. Marketing via social media is a treacherous way to lay a foundation for a successful social media presence. If a customer came by your financial institution and asked for more informa- tion about the bank, you wouldn’t throw all of your marketing materials at them and walk away. Instead, you would sit down, talk with them, tell a couple stories, and if conversation allowed, bring up a service they might be interested in. It depends on the person and the situation. Social media is not any different. While you cannot have the same connection with a person via the Internet that you have with a face-to-face relationship, people are people and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter exist because of an innate desire to connect. Social media is an integral part of the com- pany/customer relationship and the key to a successful strategy is to tap into the “me” part of social media, making yourself as relevant and authentic as possible. This concept is especially important for financial in- stitutions just getting into social media because the vast majority of consumers who will “Like” or “Follow” your page will typically be current customers of your bank. That being the case social media should be used sparingly and cautiously for marketing. So, what should you post? Well, it depends. There is no cookie-cutter way to ensure your viewers will connect with your posts. There are some good practices though. Here are a few things to consider as you explore: • Be genuine. People know when you’re not, and love it when you are. • A picture is worth a thousand words. A video is worth ten thousand. If you have the opportunity and ability to share visual media, please do. • You are not alone. Other companies have been blazing this trail for a long time. If you need some ideas to get started, look at what other successful companies are doing to connect with their customers. Facebook’s Facebook page is a great starting point: www. facebook.com/facebook. • Do not post anything that you wouldn’t “Like.” If you don’t like it, then your customers probably won’t either. Using social media to connect with your customers is not an option, nor is it an obligation. It is a privilege and should be an honor to you. By choosing to “Like” or “Follow” your page, your customers are saying “I want you to be a part of my world.” Find- ing your niche requires work, but it will benefit your financial institution’s social media presence, and you might be surprised at what it does for your marketing and reputation as well.  1 http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-research-shows-what-people-ex- pect-from-brands/ 2 http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/sac_report_11_socialme- dia_061114.pdf CEDCO Small Business Finance Corporation Your Best Soursce for SBA Real Estate Loans New Easier Qualification Uninterrupted access to money through a monthly SBA-backed bond auction Low fixed-rate financing Low down payments CEDCO Small Business Finance Corporation Colorado’s SBA 504 Loan Expert TM 1175 Osage Street, Suite 110 Denver CO 80204 Denver 303-893-8989 Grand Junction 970-243-1852 www.cedco.org  More stability for your operation  A stronger balance sheet  An asset to sell when you’re ready AS A LEADING SBA 504 LENDER WE MAKE IT EASY FOR YOU  Buy, Build, Remodel or Expand Real Estate  Purchase and install long-lasting equipment  Fast, expert processing - with low loan costs  Refinance may be an option  We lend up to $5 million: borrow up to $20 million when combined with bank financing  Interest rate as low as 5.25%, fixed for 20 years  Down payments range from 10% to 20%  Most small Businesses are Eligible STREAMLINED PROCESSING  Front Range and mid-mountains call Jeff or Mary Jane 303-893-8989  Western Colorado call Pat 970-243-1861 Alyssa Middleton is a Security+ certified tandemSoftware Support specialist for CoN- etrix. tandem is a security and compliance software suite designed to help financial institutions develop and maintain their Social Media Risk Management Program and overall Information Security Program. To learn more about how CoNetrix can help you with these areas, visit our website at www.CoNetrix.com or email info@CoNetrix.com .