As a community FI, what makes you different?
Most will automatically say a personal level of service and proximity. That is very true, particularly in the world of “customer service” being equated to a lowest common denominator out of state/offshore call center.
But what really sets you apart from alternatives for your clients? What has drawn them to you in the past? Is it just that you have a branch near their home or work? Is that still a factor today?
I have yet to work with a client where there weren’t powerful affinities with clients that had little to do with convenience. While inertia plays a role, you have customers who not only like doing business with you, they love. You fill an essential role in not just their financial lives but their whole lives.
Maybe you were there for them when they deposited that first paycheck or bought their first house. Or you were there with PPP loans when their business was on the verge of collapse.
You were there to help them when they needed it. When they needed your advice. When your product solved a very important and emotion-charged problem for them. And now they’ll never look elsewhere for help.
A relationship built on trust.
But how do you convey that to new customers who are bombarded by advertising and messaging everywhere they look. How do you connect with customers looking for a partner worthy of placing that trust in?