by winstonbromley | Apr 28, 2017 | Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Klout, LinkedIn, QR codes, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media, Social Media Management, Social Media Tools, Twitter, Youtube
Today, almost every business establishments, from small and medium enterprises to large corporations, are always aiming to do great things in their online or digital marketing campaigns. The majority of the public today spend a lot of time engaging online.
People have become so involved with the digital world that they expect to do just about everything and anything online, from banking to purchases to checking status updates. As a result, digital marketing is an ever growing and expanding playing field. You need to stay on top of what works and what doesn’t.

Maja Neable
VP, Digital and Channel Marketing
BMO FINANCIAL GROUP
According to Maja Neable, Vice President of Digital and Channel Marketing at BMO FINANCIAL GROUP, as the consumers move to expect more in digital, the marketers have adopted: better targeting, more relevant messaging, and more competition for the digital consumer.
Neable, who is a guest speaker at the Digital Marketing For Financial Services Summit this year, also pointed out that humans still play a big role in helping consumers become comfortable with online world.
According to Neable, their company has found the biggest impact when their knowledgeable representatives in branches and contact center help bring customers on board. Customers trust them and rely on their advice.
Their campaigns include a number of strategies and tools like videos, email marketing, ad targeting, and social media. Their whole strategy is anchored on fully integrated intuitive experiences: from targeting well with relevant messages, to then meeting the customer’s need by providing an easy experience. Treating customer interactions as a life-cycle, a journey, rather than an instance, provides for the most powerful and engaging experiences, and business results.
While this strategy has been fruitful for BMO FINANCIAL GROUP, it took time to work. It is a product of a learning cycle where they tested different strategies, encountering failures and learning from them. Developing a workable strategy really is not easy in digital marketing.
“Given the amount of competition, you also have to adopt and innovate as quickly as possible to remain relevant”, Neable discussed, “To compete in the digital space today, one must continually invest and re-invent itself. This requires a different approach and thinking for established financial institutions. The ones that are the fastest to change to this way of thinking, will be the winners.”
This is where a good networking and linking up with fellow digital marketers becomes very important. Learning from others successes and failures allows you to expand your horizon and identify possible ways to improve on your very own marketing campaigns.
If you are seriously looking to improve your digital marketing strategies, the 7th Digital Marketing for Financial Services Summit is the perfect conference to attend. This year it is happening at The Westin Harbour Castle Conference Centre in Toronto, on Wednesday June 21st & Thursday June 22nd 2017.
Here are five reasons why you should attend this summit:
- Innovate at a digital speed.
- Learn from C-level financial services leaders on how to create a competitive advantage.
- Learn how to eliminate organizational roadblocks.
- Connect with industry veterans and rising stars.
- This is the only digital marketing forum for financial services.
- BONUS Reason: Save 20% off your tickets (see below)
Boost your digital marketing and take it to the next level.
As Andrew Artemenko of Bank of America said, it is “encouraging to see innovative and creative ways to solve the issues, constraints and challenges in a highly regulated industry. It’s nice to get out of your comfortable home environment to meet peers face to face, who have new and inspiring ideas.”
The 7th Annual Digital Marketing for Financial Services Summit will be on June 21 – 22, 2017 at The Westin Harbour Castle Conference Centre in Ontario, Canada. You can learn more here: http://www.financialdigitalmarketing.com/.
Also you can get 20% Off your Tickets by using the code “REFUEL20”

by winstonbromley | Apr 19, 2017 | Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Klout, LinkedIn, Pinterest, QR codes, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media, Social Media Management, Social Media Tools, Twitter, Youtube
As a business using social media marketing, you need to know what is the most important thing that you can do to attract customers to your business. You may be surprised to learn that the most important thing in online marketing is building trust.
Customers want a brand that they can trust and count on. They want a company that they can refer their friends to or that they can keep returning back to when they need similar services again. At the end of the day, the ROI (Return on investment) is not the biggest value that you are going to get from social media marketing. Through social media, you are going to be able to build up a trusting relationship with your customers, that helps them identify from you, and to learn from your insights. This will make you “front of mind” and become their first call when they need something.
The first step to gain this trust is to communicate with your customers and potential customers in your personal brand voice that is consistent always. This is most effective through writing social media posts in a manner that is human rather than through messages that seems very robotic in nature. You want to show off a relatable personality that will get customers to trust in you and your Company. Once you find the specific tone of your brand voice, you need to stick to it. Being consistent is key to gaining the trust of your readers and customers.
When it comes to actual posts, there are a few things that you need to do. You should post ideas that are unique and original for a few reasons. One, fresh posts help in ranking articles and two, when people see a different approach to a common topic, it can gain traction. These posts can be informative pieces or ones that are entertaining or a mixture of the two. You want to make sure these posts shareable so that your followers will want to share it with their friends, by having social media sharing buttons on each article or post you do. By doing this, you will gain more followers, which will increase the recognition of your brand.
A final aspect to using social media to gain the trust of your customers is through engaging with them. If a customer contacts you through social media about an issue with your products or services, be accountable and apologetic while trying to remedy the situation.
These are things that will help increase your customer’s trust in your brand. If a customer trusts you, they will be more willing to keep coming back for services and refer their friends and loved ones. Do not use your posts to market things all of the time, otherwise people will not want to follow you. You need to find a perfect balance between advertising and offering more value to your customers.
Remember this: Educate, don’t inundate.. Provide value, and people will trust and buy from you naturally.
by winstonbromley | Feb 21, 2017 | Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Klout, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media, Social Media Management, Social Media Tools
Social media is one of the most important forms of modern communication and a brilliant way to connect with so many like-minded people. However, like all powerful tools, it should be used responsibly.
You want to create a positive online atmosphere for your business, one that creates sense of community with friends, peers, and potential customers.
Here are the top 7 do’s and don’ts in social media marketing that can affect your status online:
#1: Don’t Complain
This seems like a no-brainer, but you may be surprised at how often people complain about bosses, clients or customers. This can not only negatively impact the image of a business (giving the wrong impression), but it impacts how present and future customers or bosses view you. I will say there is the occasional time that you have a really bad experience. If this happens, and you need to vent, thread lightly and do not name names.
#2: Don’t Get involved in controversial conversations
Wanting to engage other users is one thing. Starting or fueling fights is another. If your opinion is controversial regarding hot-topic issues like religion, race, or politics, you might not want to announce it all over the Internet—particularly if you’re hoping to catch the attention of future customers, employers or business partners. Social media is a fickle thing that way,
#3: Don’t Spam your followers
This isn’t just a tip for casual users; it’s crucial for businesses that are looking to build an online reputation. Spamming is a bad tactic because it fails to form real connections with customers. After all, there’s nothing more annoying to the average person than logging on and finding their wall crowded with sales pitches, updates, or excessive private messages. If you provide a sales pitch, make sure it provides value first.
#4: Don’t Self-promote (rule of 5:1)
Alright, we all do it. However, when it comes to promoting your businesses online, it’s important to practice “moderation”. Otherwise, you just come across as an obnoxious horn-blower too big for your britches, and customers will move on to someone less noisy. While you should certainly share your business experiences and values, balance that with promoting others. It will make your followers more receptive to your message, and more likely to share your promotions on their other networks. My rule of thumb is 5 posts of great info for every Sales piece. And ALWAYS show the value in the sale piece.
#5: Don’t Share anything you wouldn’t mind showing strangers
A lot of people tend to treat social media as if it is their diary, but always remember that your business records, grievances at work, or details of your personal life are your business—and should be for your eyes only. Unless you are a reality star and want people to know.. then good on you.
#6: DO: LISTEN
Social media is more than just a way to advertise. It’s a way to communicate. You don’t have to verbally communicate to be able to listen. Lend an ear to what your customers are saying or talking about online by paying attention to their comments. See what they want, what they like, and work on pleasing them by developing a way to solve what they are wanting,
#7: DO: Have clarity
Rather than logging on to dozens of social media platforms every day, focus on the ones that contribute to your professional mission. Posting a cat video may seem funny at the time, but consider whether or not it’s actually relevant to what you’re trying to accomplish.
If you want to learn more about how to grow your business with digital marketing, connect with me and let’s talk.
W
by winstonbromley | Aug 27, 2012 | Facebook, Instagram, Social Media, Social Media Tools
Instagram in your Business
Instagram is a free photo-sharing program and social network that was launched in October 2010 and by now, you probably have seen a vintage styled image from this platform. Instagram is like an online photo journal that enables you to share your life’s experiences with friends and family in a fun and imaginative way using your mobile phone. The mobile app is free to download and use and you can share many outlets including Twitter and Facebook. Snap, filter, post!
Now if you haven’t used Instagram yet, not to worry. The Instagram interface is very user friendly to use using your iPhone or Android Smart phone.
Instagram can be used for a lot more than just personal use.. Much like Pinterest these days, Instagram can help build and expand your business exposure and needs.
With Instagram, you can develop a strong online presence, and get your name out there using images. This is a great way to leverage online and social media marketing into your strategies with a potential audience reach of over 37 million users as well as the ability to get instant feedback with this personalized outreach marketing by posting images of products or services you are currently selling or ones you are testing.
When using Instagram, make sure that you are using the appropriate tag words for your business, products or services so that people have a chance of finding you in their search results. Also make sure that include a good description to help people along.
Much like on other Social platforms, you will begin to see a major shift once you start interacting with consumers on an individual basis by commenting and liking their images (if you feel it is an image worth “liking” or commenting on. This will start to build social proof and in turn, make you Front-of-Mind and a great choice to work with as they will like and trust you easier.
Here are some tips to use Intagram in your business model:
– Double tap when you want to like an image including your own (sounds odd but it works)
– Add in Hash Tags or keywords to help people know about your business and be able to find you in searches
– Add in a good description of the image
– GeoTag your location so that the images can be found via GeoMapping or via an online GPS Map system
– Comment and Like other users images that fit with your Demographic, i.e. If your market is brides-to-be, if you find images from those users, like and comment on them and they will notice you Account and most likely return the favour.
I am still tinkering around in Instagram but I will post more tidbits as I get them
Got any tips you want to share? Post them below.
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