The popularity of social media has surged over the last decade or so, due to numerous reasons. Technology and smartphone usage has evolved at a rapid pace across the globe, providing a large majority of the population easy access to the internet and social media platforms. This article takes a look at the role of social media in the FinTech industry and how companies can leverage social media in order to better promote their brand online.
According to the Digital 2021 report released by DataReportal, there are 4.88 billion internet users across the world – which accounts for nearly 62% of the entire global population. Source In fact, this number is expected to climb even further, with data showing an annual growth rate of 4.8%, with a staggering average of over 600,000 new users daily.
The number of social media users also continues to grow – with numbers totaling up to 4.55 billion in October 2021, accounting for 57.6% of the global population. 90% of global internet users already use social media each month. 409 million new users joined social media over the period of last year alone, equating to a growth of more than 1.1 million new users daily. The report also states that over 90% of internet users use their mobile devices.
The main reason for the massive growth in social media popularity ultimately boils down to the fact that humans love interacting and connecting with other people – which is what social media aims to provide. Modern social networking sites are extremely user-friendly and do not require advanced internet knowledge for most people to use them. It allows a great opportunity to meet new people across the world – bringing communities and groups of people together to form closer relationships. They are also free to use, which means that they can be used by pretty much anybody who wants to.
Social media is also utilized in a number of different ways. In addition to using it to interact with people and keep in touch with others, it also lets people join groups with shared interests – allowing like-minded people to connect with each other. It is also used in the job market, with several companies having begun finding and hiring candidates through social networks such as LinkedIn. Last but not least, social media is a great tool for businesses – in order to help them reach out to potential clients and establish their presence online. Social media marketing is a great way for companies to reach out to a massive audience across the globe in a very cost-effective manner.
How Can Social Media Help Businesses?
The benefits that social media have in store for any business are endless. In addition to increasing market reach, including international markets, you are also able to develop your brand, attract more customers, obtain customer feedback and grow customer loyalty. You will also be able to establish a better online presence, whilst keeping an eye on competitors and their activity.
Other benefits include increasing revenue by building customer networks via advertising as well as exchanging ideas to improve the way you conduct business. It also helps you conduct market research and reduce marketing costs.
The State of Social report released by Buffer states that 73% of marketers are of the opinion that marketing through social media have been “somewhat effective” or “very effective” for their business. Source As such, an increasing number of brands are heavily investing in social media to promote themselves online.
The Role of Social Media in FinTech
Like it does for other industries, social media offers a host of benefits for FinTech companies as well. Financial institutions and FinTech players have realised the magnitude of the opportunities that social media is able to create in today’s generation and is now being incorporated into almost every company’s overall marketing strategy.
Social media platforms also provide a treasure trove of valuable data that lets FinTech companies analyse and study their consumer behavior and preferences – a critical factor for analysis for FinTech companies. Lenders are also beginning to incorporate data extracted from social media into their credit underwriting process. An increasing number of banks are now introducing online payments via social media platforms – which could transform the payment landscape forever in the years to come. There are also a few challenges. Most banks and traditional financial institutions need to learn to adapt to modern marketing methodologies and embrace innovation as part of their strategy in order to take the FinTech industry to even greater heights. Regulation issues may also prevail in some situations, as the current law might not be sufficiently up-to-date to reflect modern technology usage, thus hindering the ability for organizations to take full advantage of social media.
Tips for Effectively Utilising Social Media
Social media marketing is effective – when done right. It is important to have a proper strategy in place which is crucial in order to ensure that your efforts yield positive results and help you achieve your business goals. As such, below are a few tips that FinTech companies should keep in mind when marketing on social media.
Have a Comprehensive Strategy:
The importance of having a detailed and comprehensive social media strategy cannot be stressed enough. Not only will this help you ensure that your goals are covered, it will also help you target your audience more effectively and in a more cost-efficient manner. Your strategy will need to cover several components – ranging from clearly defined primary goals and secondary business goals, marketing objectives and what parameters are to be used to measure performance, target audience identification and customer personas, competitor analysis, channel selection and tactics, a clear content strategy, an allocated budget as well as resources.
Choose the Right Platforms:
A wide range of social media platforms are available – each with a uniquely different set of characteristics. Consumer behavior on each platform is vastly different so it is extremely important that you identify which platforms your brand should be present on, as part of your overarching strategy. Being present on every social media platform is not a good idea and could dilute your efforts, hampering effectiveness along the way. You need to consider the nature of your business, your core target audience and where they are present, find out where your competitors are operating and focus on the backbone of your digital footprint.
Utilize Good Content Marketing:
In recent times, content is king. Good content shared on social media is what ultimately generates awareness about your brand, while helping answer any questions that your audience may have in mind. Good content helps you establish yourself as a thought leader and gives more reason as to why you should be chosen over your competition. It also helps you grow your audience on social media by attracting new leads and also boost your sales.
Build a Brand Community:
Every active engagement on social media brings users closer to your brand. By engaging with potential customers and offering a personalised and helpful space for them to find solutions helps immensely in building a better connection with your brand and generating more trust. Social media is a great tool in helping you build such a brand community who are strong advocates as they are emotionally connected with your brand, use your products and engage with you online.
Use Social Listening Tools:
Social listening comprises the monitoring of feedback and conversations that are taking place regarding your brand. This offers a great deal of insight into your industry as well as what your target audience thinks about you and their general perception of the brand. By using social listening tools to check mentions of your brand based on relevant keywords and other tags, you are given the opportunity to reach out and build better relationships with potential customers, in turn enhancing your brand image. Social listening is also a great way to help alleviate a crisis situation, as it is able to catch any problems that are brewing early on and address them immediately.
