Social media is a valuable resource for all industries, and with Saudi Arabians being very vocal on social media; even players in the banking industry have a lot to gain.
Instead of telling you what the banking industry could potentially gain, we opted for a more pragmatic approach this time. We used the Crowd Analyzer tool to monitor the trending hashtag كيف_تدخر_نقودك#, which trended from 30 to 31st of Jan and garnered 10k activities as well as “Bank El Rajhi” as an example. Our research led us to 5 things banks can learn from social listening:
1. Identifying topics for future campaigns
People’s responses to كيف_تدخر_نقودك# highlighted a significant lack of education in modern financial tools. With around 45% of users suggesting that boycotting certain products/activities or using a piggy bank is the way to go, there’s an evident knowledge gap. While such methods might be slightly effective on the short run, they are not sustainable and do not effectively contribute to increasing one’s savings.
With 31% of online users suggesting quitting certain activities like eating out, ordering food, shopping at malls, online shopping some going as far as naming brands and apps to boycott/delete, this is obviously the method of choice for saving for Saudis. Although this technique can help increase disposable income it has significant shortcomings:
- It doesn’t guarantee you won’t spend the money on said activity
- Defining what’s a priority is at times tricky and less evident
- While you might be saving money, its value is decreasing. As money remains idol, unless you invest it there’s no mechanism to actively account for inflation
Cutting down on some extra expenses might be a good first step, but putting this money into good use is the true end. Saving accounts and certificates of deposit offer reliable and efficient mediums for saving money, yet people seem unaware of the benefits of such alternatives. Banks can use this information to see which saving methods Saudi’s think are the best and accordingly they can tailor campaigns that clarify and show people how their products are a better alternative
Some people are still wary of putting their money in banks and thus avoid recommending them to others. Social listening can help pinpoint the main concerns users express so that banks can create targeted campaigns to address these issues and improve their brand image.
2. Brand Audit: Why are certain products not receiving the anticipated adoption?
Social listening can conveniently highlight why you’re having trouble pushing certain products. While banks have very stringent target requirements, the number of financial players keeps increasing in parallel making it harder to capture more clients. If each bank doesn’t stand out with excellent customer service or competitive rates they won’t be able to compete.
By monitoring Al Rajiha bank, one of the biggest banks in KSA, over a period of 1 month and filtering the results with our sentiment analysis feature, we were able to identify more than 900 negative pieces of content. Although this number might seem negligible, this was captured over only 1 month. Keeping in mind that the real value is not in the number of customers but the distinct value each customer brings to the business.
With people resorting to social media to air grievances, banks have the opportunity to identify the main complaints users find with certain products in order to improve their clients’ banking experience.
3. Understanding your target consumer better
With 18.63% of users expressing their happiness in spending money and seeing no value in saving money, it’s evident that many users don’t see the benefit of saving.
While this philosophy is admirable, it’s not rationale. Everyone needs to save money, yet sometimes people can’t discern the long term benefit or feel hassled by the intricacies of savings plans. By understanding the mindset of its audience, banks can intervene and offer easy and adaptable solutions to resonate better with their target segment.
Likewise, 7.52% of users shared a breakdown of their income and budget to showcase to that they have no spare money to save. Saving is indeed a challenge, yet banks offer many tailored products that can help individuals in different income strata to save at a pace convenient to their situation. This indicates a lack of awareness from the audiences with regards to the existence of customized financial products that can meet their needs.
Remember, that these results were obtained through two days of monitoring, imagine the amount of insights and information you could gather about your segment in the long term. A better understating of the target audience is key to effective and well-targeted marketing strategies.
4. Identifying leads
Online conversations revealed that a portion of users were actively seeking advice on how to save money. These advice seekers could be potential clients if banks are able to identify and target them accordingly.
With 14.54% of users expressing their lack of knowledge when it comes to money-saving ways and openly asking for advice, this segment could prove to be a lucrative source for generating leads. The significance of this 14% is not in the individual number of people, but the long term customer value each prospect could entail for the bank.
With the sheer number of online active users, social media has become a valuable mining field for prospects.
5. Increasing brand equity
By using the momentum of high-activity occurrences such as trending hashtags, brands can increase their presence and brand equity amidst its target audience. Take for instance Saudi Bank (Social Development Bank – SDB) who posted about budget awareness using the hashtag to reach out to online users and establish themselves as an authority in the field.
To all banks, with a whopping 60% of users giving advice to thousands of online users, you want this share of voice to be an advocate of your brand! Start listening and explore the mining field of social media to stay on top of the competition.
The Insights we built were based on the following Data:
Data gathered through Crowd Analyzer tool by monitoring the hashtag كيف_تدخر_نقودك# which produced more than 10k activities on social platforms.
Representative sample Analysis of users mentions:
Top posts are a fine indicator of the nature online conversations
Breakdown of advice on Saving Money
