What Ad Personalization Looks Like in Banking and Finance

Banking and finance support people as they achieve their livelihoods. But just as people's lives vary heavily, so do their banking and finance habits. Understanding what these customers need, whether it’s specific to life stage, habits, or financial well-being, lets you shape your marketing so that it resonates with them.

In this post, we’ll discuss how banking and finance institutions can implement personalized marketing to reach audiences with effective ads that speak to their needs.

Personalizing Your Bank Ads

Knowing your audience is the first step to understanding their financial needs and habits. Segmenting and defining your audience lets you create smaller groups that you can use to create targeted ad campaigns.

Here is a breakdown of the four types of audience segments:

• Demographic Segmentation: Knowing their demographic lets you know their life stage and basic defining features, like age, gender, income level, education, and occupation. You can use this information to make sure it’s broadly relevant so you can avoid sending college students ads for applying for mortgages.

• Behavioral Segmentation: People tend to have very specific behaviors around money. By analyzing spending habits, account usage, and customer interactions, you can offer personalized products that resonate with each customer.

• Geographical Segmentation: Where people live determines their financial situation. If someone is in a city, they’re more likely to be a renter, whereas those in suburban or rural areas may be more likely to own a home or have a mortgage. Identify customers' locations to tailor promotions and offers to local market conditions, events, or cultural preferences.

• Psychographic Segmentation: This one is more nebulous and asks about each customer’s personality, values, attitudes, interests, or lifestyle of your customers to connect with them on a more personal level. It lets you take a further step to inquire about their personalities and lifestyles in a way that

Understanding these segments will help you decide where your customers hang out online and how to reach them.

Ideas for Your Bank or Finance Ads

Your ad creative connects your customers with the services you provide and demonstrates how what you offer benefits them.

Here are some ideas on how to create banking and finance ads.

Utilize Customer Data for Tailored Offers

Knowing your customer’s life stages and behavior gives you a good idea of what might be relevant to them. Use that to know what services you should promote. Granular analytics information is excellent for these purposes, but sending ads based on life stages can also be very effective. Banking customers who are further into their careers may be interested in mortgages, or young families would be good candidates for information about savings accounts for their kids.

Geolocation-Based Promotions

Create ads targeting specific locations that address concerns or careers that are heavy in that area so your bank can develop its local presence. Pairing these with local event sponsorships can increase visibility, as people in the region will already be familiar with your name.

Interactive Financial Health Checkups

Creating content or promotional material that illuminates financial statuses or allows customers to examine their banking records with you allows them to learn more about their finances and make more informed decisions. Positioning your company as an educational institution builds trust with your customers, so when they need to add to their financial services, they’ll think of you first.

Dynamic Email Marketing

Email gives you a direct path to messaging your customers with information. With automated email technology, you can personalize your messaging to contact customers by name. Breaking down your audience by segment and lifestyle helps you tailor your messaging or content to be highly relevant. You can also celebrate personal achievements with your customers through ads that cheer on their financial victories and encourage their next steps.

Customer Success Stories

Sharing real stories resonates deeply and lets customers see themselves in others’ achievements powered by your products and services. You can also share testimonials about how you’ve successfully helped customers, often in customers’ own words.

Seasonal Financial Planning Videos

Different times of year have specific needs, whether people are trying to save for vacation, putting money aside for gift giving, or children’s college. Use a newsletter to offer timely financial tips and product offers tied to what’s happening in your life, letting people know how to plan or change their habits to uphold their financial well-being.

Reward Program Highlights

Developing rewards programs helps build loyalty. Creating ads showcasing how to make the most of your banking products or introducing new, tailored reward programs can be a game-changer.

Personalize Your Bank Ads with McClatchy

McClatchy specializes in helping financial institutions like yours build a marketing presence that speaks directly to the hearts of your customers. With our expertise, your bank can craft personalized ad experiences that attract attention and build lasting relationships.

It's critical to make your customers feel understood and valued in banking and finance. With personalized ads, you're doing just that—engaging in a meaningful conversation that can lead to lasting loyalty and trust. Ready to take your marketing to the next level? Reach out to McClatchy today. Together, we'll make your marketing efforts not just seen but felt.