Sponsored Content: With Banks, There’s a Brand Battle on Every Corner
When you’re in a mad dash for cash, there is nothing more frustrating than a confusing landscape of ATMs. Should you hike the few blocks to your own bank’s ATM, or pay up for the convenience of the one across the street? And is your phone even pointing you in the right direction? What if you get to the other location, and there is no ATM? Worse, perhaps you’re looking for a full-service option, and the info is wrong. Banks, whether they are tapped for their ATMs or their full suite of business or personal banking services, don’t always have a great reputation among consumers. This month’s Brand Battle looked at where two of them stand, and found that social engagement was ultimately the determining factor in this match.
Each month, digital marketing company Brandify evaluates six branding “pillars” to calculate Brand Scores for companies in a particular battle, typically pitting companies already in competition against one another. Each pillar – data quality, local SEO, reviews, local advertising, engagement, and competition – speaks to how the companies perform in local markets. For companies using the pillars to improve their own strategy, scores can be updated every week for further analyzing.
This latest competition revealed a long list of differences in local branding strategies employed by Bank of America and Chase and stressed the value of engaging with communities. Bank of America’s final Brand Score of 597 trailed far behind Chase’s score of 684 due to lack of engagement, fewer positive reviews, and inaccurate local data.
Out of 50 possible points, Bank of America scored only six in the social engagement pillar, compared to Chase’s score of 31. Of five social media platforms analyzed, Bank of America had not claimed accounts on Pinterest, Instagram, or Foursquare. On Facebook and Twitter, Bank of America was less engaged with its customers compared to Chase. Across all the platforms, Chase had more fans, likes, posts, and check-ins.
Neither bank brand scored especially high in the pillar analyzing company reviews, but Chase still beat Bank of America’s score, nine out of 60 points, by more than double, with a score of 22. Over half (53 percent) of Chase customers posted four- and five-star reviews, a result that was 28 percentage points higher than Bank of America’s. The share of Bank of America customers posting one-star reviews for their bank was 29 percentage points higher than Chase customers.
Certain keywords related to banking and customer service were positively associated with Chase more often than Bank of America, earning Chase a consumer sentiment score of 15, vs. Bank of America’s score of 6.
The full report details other areas of strengths and weaknesses, and makes recommendations for each bank. Bank of America, according to Brandify, needs to increase social engagement, while Chase could improve its local ads.
View all the findings on the Brand Battle page.
About Brandify
Brandify is transforming the way businesses connect to consumers by leveraging location technology and offering unrivaled personal service. Brandify has helped hundreds of brands understand and improve their local presence. Current and past clients include In-N-Out Burger, True Value, Jo-Ann Fabrics, Applebee’s, Black & Decker, and more. For more information about Brandify, go to brandify.com.
