Independent Banker - August 2022 - 23

Next: Reinforcing workplace connections 
1. Newsletters are powerful
" We've been able to cover hot topics in
the industry, like financial literacy and
cybersecurity, through our monthly
email newsletters, " says Jennifer
Wheeler, Social Bankers member and
marketing and social media specialist
at $24 million-asset Stillman Bank in
Stillman Valley, Ill. " We started our
newsletters in September of 2021,
and I'd have to say that the pandemic
really kicked us into gear from 'This is
a great someday project' to 'We have
to get this up and running now.' "
According to Wheeler, Stillman
Bank uses the Constant Contact
platform, which provides it with an
easy-to-monitor email heat map that
links back to the community bank's
website and shows them which stories
were the most visited.
" For example, if we need to see
if people resonated more with
information on how to have a smooth
closing over [an article] on how to
improve credit scores, we have that
data readily available, " she says.
Another bonus of the newsletter
is the ability to elevate employees
as subject-matter experts. " A lot of
our articles, especially the mortgage
ones, are written by our employees, "
Wheeler says. " It's a way for us to
" We have people telling us that since they've
joined the group, they've been promoted from
social media manager to marketing manager,
or from marketing manager to another position
of accountability within their bank. They're
getting the tools they need to make that step. "
-TIM MARTINSON, NORTH AMERICAN BANKING COMPANY
use the resources we have at our
fingertips, which is our people.
Employees can share the articles
they've written on their own social
and LinkedIn feeds, and they feel
proud that they were able to share
some knowledge with customers. "
How to join the
Social Bankers
f Visit socialbankers.
squarespace.com to
learn more about the
group and submit an
application to join.
f Join the Facebook page:
facebook.com/groups/
thesocialbankers
2. DEI matters on social
" If your bank has a DEI [diversity,
equity and inclusion] council,
collaborate with them on how you
can make your social space more
inclusive throughout the year, " says
Autumn Jose, Social Bankers member
and social media and marketing
coordinator at $3 billion-asset Civista
Bank in Sandusky, Ohio. " If you
don't have a council, talk to your
management about developing one,
along with a mission for the bank and
the communities you serve. "
3. Social media can be a
recruiting tool
" Our Slack channel for Social
Bankers has been lighting up with
ideas on how to recruit new talent
and retain the talent we have, "
Martinson says. " With the labor
market tightening up, there's more
of a demand on marketing staff to
create content about the bank that
speaks to potential employees and
demonstrates what the employee
experience is like. We've been
doing 30-second clips of employees
talking about working here and
what professional development
opportunities we offer. "
Martinson also recommends
cleaning up issues with your
website and social media profiles,
including those of key employees
and executives. " Potential employees
care about things like a website that
doesn't render on mobile properly,
or LinkedIn profiles that aren't
professional, " he says.
4. Content ideas should come
from inside
" Collaborate with your internal teams,
such as mortgage and commercial
lending, to determine topics for new
rounds of content, " Jose suggests.
" Learn what they would like to
see on social channels and in the
markets they serve. Providing content
that they can share creates a more
personalized way to engage with
their followers. " 
Julie Kendrick is a writer in Minnesota.
independentbanker.org Q 23
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Independent Banker - August 2022

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