With marketing budgets under pressure, banks and credit unions look to brand-led strategies that prioritize measurable impact and in-branch engagement
Marketing in banking is evolving. Moving beyond product pushes and institution-focused campaigns, smart marketers are leveraging ways to optimize timing, personalize promotions, and provide real-time relevance for banking customers. A more intentional, holistic effort is underway in banking that results in stronger engagement and more measurable outcomes. Community banks that “share authentic, localized content with their audiences” find that this intentionality “helps bring campaigns to life in a way that traditional marketing alone cannot,” according to Autumn R. Jose, assistant vice president and brand marketing specialist at Civista Bank, interviewed for Independent Banker’s coverage of year-round marketing strategies.
Measurement is key to marketing success, especially as financial institutions aim to maximize limited budgets. While marketers have traditionally tracked higher funnel measures, like brand awareness, audience reach, and campaign recall, many are now going deeper – focusing on KPIs like web traffic, clickthrough rates, and conversions. Undergirding it all is data. “You can’t refine your targeting without customer and prospect data,” according to ABA Banking Journal’s coverage of bank marketing trends for 2025. “And you can’t measure the results of your marketing programs without data.”
Data is so vital for effective marketing that “customer analytics” remains a key focus for bank marketers responding to ABA’s annual marketing survey. While personalization continues to be a priority, it’s not just data-driven emails or targeted advertising that’s moving the needle for financial institutions. Personalized marketing in banking means understanding each customer’s journey and making smart decisions about where to engage them. This “optichannel” approach takes “omnichannel” marketing one step further. It’s not about a bank being everywhere that a consumer is, but being in the right place, right time, and with the right delivery.
Yet one of the most powerful – and often underutilized – tools in the marketing toolkit remains the branch channel. Despite the growth of digital channels, McKinsey finds that nearly three-quarters of new to bank sales come from the physical branch. This reality reinforces the importance of branch marketing as both a cross-sell opportunity and a brand platform. “Effective branch marketing focuses on fewer but more impactful messages throughout the branch to drive engagement,” according to Adrenaline’s article on calibrating communication in branch marketing. “Even more, branch marketing elevates brand storytelling with a focused, intentional approach to product marketing.”
To stay competitive, financial institutions are embracing more holistic strategies that bridge digital and physical touchpoints in a meaningful way. “Successful branch marketing choreographs communication in a seamless customer journey,” according to Juliet D’Ambrosio, Chief Experience Officer at Adrenaline, in the article on meaningful marketing. “It deepens relationships, provides personalized products, supports valuable consultations, and delivers a differentiated brand experience.” Moving beyond a focus on seamlessness in messaging, optimal communication strategies help financial institutions to engage with purpose in each channel.
If you’re a banking leader looking for effective brand and marketing strategies, get in touch with the banking experts at Adrenaline. Follow Believe in Banking to stay up to date with the latest news impacting the banking and credit union industries.