Credit Unions Putting Pieces of the Twitter Puzzle Together

HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR 
Are financial issues a very serious topic? Yes! And I’m not telling your credit union to use twitter to tell knock-knock jokes over twitter all day (although, I do love a good knock-knock joke!) but these financial times are hard on everyone. Having a light-hearted tweet every now and then that shows your personality can really be an encouragement to your followers and it allows them to connect with you on a different level. Because people work at your credit union, too and we all struggle with some of the same issues. This is particularly important to remember when dealing with customer service. Level with your credit union's members.

TWEET HELPFUL HINTS
Inspiration in 140 words or less is perfect for a mom on the go, a college student on the way to her class (because college students certainly wouldn’t be paying attention to twitter IN class, now would they?) or a businessman waiting in the airport. People don’t always have time to read an entire article about something, so tweeting a summary or snippet from the article not only can inspire and encourage them but it also gives them a reason to check out the article (hopefully it is posted on your website because you wrote it on your blog!) you linked to in case they do have time. (you did link to the article, didn’t you?)

NOW PICTURE THIS
People want to know who they are talking to. Have you ever followed one of those egg profiles on twitter? Probably not. No picture sends a message that you are trying to stay hidden or you are spam.  Even if you don’t always have the same person tweeting, make sure your audience knows who the tweeters are! At the very least, have a picture of your logo. Take a look at @ThirdDegreeAdv’s twitter page for an example of how Third Degree does this.

Tweeting Tips for Your Credit Union

If you haven’t noticed, Third Degree has some stuff to say about social media. It is always changing but most of what we mention here should pretty much remain the same as social media continues to evolve and change.

DON'T BE EGOCENTRIC
Yes, people are following you because they like your credit union, they are probably members and yes, they want to know about what you are doing in the community; when your next member’s meeting is and the newest promotion you have to offer. If you want them to continue to follow you and if you want to draw potential members, tweet about other things that are specific to the financial industry and the community but not completely about your credit union.

STAY SOCIAL
Speaking of keeping followers, you want your followers to follow you and keep following you, right? So make sure you stay engaged. Indra Gardner reminds her audience that social media is SOCIAL, so have conversations! Start them and respond to them! This will also show that you live out your principle of  "for people!" You are personable people, so live that out!  In our book, Credit Union Savvy, we talk about how social media is a directed dialogue between brand and audience, not idle chit chat. It’s a focused, authentic back-and-forth interaction between the client and their target.