How Financial Service Brands Build Brand Reputation and Acquire New Leads Through Local Media  

The pandemic has, no doubt, changed the way consumers think about and manage their money. Financial matters are more front of mind than ever, increasing the demand for financial service providers, from estate and retirement planners to banks and credit unions.  

 How can your financial brand connect with consumers in this reimagined post-COVID-19 reality?  

“In an environment of sustained social distancing and increased competition from online-only institutions, brands must consider new ways to acquire leads,” says Monica Longoria, Senior Consumer Insights Strategist with TEGNA.  

On top of changing consumer behaviors, the pandemic has also altered the media-viewing landscape. Local TV news viewership has increased. September research from IAB found that viewers see brands that advertise alongside local TV news as more trustworthy, relevant, and likely to be purchased.  

“Not only is supporting the news critically important and the right thing to do, it is the smart thing for brands as they look to grow their business,” David Cohen, Chief Executive Officer, IAB, says in the study. “News is brand safe, increases brand trust, and drives business results. Consumers trust brands more when they run adjacent to news, especially breaking news. There is a News Trust Halo for brands that shouldn’t be ignored.” 

These IAB findings squash the notion that advertising with ‘fake news’ will harm your brand. It does the opposite – news advertising can increase brand trust and ROI.  

“Brands who align themselves with the local news are seen as more relevant, engaging, customer-focused, and of higher quality,” says Longoria. “These are all attributes that would benefit financial brands looking to build up their reputation in the market.” 

Brand-building best practices via linear broadcast include 30-second spots, vignettes, and custom sponsorships and integrations with news, weather, traffic, and lifestyle shows. These types of sponsorships can quickly position your finance brand as the local go-to expert, resource, and thought leader in the community.  

Moreover, these lead acquisition techniques aren’t limited to TV. According to Longoria, “TEGNA can help financial brands combine the impact of TV & video with the relevancy of targeting to reach audiences that are more likely to convert.” 

Advertising via Over-the-Top streaming also presents a significant opportunity to drive awareness and extend the reach of a broadcast campaign with extensive targeting capabilities. For example, a financial services brand can target audiences in-market for finance​ services, key age demographics, household income, and more. 

Through digital display ads, many financial service providers can also reach consumers engaging with TEGNA’s owned and operated websites, station apps, and other financial-related content. Local TEGNA stations reach an average of 75 million digitally each month, and ads placed here come in various forms, including display ads, pre-roll digital video, and act as the perfect digital complement to TV ad campaigns.  

How Do You Know if Your Local Media Campaign is Working? 

As the old financial saying goes, “Most people don’t plan to fail. They fail to plan.” This rings true in 2021 more than ever. TEGNA understands the value of planning an effective advertising campaign to drive tangible business outcomes and generate a positive return on investment. For years, Broadcast and OTT advertisers have faced challenges measuring the effectiveness of their campaigns. They knew it worked but couldn’t directly connect the dots between a campaign and its results.  

Today, it’s a different story. TEGNA Attribution can identify who viewed a commercial on TV or streaming and can then tie those ad views into website visits using closed-loop technology. This allows our advertisers to make better plans for spending their ad dollars in the future, maximizing campaign outcomes. 

“Telling our customers that by spending this amount of money on TV and this amount on OTT, they were able to generate these outcomes. It’s great to work with them in that kind of consultative fashion to help them maximize their media spend,” says Jessica Daigle, VP of Sales Intelligence at TEGNA.