If you work at a Maine Bank or are a customer of one, Read THIS!

Last night I posed this question to Twitter:

“What is the best bank in Maine to open a business checking account? Any recs?”

A seemingly boring question, after all, my business is new and I’m looking for a reputable bank to do business with. I have a core group of friends on Twitter whose recommendations I trust, so I thought that would be the best place to start my bank information gathering.

I was right. In less than 30 minutes, 21 local Maine residents responded with recommendations, personal stories and nightmares of their experiences with over 8 banks in the Southern Maine area. The most loved local bank was Bangor Savings Bank. The ones to stay away from, according to the local twitter crowd, were Bank of America & Key Bank. A quick search of all eight banks mentioned only revealed one of them was using Twitter. Bank of America. (Update: TD Bank also has at Twitter account)

I understand that as a banking institution, jumping into social media can be risky. But if for no other reason than to listen to what consumers are saying about you..you will get value out of it. Whenever I present at social media seminars, I always emphasize that listening is just as important as engaging in social media.

Below you will find what I would do if I were working as a social marketing consultant for these banks:

If I were Bangor Savings Bank: I would send the current customers who gave a positive recommendation a toaster or a toolbox (or whatever they are giving away that month. I love free gifts from my bank). This would further solidify these customers as a brand evangelists. Another bonus is that you can bet your bottom dollar that they are going to tweet about their free gift too!

If I were Bank of America, KeyBank or TD Bank: I would reach out to those who have had issues and gave negative recommendations and do my best to answer any questions they had and reinforce that going forward those issues will be remedied in a much more timely and friendly manner.

If I were Norway Savings, Kennebunk Savings, Bath Savings or Gorham Savings: The consumer perception is positive for these banks. I would continue to monitor any conversations going on in social media and be ready to respond and say Thank you when a recommendation is given.

Do me a favor and pass this blog post along to anyone you know who works at one of these banks. They should know what consumers are saying about their company.