As someone who’s always looking towards the horizon and what’s down the road, this platform has certainly intrigued me. Back in 2018 Google released its Duplex technology that powers Google Assistant to perform tasks automatically, such as making restaurant reservations. That technology is being deprecated as of December 2022, but its learnings will live on and likely set the stage for even more impressive things from Google down the road.
Here we go…
Before ChatGPT suffers the same fate as Google’s Duplex, I decided to log in and have a “conversation” to ask a few questions about how community banks should be using social media. Below are the actual results from the platform for my five questions.
Be prepared, it’s pretty good.
Question 1: What's the best way for a community bank to use social media?
The best way for a community bank to use social media is to engage with its customers and followers in a meaningful way. This can include responding to questions and comments, sharing relevant and useful information, and providing tim
ely updates on products and services.
Additionally, a community bank can use social media to showcase its commitment to the local community by highlighting the events and organizations it supports. By building a strong presence on social media, a community bank can improve its reputation and strengthen its relationship with its customers.
[My Observations: While accurate and reads well, its response is not something earth-shattering. There are some statements that would be applicable to any type of community-based business - but it's a good start.]
Question 2: But what about compliance issues?
Compliance is an important consideration for any community bank when using social media. In general, the same regulations and laws that apply to other forms of communication and advertising also apply to social media. This means that a community bank must ensure that its posts and messages are accurate and comply with relevant laws and regulations, such as those governing fair lending and advertising.
It's a good idea for a community bank to have a social media policy in place that outlines its approach to compliance and sets guidelines for employees who use social media on behalf of the bank. Additionally, it's important for a community bank to monitor its social media accounts regularly to ensure that they are in compliance with all relevant laws and regulations.
[My Observations: This is where the "conversational" power of the platform becomes apparent. I didn't as "what about compliance issues for community banks". As with a conversation with another person, the subject (community bank) was inferred in the follow-up question(s). It's also interesting that mentions of things like "regulations" and "policies" are included, as banking certainly has to deal with these, unlike other types of businesses.]
Question 3: And how can bank staff use social media to help build visibility for the bank and themselves?
Bank staff can use social media to help build visibility for the bank and themselves by posting content that is relevant, useful, and engaging. This can include updates on products and services offered by the bank, industry news and insights, and information about the local community. By sharing this content, bank staff can demonstrate their knowledge and expertise, and position themselves as thought leaders in the industry.
Additionally, bank staff can use social media to network with other professionals and build their personal brand. This can include participating in relevant online discussions and sharing their own insights and perspectives on industry topics. By building a strong presence on social media, bank staff can help raise the profile of the bank and establish themselves as key players in the industry.
[My Observations: Again, nothing is "earth-shattering" here, as you could replace the term "Bank" with "Law Firm" or "Brewery" and this response would still read pretty well. But it's not inaccurate either. In fact, much of what's said in this response is very much in alignment with what we're doing over in our mentoring and mastermind community for banking professionals, The LinkedBanker (building your personal brand), so I'll give it credit for that!]
Question 4: What are some of the ways to measure the effectiveness of the use of social media for a bank?
There are several ways to measure the effectiveness of a community bank's use of social media. Some common metrics to consider include the number of followers, the level of engagement with posts (such as likes, comments, and shares), and the amount of traffic to the bank's website from social media. Additionally, a community bank can track the number of leads and conversions generated through social media, as well as the overall sentiment of customer feedback on social media.
By regularly monitoring and analyzing these metrics, a community bank can determine the effectiveness of its social media strategy and make any necessary adjustments to improve its performance. It's also a good idea for a community bank to set specific goals and objectives for its social media efforts and measure its progress against these targets.
[My Observation: Still nothing revolutionary here. Nonetheless, all of these are very suggestions when it comes to measuring your success on social media. I particularly like the fact that it mentioned the importance of "engagement," as that's one of the key metrics that I recommend banks work towards achieving. It's the interaction with your followers and community that will lead you to success and build those long-term relationships that have a higher chance of resulting in "real" business down the road.]
Question 5: Are there any other suggestions that you would like to mention?
Here are a few additional suggestions for a community bank's use of social media:
Be consistent: It's important for a community bank to maintain a consistent presence on social media. This can include posting regularly and consistently, using the same tone and style in all posts, and maintaining a cohesive visual brand across all channels.
Be responsive: Social media is a two-way conversation, so it's important for a community bank to be responsive to its customers and followers on social media. This can include responding to questions and comments in a timely manner and addressing any concerns or issues that may arise.
Be authentic: Social media is an effective way for a community bank to showcase its personality and values. By being authentic and genuine on social media, a community bank can build trust and credibility with its customers and followers.
Be creative: Social media is a dynamic and ever-changing landscape, so it's important for a community bank to be creative in its approach. This can include experimenting with different types of content and formats, such as videos, live streams, and interactive polls and quizzes.
Be strategic: A community bank's use of social media should be part of a broader marketing and communication strategy. By aligning its social media efforts with its overall business goals, a community bank can ensure that its efforts on social media are effective and impactful.
[My Observation: Not bad, eh? When I asked this final question I wasn't sure what I would get. I like the fact that it broke down its response into a series of short, two-sentence, responses. For the blog, I did make the Be ______ responses bold, but starting all of them with "Bs" was pretty smart. This section could even be used as a follow-up blog post, called something like "The 5 Bs of Social Media Success." Of course, one could dive back into the platform and ask it to expand on each of the five items, or this is where you could take over and provide your own thoughts.]
What do you think?
I told you it was pretty good, right? If I didn’t disclose at the start of this article that an AI tool was being used in the creation of the content, would you have been able to detect that AI “wrote” it?
In addition to [My Observations] shared above, what’s my big takeaway? As with any technology that is designed to help us work smarter, not just harder, tools like ChatGPT clearly provide the ability to replace the “mundane” work that we are doing. This will allow us to focus on the creative and hands-on work that can’t be done by technology (at least not yet).
While the answers above were good (and not necessarily wrong), it would be good to polish them a bit to give them your own voice. You may have a particular writing style or personality you'd like to convey. Additionally, if you're writing for a website (such as a blog like this), I'd also suggest you look for ways to provide links to other areas of the site for SEO, creative use of headers for reader direction, and maybe turning any longer-format paragraphs into lists since they tend work well and are easy for visitors to read.
And finally, while I was not asking for statistics or facts, when I've done that in other tests of the system it's not clear where that information is coming from. Is it accurate or misleading? There's an absence of citations and sources, so that's something to be careful of. Also, there has been a lot of discussion around copyright and ownership of the original source content. While the latter may be more of an issue for AI-generated images, it's something to be aware of.
I believe YouTube influencer Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) explained this very well in his 15-minute video that I’ve taken the liberty of including below for you.
Don’t worry, we’re not going to replace our content with automated, AI-generated content anytime soon. But we’re not going to look the other way either and totally ignore what’s now possible (nor should you). Platforms like ChatGPT, Copy.ai, Lensa, and others need to be on your radar. It’s your responsibility to determine the best way to use them, while still maintaining your bank’s unique brand and personality.
If figuring all of this out seems daunting, get in touch and we can figure it out together - before the robots take over! Also, be sure to download our ChatGPT eBook for resources and tips on ways to take your AI efforts to the next level!