Attracting online deposit dollars: how a community bank in Virginia drew millions of dollars in new deposit accounts through the judicious use of pay per click and online display advertising.

• Author: Kastner, Nick
• Position: Online Marketing

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In today's economic climate, any opportunity to generate additional capital for fewer marketing dollars is as welcome as it is hard to come by.

There are a number of ways to generate deposit dollars online, and many of them can be less time consuming and costly than traditional advertising. With a relatively simple online banking platform and application, financial institutions can take advantage of a multitude of online marketing channels that are inexpensive and easy to implement.

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Pay per click advertising

Pay per click (PPC) advertising opportunities can be found on search engines, advertising networks, content sites and blogs. For instance, if you search for anything, the pay per click ads, otherwise known as "sponsored links," appear at both the top and right hand side of the page.

These advertisements are purchased on a "pay per click" basis, meaning you only pay if someone actually clicks your advertisement. These clicks currently average $1 to $1.50 in the financial services industry. Once users click on your ad, they are sent to a page on your Web site.

Statistically, 25-30 percent of searchers view and may click on these ads. So, for someone marketing a new online checking account, buying pay per click advertisements for the keyword "online checking" will result in 60,500 views of your ad per month nationally (based on recent averages), assuming that you are presented on the first page every time. There are options from a number of these PPC advertising channels that allow you to geographically or demographically target site visitors.

To get started, here are a few basic tips regarding pay per click advertising:

* Test, test and test some more. Just because it costs $10 per click to be on the first page does not always mean you should be there. Some institutions may find better leads for some keywords on the second or third page, as these users still haven't found what they're looking for--and it might be you, and it also will be less expensive.

* Write great ads. In Google, you have 125 characters to explain yourself, so make sure your offer and message are strong and to the point. Tell the users why they will benefit from your offer.

* Don't go for the monster keywords. "Checking" may seem like a great keyword for your company, but it will be extremely expensive and may not convert. Choosing less competitive keywords that can be found by...