Archive for the ‘Social Media’ Category

5 Mobile Banking Security Tips

Thursday, February 16th, 2012

5 Mobile Banking Security Tips

1st Mariner Bank Mobile BankingIt wasn’t that long ago when the only way to deposit, transfer or withdraw money was to physically visit your local bank branch or ATM. Today, thanks to the wonderful world of technology, consumers have a full suite of options to choose from when conducting their financial transactions.

With online and mobile banking on the rise, it’s only natural that security be on the minds of both financial institutions and customers.

So what’s the deal? Is mobile banking a secure way to bank? In short – yes. 1st Mariner’s mobile banking solution offers the full encryption and security suite that is utilized for our traditional (desktop) online banking platform. However, as with most things, as technology gets more advanced you can never be too safe.

There are certain precautions customers should keep in mind when opting to go mobile.

1. Download the official app from your bank’s website.

It’s only natural to go to the iTunes store or Android Market when you are looking to get a new app. However, non-reputable people are putting apps out there everyday, for the purpose of phishing consumer information. It’s always better to start with your bank’s website to make sure you aren’t being scammed.

2. Don’t send personal information via SMS (text messaging).

Regardless of the situation, never EVER send personal information, (PIN, account numbers, social security number, passwords, etc.) via SMS. SMS is not encrypted, so your bank will not send personal information via SMS, and you could leave yourself vulnerable to phishing if you send sensitive information through this medium.

3. Avoid conducting your banking needs on public networks.

While enjoying your coffee at the local coffee shop might sound like a good time to check your account balances,you might want to think again. Most public Wi-Fi networks are not secure so always be sure to switch to a secure network (i.e. your phone’s 3G or 4G data plan) before logging into your account information.

4. Take advantage of your phone’s security features.

Perhaps the biggest risk associated with mobile banking is the risk of losing your phone. Almost all smart phones offer some sort of security feature that is built into the phone itself. From screen locking mechanisms to GPS locating apps (i.e. Where’s my Droid or Find My iPhone), your phone offers several different ways to prevent your personal information from getting into the wrong hands. As new phones hit the market, the security features will continue to become more and more advanced (i.e., facial and fingerprint recognition).

5. Take advantage of your bank’s mobile banking security offerings.

If you are considering a mobile banking app, look for one where data can be wiped from your cell phone, if you lose it. With 1st Mariner’s mobile banking, users can access their account from their desktop and shut down access through their mobile phones and thus eliminate the risk of fraud.

1st Mariner Bank's Mobile Banking

Still not sure if you are comfortable taking your banking mobile? That’s okay – we commend you for being overcautious when it comes to your finances. We are too! That’s why we’re here to walk you through the ins and outs of our mobile banking services and answer any questions that you have. You’ll see for yourself just how secure mobile banking really is.

Answer our Facebook Question of the Week.

Are you using a mobile banking solution? How so? Feel free to leave some commentary on our wall as to why or why not.

1st Mariner Bank Facebook

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
0 commentsposted in 1st Mariner Bank, Mobile Banking, Products, Security, Social Media

1st Mariner Bank – Keeping up with The Joneses

Monday, June 13th, 2011

I recently attended the Net.Finance conference in Chicago . It is, by far, one of the best conferences for those of us focused on the digital channels of financial services. Over the two and half days, there were three topics that dominated the event: Mobile, Personal Financial Management (PFM) tools, and Social Media. I’m going to specifically talk about the first two topics.

The first day of the conference focused on Mobile Banking services for  customers. Jeff Dennes, SVP Chief Digital Officer of Huntington National Bank (and formerly with USAA), gave the Keynote address. His presentation was full of interesting observations including:

  • There are over 285 million mobile subscribers in the US, a 91% penetration rate.
  • 13.2 million people accessed their bank accounts through mobile sites, up 70% from a year ago.
  • The expansion of the 4G network over the next 2 years will increase bandwidth equal to a cable modem at home.
  • Mobility is driving convergence. The gap between the traditional web and related services is closing, with the increase in smart phones and the movement of the Gen Y’s into the workforce.

Jennifer Wilson, SVP Internet Channel Director, BBVA Compass shared her experience with the introduction of ZashPay, a Person to Person payments service from Fiserv. From an adoption perspective, they found that building a web page with a simple enrollment process was key. When they looked at the user base, they found a surprising number of small business customers who were using as an alternative to more expensive ACH services. Given these pilot results, they may develop a mobile invoicing service for their business customers.

We rolled out our Mobile Money offering in August, 2010 and have seen a significant adoption rate. Mobile continues to be a hot topic among financial services providers and may prove to be the most signficant game changer in the next couple of years.

On the second day of the conference, I was fortunate enough to be part of a panel discussion on Personal Financial Management (PFM) along with Patrick Smith of Wells Fargo, Eric Connors of Yodlee, and Edward Chang of Strands. We had a lively discussion about the benefits of PFM for our customers, the challenges of getting people to use it, and the pros and con’s of aggregation services. While the benefits are pretty clear (better financial management) the biggest challenge, as noted by Patrick, is inertia. Managing your finances is certainly important, but not critical. Setting up goals and budgets falls somewhere around cleaning out the gutters on the “to do” list. The key, perhaps, is to help educate the consumers about the benefits to make it move up that list.

One of the classic differences between 1st Mariner and Wells is the approach to aggregation. Wells provides tools that help manage those accounts that are with Wells while we offer a service (Mariner360) to add all your accounts, even from other institutions. Perhaps this highlights the major difference between big and small banks. We see this as a service that is the right thing for the customer, while they look at it from an internal perspective of what is right for the organization. We (of course) think ours is the better approach.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
2 commentsposted in 1st Mariner Bank, Mobile Banking, Products, Social Media, Twitter, Uncategorized, Video

1st Mariner Branches & FourSquare

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

I’ve been busy with Social Media!  I’ve used Social Media sites for several years now to service our customers, add transparency, and reinforce our core values so, one would think that I’ve used all the sites and know all the tactics…  Not even close.  The landscape of the web and Social Media is constantly changing.  In my opinion, they aren’t even separate anymore.  It’s no longer Social Media, it’s the Internet.  Due to the change I’m constantly testing out new and interesting tactics and sites.  Most recently, I’ve uploaded all of our branches to FourSquare.  Not sure what FourSquare is?  Check out the short video below.

So, what do I hope to accomplish with FourSquare and why is 1st Mariner Bank there?  Well, almost a million people are using FourSquare and that means it’s important for the bank to have a presence.  Wherever the customers are, the bank should be.  Also, traffic to our branches has been declining over the past few years while the use of online banking and digital communication has been increasing.  I’d like to reward those who remain dedicated to their local branch.  In other words, that “Mayorship” to your local branch might be valuable in the next few months.

Next time your at a 1st Mariner Bank branch, grab your iPhone, Blackberry, Android or Palm and be sure to “check-in” on FourSquare and leave a comment/tip for others.  Remember, that’s what this is all about – sharing and engagement with 1st Mariner and others.

Tags: ,
6 commentsposted in 1st Mariner Bank, FourSquare, Social Media

Filming a New Commercial with Ed & Flacco

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

We filmed a new commercial with Ed Hale & Joe Flacco on Monday (22nd) and we want to give you a behind the scenes view.  So, see below for a video the set-up, a slide show filled with pictures of Ed, Flacco and his father, and a clip from the filming.  Also be sure to check our facebook page and twitter feed for additional photos and comments. (more…)

Tags: , , , ,
2 commentsposted in 1st Mariner Bank, Ed Hale, Joe Flacco, Social Media, Twitter, Video

1st Mariner Bank: Influential marketers of 2009

Thursday, December 31st, 2009

We are pretty proud of the response that we are seeing from the financial services (FI) community on our online marketing efforts.  In 2009, we put a heavy emphasis on social media and clearly others have taken notice.  Yesterday, Truebridge Financial Marketing, a consultancy based out of Boston, blogged about the most influential FI marketers of 2009.   

These banks and credit unions are showing signs that they’re either moving in the direction of the new rules or in some cases, making it a top priority.  But they’re clearly ahead of the curve in the financial industry.  

On the list, 1st Mariner Bank…  Saaaa-weet!   That’s right, we are up there with other banking giants like BofA and Wells Fargo.  I don’t know about you but it gives me a warm feeling to know that your local bank is providing the same - and more often than not, a better – level of customer service as institutions that are multiple times larger.  The web has not only empowered you as a consumer, but it has also empowered the smaller institutions and created a level playing field. 

Let us know what you think of our social media efforts by commenting below and be sure to check out the Truebridge blog post.

3 commentsposted in 1st Mariner Bank, Social Media

Twitter and Customer Service- A successful ending

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009

Both individually and as a banker, I’ve been a pretty active participant in Twitter over the last few months. It is a fun, vibrant, and growing community with a lot going on. But, like many users, I was unsure of the usefulness and value of the space. Now I know.

We recently worked with one of our customers, Aaron Brazell, to resolve some issues on his account. His blog post at technosailor describes the series of events in some detail so I won’t repeat them here. We’ve found that Twitter is an excellent way to stay tuned into discussions about our brand and interact when appropriate. In this case, the ultimate resolution involved all of our customer service channels: Twitter, the Contact Center, and the local branch. So I guess the lesson I’ve learned is that social media (like Twitter) is just another way of interacting with your customers and prospects. It isn’t necessarily the answer, but it can be part of the solution. I welcome your comments.

Tags: , ,
3 commentsposted in 1st Mariner Bank, Social Media, Twitter, Uncategorized

Social Media + Local Bank = ?

Thursday, April 16th, 2009

You may not have noticed it lately, but we’ve been up to some pretty interesting things here at 1st Mariner.  We have redesigned our blog, changed our Facebook page and recently added a Twitter account.  If reading Facebook and Twitter doesn’t mean much to you, then this article is for you.

I’m sure you’ve heard the buzz surrounding social media and you’re probably curious why a local bank is using it.  Well, it’s simple, one of our objectives is to provide excellent customer service, and an effective way of doing that is maintaining a socially connected communication channel between us and our stakeholders (i.e. you!).

An interesting example of how we are using social media is the Facebook contest we built for our new First Access checking account. The First Access account is a checking account made for 18-25 year olds with great features added just for them. During the development of this project we realized that this account will be used for a lot of first purchases (car, college expenses). We wanted to provide a means for our users to share their firsts with the rest of the community. So, considering many of the targeted customers have Facebook accounts, we built an application that allows our First Access users to share their first stories using Facebook. The benefit for us is offering a great product and providing a medium to help others share interesting stories. The benefit for the First Access users is connecting with like-minded people while entering a contest to possibly win $250 for a great photo or story. Win, win!

Another example worth noting is the publicity we have been receiving for our Twitter account. In fact, 1st Mariner’s Twitter account was rated within the top 10 Banks and Credit Unions on Twitter by Net.Banker. How has Twitter proved to be valuable to a local bank? Aside from just having some great conversations with friends and customers, we have been able to service, poll and alert our customers in real-time.

So now you know how a local bank is using social media to continue its mission of providing outstanding customer service.  Your next step should be to join in the conversations with us in one or all of those mediums. We look forward to having meaningful conversations with all of our fellow Mariners.

Tags: ,
0 commentsposted in 1st Mariner Bank, Social Media, Twitter