BayFirst Financial | St. Petersburg, FL | Assets: $409 million

BayFirst Financial had established a strong commercial customer base in Florida and throughout the United States. However, their retail presence was less than satisfactory. To expand their reach, they decided to focus their marketing efforts on Florida retail households.

The Problem

When they began their retail acquisition campaigns, they were not yet a Marquis client. At that time, they did not use data to identify and target their marketing campaigns. With no personalization or household demographics in place, all customers received the same communication, whether it was relevant or not. This led to a drain on resources. Results were nowhere near what they were looking for. BayFirst knew they had to narrow their focus and find a more efficient and productive way to communicate. That’s where Marquis came in.

The Solution

In 2021, BayFirst Financial partnered with Marquis, an industry leader known for enabling financial institutions to leverage their data and produce measurable results. The goal was to become more strategic with their marketing by focusing on customers most likely to respond.

BayFirst began their journey with Marquis’ Digital Communication, a proprietary digital marketing suite designed specifically for financial institutions. This enabled them to leverage their data and focus on customers’ predisposition to positively respond. For instance, apartment renters would receive mortgage communications, not equity, as had happened in the past.

Retail Onboarding and Reboarding focusing on customers in Florida was the first order of business. These campaigns are essential components of any financial institution’s marketing strategy. Onboarding welcomes new members and introduces products the new member might be interested in. Reboarding helps reconnect and strengthen the relationship to reduce the odds of attrition. Bay First worked with their strategist to define goals, establish data points and launch the campaigns. With results beyond expectations, their Marquis marketing strategist was able to demonstrate the value of Marquis’ method of assembling, analyzing and acting on data. Marquis’ marketing software enabled them to household their customers and analyze the data to pinpoint opportunities strategically in line with their marketing goals.

Results

For every dollar they spent, BayFirst received $4.63 in return. In addition, they were able to present easy to read and understand reports to management, proving the efficacy and value of the Marquis partnership.

The BayFirst marketing team demonstrated that although not everyone responded to a specific offer, by reaching out, they were able to keep BayFirst top of mind with their customers. This produced an additional $168.5 million in deposits, loans and other products that were not promoted.

Since implementation, BayFirst has been able to track continued improvement in cross selling and retention. By concentrating on customers in Florida, BayFirst was able to specifically focus on those most likely to respond. They expanded their retail reach and strengthened relationships.