SunTrust Attracts 620,000 to Its LiveSolid Website

When we looked at SunTrust's LiveSolid website when it launched in February, we scratched our head a bit (figuratively) over this completely separate, lightly branded site that features lifestyle advice articles from women's magazines and has only a small SunTrust logo in the bottom right corner. While we enjoyed the tips for making quick dinners and reducing stress, we wondered what SunTrust would get out of this.But yesterday, when we heard the site has had more than 620,000 visits, a light bulb went off. These are 620,000 people who may or may not be SunTrust customers, reading content that they presumably find interesting or helpful, who will at some point realize they are getting this information for free from the bank, which is asking nothing in return. Like sponsoring a favorite team or charity, this is brand awareness and good will on a large scale, reaching a segment that may not have heard of the bank before, at a small cost (although the bank would not divulge what it has spent in creating the site; that's an assumption). The most popular LiveSolid articles are on recession-friendly topics like free getaways and how to save money.

The near-invisibility of the bank is what's most appealing to LiveSolid site visitors, according to Lorrie Alvin, SunTrust's vice president and director public relations, who spoke with us yesterday. "People really like the fact that it's lightly branded, there's not a heavy product push or sell or marketing feel. It's a place to go and learn and navigate through life and money. It's supporting the brand in a subtle way. We want you to know it's from SunTrust but we're not doing a heavy marketing push."

On other social media fronts, SunTrust is experimenting with Twitter (its livesolid handle has 1,229 followers) and Facebook (to date the LiveSolid page has around 15,000 Facebook fans).

In its latest initiative, SunTrust on June 10 launched a Bank Statements blog, written by social media engagement manager Bianca Buckridee. "Bank Statements is an extension of our social media presence and brand, the goal is to provide useful information to clients and consumers in general, so they can make informed decisions about their finances," says Alvin. "The blog builds on our brand, we want to be a resource for answering questions about everyday finances and interact directly with clients in the process. The blog allows us to be where consumers congregate online and participate in those conversations. It facilitates dialogue about money, banking and getting on solid ground."

The new blog is part of a managing everyday finances microsite, suntrust.com/solid that provides financial management tools and information about overdraft services. "The blog is not a 'build it and they will come' thing, we have to take advantage of other marketing tools to build momentum for it," Alvin says. SunTrust has advertised the blog on TV, radio, trade and consumer publications. It had 2,535 visits in its first two months.

SunTrust tracks social media traffic monthly, to see where consumers are spending their time and which topic areas are most popular. "That helps us to have a better understanding of what's on minds of consumers and their interests, what they're looking for and how we can help," says Alvin. "This year we're learning from our experiences and understanding the metrics. We've made the investments, we're listening and learning and focusing on relationship building. We'll make informed decisions from there."