From the beginning, social media seemed like a natural fit for CME Group according to Schoenberg.

“It was essentially a crossing of two bridges. I was reading a lot and using Forrester’s research and I noticed a group of traders had created a group about CME Group,” Schoenberg said. “They were already talking about us – posting thoughts and connecting with us – so I felt it was natural for us to be a part of that conversation.”

In September of 2007, Schoenberg reached out to the administrator of the group and offered to help manage the group. Instead, the administrator was willing to give Schoenberg complete control of the group, thus creating CME Group’s  footprint in the social space. From there, the footprint continued to grow as CME Group launched their Twitter account in October of 2008 – the account has over 750,000 followers. Since then, they have developed a strong presence on LinkedIn, StumbleUpon and Delicious, among other social platforms.

A key to CME Group’s success is its diverse use of the various social tools, as evident by their LinkedIn groups. The lone public group serves as a career portal for those interested in careers in futures; while they created three private groups: two focusing on products (currency exchange and interest exchange) and one solely for reporters.

“LinkedIn has really been beneficial for us for a number of reasons,” Schoenberg said. “First, we’re able to connect with professionals and get feedback from all over the world. Second, our “reporters” group allows for transparency and we can have open conversations without worrying about them being picked up and turned into a story.”

Partnerships and Conversations

In a true sign of resourcefulness and strategic thinking – coincidentally, these two traits are what prevents most major brands from succeeding in the social space – CME Group partnered with StockTwits, who had created the concept of putting a $ in front of a ticker symbol in tweets, to form a a relationship that allowed CME Group to join a large conversation that was already taking place. This strategic partnership is a prime example of how, often times, the conversation is already taking place. This concept and thinking is key for brands – instead of trying to create your  own conversation, join the one that’s already taking place.

While this remains just a small snippet of CME Group’s adventure into social media – see previous post comment to get a better understanding of the variety of social resources – it’s clear that the key to success for CME Group and Schoenberg has been a combination of providing useful information, engaging with people and a consistent message across all channels (traditional and new media).

“The nice thing for us is there’s so much information out there. So many things apply to the overall economy,” Schoenberg said. However, at the same time, we have to be sure that we continue to create original content that our community finds valuable.”

In no particular order:

CME Group

By far, one of the leaders in social media when it comes to the financial sector is Allan Schoenberg over at CME Group. From the start, CME Group embraced non-traditional communications and marketing. CME Group is a great case study of the effectiveness of proper integration of the interactive space with the core foundation of communications and public relations.  Over 750K followers on Twitter, a robust Web site and an in-depth focus on education; CME Group is hitting all the right strides in terms of becoming a global destination for financial folks.

American Express

American Express’ OPEN forum is a great example of a large, Fortune 500 company understanding how to provide a beneficial resource for small businesses – although it’s a great resource for non-business owners as well. As I mentioned in the previous post, I believe this type of approach – community building – will become a trend in 2010. In order for financial institutions to thrive, they need to focus on the customer’s needs.

Rather than pushing AMEX, OPEN forum brings together experts and resources in a variety of areas and topics critical to the average business owner. So in the end, while you’re aren’t being bombarded with AMEX products and services, it actually helps strengthen the AMEX brand. How are you providing value to your customers?

USAA

They launched their “What’s On Your Mind” Web site that allowed members to come together and form a community discussion. They continued with an active Facebook account that has over 47K fans and an active Twitter account that’s primarily used for promotion and customer service. Where they stand out is definitely their use of Facebook where they utilize video and allow for members to keep up to date via an “event” tab. Recently, they engaged in a “12 Financial Tweets of Christmas” effort that was quite clever and useful. Definitely one of the few banks that understand social media.

Nicolet National Bank

There’s a reason why Nicolet National Bank was one of the first businesses interviewed on iFinance – they get the value of social media. Nicolet National Bank has truly opened itself (The Vault) to its customers and community. Add to that a CEO who actually picks up his phone and makes himself available for all team members and customers – that’s a recipe for success. When the economy begin to tank, Nicolet National Bank opened itself up and went straight to the source – the community – to find out how they can be a beneficial resource. As a result, the bank thrives on transparency. This is type of open communication and leadership financial institutions need.

Ernst & Young

How do you recruit young talent? Go to where they are. Ernst & Young is easily the best example of a brand using social networking sites (Facebook) to recruit talent. And while they’re at it, they aren’t using Facebook to focus solely on young folks, they understand that the site is heavily visited by older, experienced professionals. As a result, they’ve been able to create a site that shares videos and pictures and allows for community discussions. If you aren’t using interactive tools for recruiting, learn from Ernst & Young.

Cisco

A huge opportunity for financial institutions in the interactive space is investor relations, yet so many fall far short. Cisco is one company that understands how to make IR interactive and appealing to across the board to all their key audiences. Webcasts, a RSS Feed, annual reports and a blog are all done with quality and provide a resource for information. Anything you’ll need in regards to Cisco is there and it’s neatly done.