Banking Review

Australian banks begin to embrace Twitter

ANZ is preparing to join UBank and RaboPlus in serving Australian customers via social networking platform Twitter. The bank has set up Twitter account @ANZ_responds which is labelled as “The customer response team for ANZ”.

Since Online Banking Review set up this list of banks and bankers on Twitter in April, many more have joined in an official capacity including Aussie Home Loans (@aussie), Savings & Loans Credit Union (@savingsloans), Australia’s banking ombudsman Philip Field (@bankombudsman), BT (@BTInsights), and PayPal (@PayPalAustralia).

Despite having sent its first Tweet in February, Westpac (@Westpac_help) is still yet to commence officially conversing with customers. And then there is the mysterious case of the Bankwest @HappyBanking account, which emerged in July, blasted out a series of self-promotional tweets, and then disappeared, or was killed off, in August.

Research group comScore put the number of Australian Twitter users at 800,000 in June. It’s by no means mainstream, but the magnifying effect of chatter occurring on Twitter has many bankers taking notice.

At Retail Banking Review’s customer experience conference in March Westpac head of consumer online Ean van Vuuren said “Twitter is a tiny proportion of customers, and a tiny proportion of Australians, but is it important? Absolutely, because people are obviously talking about us and it’s not just staying on twitter it’s proliferating from there as well.”

We’ve updated our list of banks and bankers on Twitter below. If you’d like a global perspective of banks using Twitter and other social media around the world, consultant Christophe Langlois has been tracking banks on Twitter since March, and is now following over 600 accounts.

You can also follow the latest banking news from Banking Review Media on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bankingreview

Banks on Twitter
@ANZ_responds
@Aussie
@BOQonline
@ANZMoneyManager
@BTInsights
@eftposservices (Westpac NZ)
@Individuum
@mecu_limited
@MLC_Wealth_News
@NAB
@nablab
@PayPalAustralia
@Raboplus
@RaboplusNZ
@SavingsLoans
@SmartyPigAU (ANZ)
@stgeorgecareers (St George)
@Ubank (NAB)
@Westpac_help
@Westpacsurryhil (Westpac)
@YMoneyMatters (CBA)

Bankers on Twitter
@alcro (Aussie)
@anthonysexton (Suncorp)
@ANZozCEO (ANZ)
@bankombudsman
@cassfenton (Westpac)
@ChrisPCanty (ex Wizard)
@corinnepaterson (Newcastle Permanent)
@DarrenBaird (ANZ)
@gerdschenkel (UBank)
@gilltatt (NSW Teachers Credit Union)
@GregMcAweeney (RaboPlus)
@i_muir (Westpac)
@ilikechips (UBank)
@Jason_Byrne (Newcastle Permanent)
@John__Williams (Heritage Building Society)
@kalikajaros (Credit Suisse)
@kaushil (AMP Banking)
@kenfreer
@koshaughnessy (St George)
@le_sommelier_ (NAB)
@Lunadave
@mark_a_rawlings (BankWest)
@MartinPlace (Westpac)
@mattheine (Netwealth)
@maverickwoman (AMP)
@menyen (ANZ)
@MChoiceKristy (Mortgage Choice)
@montyhamilton (UBank)
@nomisruption (ANZ)
@ozdj (CBA)
@ravenorcrow
@robertsheridan
@robfindlay (NAB)
@samplowman ( has left, but was at ANZ)
@sanka32
@SarahCut (Savings & Loans)
@SaschaHunt (BT)
@sclarkesuncorp (Suncorp)
@seancarmody
@stevenanderson_ (GBST)
@TarnyaBaohm (RaboPlus)
@TheBankChannel (NAB)
@TomPetrovski (Sadly, not the real Tom, although sometimes convincing..)
@Trangq (E*TRADE)
@unsword (CBA)
@VintageAle (Newcastle Permanent)
@vmwhitak64 (NAB)
@votekatet (Individuum)

Finance related organisations on Twitter
@CANSTARCANNEX
@helpmechoose
@infochoicerates
@MasterCardNews
@MortgageChoice
@mozo_au
@RateCity
@ratedetective