The best way to improve consumers’ financial well-being is to meet them where they are, financial experts say. More often than not, “where they are” is on social media.

The average consumer spends two and a half hours daily on social media, according to GWI.

Credit unions must be prepared to offer “just in-time” solutions to members, according to Jean Chatzky, CEO/co-founder at HerMoney. “They tend to ask questions when there is some kind of problem, when they feel there is some kind of stress in their lives.”

She and three other panelists addressed Discovery 2023 from TruStage.

Fifty-two percent of consumers say money issues are affecting their mental health, according to Bankrate [PDF]. That’s up from 42% a year ago.

The Filene Research Institute has partnered with Chatzky to deepen member engagement by offering credit unions market-ready social media content through the HerMoney platform.

Christie Kimbell, Filene’s chief product officer, says the HerMoney content fills a big need.

“Many credit unions have an amazing social presence,” Kimbell says. “But most of the discussions focus on employees, branch openings, or staff recruiting. It’s not geared toward just-it-time engagement and problem solving.”

Participating credit unions can also share best practices through the program. “We have about 200 credit union marketing content and social media professionals that are part of the group,” says Holly Fearing, Filene’s senior director of marketing and communications. “We’ve built a network for them to learn from each other.”

Among the participating credit unions is Dupaco Community Credit Union in Dubuque, Iowa.

“HerMoney allows our team to be more strategic,” says Mallory Blondin, lead content developer at the $3.1 billion asset credit union. “Now we have the marketing technology and the team structure to set up some foundational campaigns. All we have to do is drive traffic to it.”