Whether it’s Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn, we live in the age of social media. Through each of these platforms, you can hear about recent news, chat with friends and share events. What if there was a platform that did all this, but in the scope of community banking? That’s exactly what ICBA Community offers.
Welcome to the Community
Quick Stat
1,700+
The number of community bankers who have joined ICBA Community
At the heart of ICBA Community is you: the community banker. ICBA Community is a forum moderated by ICBA but almost entirely led and directed by community bankers. The online platform encourages members to discuss hot industry topics or potential solutions to their banks’ dilemmas.
Like any other social media platform, ICBA Community is made to be intuitive and user-friendly.
When bankers join, they’re automatically part of Banker Central, where they see a feed of comments, questions and polls from other users. Members can find a list of suggested groups, including categorized subgroups you can join based on your interests and needs. For example, you can join a marketing, HR or small bank-specific subgroup. The platform even has hashtags that can direct you to the posts and topics that interest you.
“[ICBA Community] is meant to be not just an information-sharing platform but a networking platform as well—a place for community bankers to be able to talk among themselves,” says Vanessa Hanson, ICBA’s director of digital and social engagement and ICBA Community’s moderator and administrator.
“Our community bankers had a lot of questions and wanted to connect with each other and see what other bankers were doing. There are plenty of those opportunities for them [through ICBA Community].”—Vanessa Hanson, ICBA
To further boost networking, you can use ICBA Community’s directory feature to directly connect with other bankers and members.
Nurturing industry connections builds camaraderie and unites bankers, which carries over to in-person events such as ICBA LIVE. ICBA Community allows community bankers to connect before and after in-person events.
“Members have long found tremendous value in connecting in person,” explains Rob Birgfeld, ICBA executive vice president and chief marketing officer. “We’ve been looking for ways to connect the dots between those moments and how we can leverage the collective knowledge of each other in a 24/7/365 online environment.”
The Big Three
Currently, the three hottest topics among ICBA Community users are:
Section 1071
Risk assessment
Technology
How to get Involved
What can you do to take advantage of ICBA Community? Post a question, comment on a thread, share a poll and offer your viewpoint. As Birgfeld notes, in an ever-changing industry, “We’re smarter together.”
“There are so many things that are specific just to community bankers,” explains Hanson. “Our community bankers had a lot of questions and wanted to connect with each other and see what other bankers were doing. There are plenty of those opportunities for them [through ICBA Community].”
Recent posts and discussions initiated by your peers include new banker introductions, the arrival of FedNow and how bank leadership can better connect with their staff.
If you haven’t already, please join us on ICBA Community and use your ICBA Member credentials to log in. Or try the mobile app, downloadable through your chosen app store.
