By Sammy Fiorino
Marketing in the banking industry continues to evolve as budgets expand and priorities shift toward channels that deliver measurable returns. While banks have historically allocated a modest share of assets to marketing, recent findings show a slight upward trend 2023-2024, with median budgets rising across nearly every category.
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The following analysis is based on a survey of the annual ABA Bank Marketers survey, which had 88 respondents between June and July 2025.
Banks typically allocate between 0.05% and 0.07% of assets to marketing, a range that has remained consistent over the past three years of this study. However, this year’s findings show a slight increase above that benchmark. Median marketing budgets rose across every asset tier, with some areas experiencing more pronounced growth than others. This upward trend is also reflected in marketing budgets as a percentage of average assets.
Budget allocation
When examining how marketers allocated their budgets, most categories showed little change compared to prior years, reflecting a steady approach to investment. This consistency suggests that while new channels and strategies are emerging, many banks continue to rely on familiar tactics that have historically driven reliable results.
One area that has seen a decrease over the past four years is the percent of budgets spent on outside agency support, dropping to 12% in 2024 and 2025.
The year of search
Among the mediums where marketers reported the strongest returns, search engine marketing and optimization (SEM/SEO) emerged as the clear frontrunner. This surge in ranking in 2025 may reflect shifting consumer behavior as more customers begin their banking journey online. This includes searching for mortgage rates, local branch information or digital account openings.
With search engine marketing and optimization, banks can capture demand at the exact moment of intent, making it both cost-effective and measurable. Additionally, as budgets have been more scrutinized in previous years, search often provides a more sustainable long-term return compared to paid media, helping explain why it had such a strong year in driving engagement and conversions.
Bank marketers will have to consider generative AI this year, with tools including ChatGPT and Google’s Search Generative Experience reshaping how people find information online. Traditional SEM and SEO strategies are giving way to approaches that prioritize natural language queries, contextual relevance and authority, requiring banks to rethink how they structure and distribute content to remain visible and competitive.
Overall, digital channels continue to outrank traditional channels in generating return. Search, digital advertising, social media, email, and content marketing ranked above outdoor, direct mail, and radio.
Text and influencer marketing ranked among the lowest channels for return, potentially highlighting a lack of adoption in the banking industry to focus on these channels.
What has changed since 2024?
Search edged ahead of digital advertising in 2025, unlike in 2024, marking a notable shift in how marketers drive returns. Interestingly, this growth did not come at the expense of digital advertising, which held steady with a mean of 3.7. Instead, SEM/SEO rose from 3.6 to 3.8, underscoring its growing role in capturing high-intent customer activity. The top five categories of marketing investment remained unchanged from last year, though shifts in relative values highlight evolving priorities within the mix. This may point to banks recognizing the long-term value of organic visibility, cost efficiency and the capacity of search engine marketing/optimization to support digital acquisition without ongoing ad spend.
Looking forward
When considering areas where marketers expect to increase budgets next year, SEM/SEO, digital advertising and social media remain the top three. Digital advertising was the clear leader, with 82.1% of respondents anticipating growth, up from 68% last year. Search and social media switched places in the rankings, with search moving into the number two spot, while fewer respondents indicated a focus on social media for 2026.
Department staffing and resources
Full-time marketing staffing levels remained largely consistent from 2024 to 2025, showing little overall change year over year. The number of FTEs continues to grow as asset size increases, jumping most significantly between $1 billion-$3 billion banks and $3 billion-$10 billion banks. This suggests that while overall staffing trends are stable, organizational size remains the driving factor in determining marketing team scale.
Wrapping it up
In sum, banks appear to be steadily increasing marketing spend, with digital advertising and search leading the way for future investments. Generative AI and other technical changes will reshape search and customer engagement, making adaptability essential. Those that balance proven tactics with forward-looking strategies will be best positioned for sustainable growth.
Sammy Fiorino is a marketing consultant and project manager at Capital Performance Group.
