Piscataqua Savings Bank
Piscataqua Savings Bank, an independent mutual savings bank and certified B Corporation serving Portsmouth, NH since 1877, faced a modern challenge: while they retained loyal, long-term customers, they were missing opportunities to connect with new generations on today’s digital platforms. To increase deposits, attract new loan applications, and deepen relationships within the local business community, Piscataqua turned to Richardson Media Group‘s experienced paid media and SEO team.
Agency Partners
Our creative and web partner on this project was Stackable Creative, located across the bridge in Kittery, Maine.
Campaign Objectives
With only one location and a limited geographic market, Piscataqua Savings Bank couldn’t afford wasted impressions or overly broad targeting. The bank was admittedly new to digital media, so we applied their modest budget to two primary paid platforms to help boost brand awareness across their local service areas with more accurate geographic targeting to avoid waste. This “own your backyard” approach informed each tactical decision.
Rather than competing against larger banks with multiple locations and bigger budgets, Richardson Media Group focused on owning relevant search opportunities within their service geography, turning Piscataqua Savings Bank’s single-location focus from a potential limitation into a competitive advantage.
Marketing Plan
- Regional SEO: Broadened keyword implementation outside of Portsmouth by using terms related to Southern Maine and New Hampshire more broadly and using them across metadata, alt tags, and web page content.
- On-Site & Technical SEO: Updated their blog URLs without the date to make them more evergreen and viable to search engines. Increased usage of headers to break up content and increase readability. Improved inter-linking through anchor text to provide context to users and search engines.
- SEO Content Strategy: Revised top performing existing content according to best practices, expanded region-specific content, addressed user intent through the addition of FAQ sections.
- Paid Media Campaigns: Created a Google Ads campaign using keywords culled from ongoing SEO initiatives. Placed ads on Meta (Facebook and Instagram) to capture younger users, families and small businesses who may not be as familiar with Piscataqua Savings Bank’s unique differentiators.
Campaign Results
By focusing intensely on dominating their specific geographic market rather than spreading exposure too thin, Piscataqua Savings Bank saw remarkable results, including:
- 60% increase in organic search impressions within target Seacoast NH region
- 30% growth in organic search clicks
- 44% increase in visits to product pages
All efforts contributed to 610 total conversions achieved in 2025, including phone calls and website button clicks. Paid media efforts saw a conversion rate of 22.21%, well above the industry average of 2.55%.
Strategic Marketing for Banks: Where Expertise Meets Execution
Richardson Media Group’s paid media and SEO team brought a holistic approach to Piscataqua Savings Bank, combining organic search optimization, paid advertising, content strategy, and technical improvements into a multi-channel system purpose-built for their unique market position. Our results demonstrate what’s possible when strategy and execution align. For community banks competing against larger institutions, success doesn’t come from matching competitor resources; it comes from partnering with a team that knows how to leverage expertise and deep industry understanding to reach the markets that matter most to your business.