On a Mission
A day with Mike Harris
Stand for Something
Building trusted brands
The Upside of the Downturn
Ten Management Strategies
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No Bull De-brandingTuesday 30th June 2009 Bank of America has unveiled the most self-conscious piece of corporate ‘de-branding’ we have seen in recent times, to mark its merger with Merrill Lynch. It comes as little surprise in such a 'merger' that the iconic Merrill Lynch bull icon has been dropped unceremoniously. The press ad states: "Since the coming together of Bank of America and Merrill Lynch, we’ve emerged as a business of strength, size and capability. Our two top-tier firms are now one financial powerhouse, offering you an unrivalled range of financial solutions, and the ability to more efficiently structure and close deals. In fact, we’re already doing just that with leading companies and institutional investors around the world. Our aim is clear: To continue delivering on the great potential of our union by helping to grow businesses like yours. And in doing so, build a shared prosperity for the future." Firstly, that is not a clear direction. Neither is it meaningful or differentiated. How do you deliver on potential anyway? Does that mean a whole load more potential? The campaign strives for quality but is lacklustre in a creative sense, with its dated fountain pen imagery. Ads bear the strapline, ‘Signed, sealed and delivering' to highlight the merger. Now take a minute to ask yourself, what do all of these mergers have in common? Morgan Stanley Dean Witter UBS PaineWebber RBC Dain Rauscher Citi SmithBarney You've got it - The second part of the name vanishes without trace. The de-branding of the instantly recognisable, meaningful bull logo may be just the start. A Time for TrustMonday 29th June 2009 According to The Financial Services Trust Index 2009, Trust as an attribute is categorised in several ways:
"Trust and trustworthiness may exist on two levels. Base level (cognitive) trust or trustworthiness relates to the extent to which an organisation can be relied on to do what it says it will do. Higher level (affective) trust or trustworthiness relates to the extent to which the organisation is concerned about the interests of its customers. Organisational trustworthiness, which is defined as the extent to which consumers perceive that an FSI (financial services institution) is worthy of their trust, is thought to be determined by communications, shared values, integrity, ability/expertise and benevolence." Base level trust, 'the delivery of promises' is vital. Without it, true affective trust has no foundation. Differentiation also helps to build trust, making it easier to manage expectations and assisting in daily decision making. This is a time for trust - a time to get the basics of delivery and differentiation right. More Emotive Financial MarketingFriday 26th June 2009 One day, there was a blind man sitting on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet and a sign that read: ‘I am blind, please help.’
A marketing guy was walking by and stopped to observe. He saw that the blind man had only a few coins in his hat. He dropped in more coins and, without asking for permission, took the sign and rewrote it. He returned the sign to the blind man and left. That afternoon the marketer returned to the blind man and noticed that his hat was full of notes and coins. The blind man recognised his footsteps and asked if it was he who had rewritten his sign and wanted to know what he had written on it. The marketer responded: “Nothing that was not true. I just wrote the message a little differently.” He smiled and went on his way. The new sign read: 'Today is Spring and I cannot see it'. Emotive, certainly. Effective, definitely. In changing times, change your signs - be creative and evocative! Exploit GapsWednesday 24th June 2009 If you think of gaps in ecological terms, you will see that your ideal niche financial markets are in those locations or domains in which you choose to be most readily accessible. Focusing in this way actually expands your appeal to clients and increases referrals. The big question is then how do you create distinct value propositions for each niche? The Unique Value Proposition in financial marketing has finally put the traditional marketing text-book USP to rest. 80% More Customer Quotes from CampaignTuesday 23rd June 2009 "You must be different", comments The Financial Brand (US). "If you can’t actually be different, at least look different. Differentiation — even if only achieved on a cosmetic and superficial level — will at least get you noticed, and that’s the first step on the way to building a strong brand."Disagree? It has taken an online financial and utility services aggregator to remind the market what it is meant to be doing. An aristocratic furry creature in a velvet smoking jacket stands on a stool in front of the fire in a baronial hall and introduces himself as founder of comparethemeerkat.com He says that lately they have had many visitors to the site looking for car insurance, which he cannot find for them. He suggests that for cheap car insurance we should go to comparethemarket.com instead. To put this into context, 80% more customers have requested quotes since the Meerkat ads were aired. Mike Symes, managing director of Strand Financial comments, "The top left hand quadrant of Ansoff (existing products being sold to existing markets) is about a lot more than 'right-time' and 'opportunity' - creativity has a greater and more disruptive role to play than many financial services organisations recognise." "It just shows what can happen when memorable, humorous creative meets with real conviction - as the Meerkat would say - the rest is "Simples". Congratulations to the client who had the guts to go for it. We salute you!" What Makes A Great Leader?Monday 22nd June 2009 Guest Blog - By Chris Harvey, Harvey Coaching Mike Symes and I have just completed a survey of financial services professionals, regarding their concerns about leadership in the industry. What surprised us was the strength of feeling that financial services has a major problem. Respondents indicated that firms and customers are out of synch. There is an overall perception that firms are struggling to articulate values and to ‘live’ them through the experience customers have through their dealings with firms. If this is to change then it needs to be led right from the top. Leaders need to show that their personal values and corporate values are in harmony. The words and deeds of leaders must synchronise and resonate through organisations and into the outside world. Resonance is the key thought here. It is a term used by Daniel Goleman in his excellent book ‘The New Leaders’. A ‘resonant’ leader is one whose infectious energy lifts and engages others. This ability comes naturally to those leaders that exhibit Emotional Intelligence (EI). A lot has been written about EI in recent years. In a nutshell it examines our personal competence in terms of self awarenesss and self management, and our social competence in terms of social awareness and relationship management. Most importantly EI is not fixed. EI competencies can be nurtured and developed over time. We have to know ourselves and how our behaviour affects others. From there we can develop. But this is far from a cloning process either. Great leadership encompasses all backgrounds and personalities and can become as personal as your signature. I think it was Judy Garland who said: "Be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate version of someone else". Have you found that first rate version? Harvey Coaching is an independent business and executive coaching practice with a strong background in financial services. Harvey Coaching enables individuals and companies to be supported by trained and experienced people who are not only accredited and effective coaches, but who also have first hand experience of what it takes to successfully hold positions of responsibility and leadership. Brand Staircase - Messaging HierarchyFriday 19th June 2009 The hard work of determining what you say and who you say it to shouldn’t be re-invented with every marketing project. Being consistent not only saves time, it helps your target audiences organise their ideas about you. A messaging hierarchy organises your positioning in a way that makes sense for the customer - and all of your future marketing. Here are the headline elements of a successful brand positioning strategy, which forms a brand staircase, reading from top to bottom:-
- Core Essence
- Brand Pillars - Key Messages - Unique Value Propositions - Positioning Statement (Elevator Pitch) - Proof Points Have Real Impact with Financial MarketingThursday 18th June 2009 As financial marketers, we need to embrace new channels and new tools, new ways of engaging with audiences. The adoption of internet-age values of openness, transparency and shared information is critical. Lenders and intermediaries alike need to move from selling products to delivering a service, in a way that gives control, confidence and trust to clients. We must become more effective information providers, offering trustworthy, impartial, comprehensive, easy to access and use information that helps clients identify and address the underlying problems they face. Information points the way for the financial marketing of the future. Message Overload!Wednesday 17th June 2009 25 years ago, we were exposed to around 1500 messages per day. It's been estimated that this figure has now doubled and that by 2010, it will have risen to 5000 per day. Overload!
Today, I'd like to highlight the issues that financial marketers now have to address or face the problem of mass audience tune-out: Product clutter - too many choices and too many product features, resulting in customer confusion Message clutter - too many messages, leading to a battle for awareness and the fear of creating adverse disruption
Media clutter - too many media channels, making it far harder to reach the customer, without diluting marketing spend The Dialogue BriefMonday 15th June 2009 "What are we trying to communicate?" is a staple dimension of every creative brief template. Traditional marketing efforts were founded on this tried-and-tested format and are still prevalent within the industry. Now we're moving into an age of business conversations using a rich Brand Thesaurus, should we not start to challenge this outdated one-way messaging concept? We have. The world is changing, marketing is changing, today, more than ever, consumers, your customers are in control. Stop talking at people and start some involving business conversations. "What do our customers want to talk about (to us and to others)?" B2B Financial Email MarketingThursday 11th June 2009 Email marketing is rapidly becoming the medium of choice for B2B marketers, according to a survey by B2B Marketing and Newsweaver. Eighty-seven per cent regarded email as important, very important or critical to their marketing activity. The budgets for email marketing are also rising. Some financial organisations have been slow to take advantage of this powerful medium and are concerned about being viewed as senders of unsolicited email or spammers, even in B2B markets. An open permission based approach gives you a great reason to strike up a valuable business discussion with a lapsed client or new prospect.
Messaging With MomentumWednesday 10th June 2009 Financial marketing messages in the recent past have been pre-occupied with the nature of the crisis and coping strategies, concerned with survival (e.g. SME Invoice Finance’s ‘Cash Despite the Crash’). The current environment still demands a grounded approach based on TRUST and SUPPORT, yet identifies with AMBITION – a shift from ‘survive’ to ‘thrive’ (e.g. SME Invoice Finance’s latest campaign: ‘Emerge Stronger’). The following themes have come out of a study conducted by photolibrary Getty Images, indicating current terms used by financial marketers and their agencies when searching for images: Balance; Connection; Dedication; Dreams; Excellence; Expertise; Future; Goals; Growth; Guidance; Innovation; Integrity; Journey; Leadership; Nurturing; Partnership; Reliability; Responsive; Service; Teamwork; Togetherness; Trust; Vision; Winning. The key is to link the key messages with the core essence of your brand and your brand pillars. In that way, you will have a distinctive voice and a differentiated approach with the tone of each communication still being highly relevant to today’s SME audience. I've Got a Combine HarvesterTuesday 09th June 2009 I was little more than a child when the Wurzels declared their affinity with the combine harvester and extended the generous offer of giving us the key. Here are the keys to harvesting, according to Seth Godin's blog this week:
"Word spreads. You want a market where stories of your success and reputation will reach other prospects. Needs are similar. You want a market where the skills you developed to help one person can also be used to help another person. Budgets exist. You want a market where there is more than one player with money to spend (on you) to solve a problem. Barriers exist. The market should reward insiders (like you) but make it really difficult for copycats to come in and steal share and lower prices. Price should rise with value delivered. As your work spreads and your reputation increases, you should be able to charge more, not less." I agree with Seth that 90% of all markets don't meet these standards, and given the choice, I'd avoid them too. Financial Marketing TV – Exciting New Online ContentMonday 08th June 2009 See brand new content from the greatest marketers in the world FREE on the specialist online TV channel for financial marketers, Financial Marketing TV. Check out this link and send it to your friends: http://www.financialmarketing.tv
Simply register online to view the topical feature video content, then click on the GuruTube section and discover the thoughts of marketing giants such as Gladwell, Porter, Kotler, McDonald and many more. Video of the Month – Crisis or Opportunity In a new series of videos from American Express, we learn that moments of uncertainty require a new kind of leadership, yet Tom Peters claims an insane amount of ambiguity may call for more radical action. Exciting New Content No One Cares About You Experience Seth Godin’s dynamic perspective on what drives interest on the web and the pressing need for personal one-to-one communication. Marketing in Tough Times Here, Virgin CEO Richard Branson talks about the importance of a good PR person to make sure your prospects are more aware of your business. Let’s Hear It for the Blog Marketing gurus celebrate the power of the blog and comment on how it has changed their perspectives on marketing, communications and even living! The Economy and SMEs How will the current economy create new opportunities for SME Owners? This video looks to the entrepreneurs of the future to find them. Financial Marketing in the Credit Crunch Leading financial marketers offer some insight on where marketers should be focusing their efforts as the economy becomes more uncertain. Rewards of Affiliate Marketing The trackability of affiliate marketing makes it tempting in today's turbulent economy. Marketers address the "big fear" around loss of brand control and touch on some of the potential gains. Direct DynamicsFriday 05th June 2009 It is worth noting that the new dynamic in a market dominated by refinancing, is making a shift towards direct marketing. Whilst intermediary channel referral provides a familiar backdrop and converts superbly, direct marketing has emerged as having a more distinct tactical role than before.
In these turbulent times, highly segmented direct mail targeting specific competitors’ customers is enjoying something of a resurgence. Such clients have a high propensity to convert and rather than generating vast swathes of unprofiled enquiries that are too time-consuming to qualify, smart financiers are becoming extremely focused on replacing their competitors. These ‘switch campaigns’ have been made possible through improved access to quality data. Segmentation is the key to successful direct marketing, whether by geographical location, vertical sector, financial ratios, by competitor, auditor or a combination of these. The fact is also that receiving a piece of well-executed, impactful direct mail seems somewhat ‘special’ today, since an increasing number of business communications are conducted via email. Make the switch - go direct. Speed vs Due DiligenceThursday 04th June 2009 Today I was asked by a senior financial journalist what are "the key considerations when lenders weigh up the speed of response and client due diligence?"
I responded that the Internet has resulted in a corporate culture of ‘Business at the speed of thought’, as Bill Gates would put it. As business people and as consumers in our own right, we are conditioned to expect a virtually immediate response to our enquiries, even when using traditional marketing methods. Being merely fast to react to an enquiry today is nothing more than table-stakes, simply the price of market entry. In the digital environment, the use of sophisticated auto-responders provides the advantages of one-to-one personalisation, consistent branding and, of course most powerfully, immediate fulfilment of Internet enquiry. Web-based enquiry demands an extremely rapid call-back process, in which prospect pre-qualification by ‘phone plays a critical part in maximising the time of new business personnel. It is just the same with traditional sources of enquiry. The client due diligence process is not a trade-off for speed of response. Early contact will help to facilitate the beginnings of a relationship. With risk on everyone’s radar right now, due diligence should be just as thorough, if not more so, than before. When trade speeds up, don't trade-off. Trust Your Referral StrategyWednesday 03rd June 2009 Word of mouth referrals often produce the most valuable prospects and are also the easiest (and most comfortable) for financiers to close and convert. However, the power of referrals is heightened during periods of economic downturn because of the substantial underlying emotional requirement of a prospect to establish TRUST. In a world in which the media has pilloried the financial sector, trust (combined with a lack of liquidity) is one of the main underlying factors driving enquiry today.
Whether it is a referral from an existing client or a key business introducer, such as an accountancy firm or intermediary, or even a non-aligned bank, the prospect has been directed towards your organisation because someone they trust, and whose opinion they respect, has recommended your services. They may have even decided to proceed, in principle at least, before they have even met you. Word of mouth recommendation is an incredibly effective form of marketing, because what other people say about you is more believable and credible than what you say about yourself (which is why testimonials are so good for financial businesses). The very best word of mouth marketing of all is a referral, where someone is essentially saying, "this person solved my problem….you should go to them so they can solve yours too". Referrals are a vital part of the marketing mix during the best of times. But in a recession, they’re essential. People are far more cautious regarding financial services organisations than they were before the banking crisis. If someone that they trust recommends you to them, it will massively reduce that element of caution. We all like referrals but most financiers do not have a professional, structured marketing programme in place to gain them. The typical commercial finance organisation thinks of client referrals as a bonus – the icing on the cake. In this economy, be anything, but don’t be typical. Referrals are the bedrock for your future success. Giving Tombstones Life!Tuesday 02nd June 2009 Spike Milligan has on his "I Told You I was Ill". I'm talking of course about tombstones. So-called because of its black border and heavy black print, the tombstone ad provides "bare bones" information about a deal. Frequently placed by investment bankers in a public offering of a security, it gives basic details about the issue and, in order of importance, the underwriting groups involved in the deal. Other industries, including the asset based lending industry, have long adopted this form of notice to inform intermediaries of the types of deal that they have completed. For lenders with chequebooks, tombstones have a renewed role in order to show that they are lending. Our challenge as a financial marketing agency is to maximise the value and impact of the space and bring a strongly differentiated personality to each ad . Ultimately what must shine out is the brand essence and a hint of the creativity that made the deals possible in the first place. Now, promoting ABL in such a vibrant and creative way should be an epitaph to the overdraft! Contrary Creative TechniquesMonday 01st June 2009 Next time you have a problem or opportunity, why not consider these contrary creative brainstorming techniques?: |
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