ABA Discussion Point 2: Branding Beyond Graphic Design

Our conversation from the ABA Bank Marketing Conference continues as we discuss the issue of branding beyond graphic design. Jeff Stephens offers his insights relative to the topic in his most recent blog post, and I would like to expand upon a couple points he made yesterday.

First of all, it’s important that we remember that graphic design most definitely plays a role in creating perceptions about our brands, but it is only one contributing factor in creating those perceptions. At Market Insights, we recognize your brand to be composed of three major elements: the visual, the verbal and the experiential. Graphic design addresses the visual; it may influence peoples' experience with your brand – but it certainly does not address the verbal element of your brand.

Jeff uses the concept of touch points to illustrate this point – which suggests that any interaction with your organization contributes to the perceptions people have about your brand. Perhaps the most important point to keep in mind relative to touch points is that “only a few of them are created by your bank marketing department.”

This is especially important when considering any kind of overall branding initiatives. All too often, bank executives and management teams are quick to place responsibilities relative to branding in the hands of their marketing departments. And while marketing departments should certainly drive these efforts, powerful brands require the involvement of everyone within an organization.

The expectation that marketing departments can handle the entire process relative to branding initiatives may be based in peoples’ belief that branding is all about graphic design (i.e. brand being equated to a logo and tagline). But, like Jeff pointed out, elements of your brand such as your choice of carpet and the way your employees shake hands with your customers don’t involve graphic design at all – and probably are not considered to be the responsibility of your marketing department.

Powerful brands are created when the visual, verbal and experiential elements work together. And, this is usually accomplished when they are deliberately crafted and carefully managed. Graphic design obviously plays an important role in creating pieces that support your brand visually, but don’t let the verbal and experiential elements fall by the wayside.

Continuing the Branding Roundtable Discussion

After returning from the ABA Marketing Conference last week, we decided that we would continue the conversation from the branding roundtable session with our friends from Creative Brand Communications on our respective blogs. Each of us have addressed the first point of discussion – the definition and process of bank branding, and during the coming weeks, we each plan to offer our take on the following discussion points:

• Branding beyond graphic design
• Developing a message to appeal broadly
• Branding and ROI
• Branding across business units and market segments

Jeff makes some great points relative to the definition of your brand. Namely, I think the point about your brand being the total sum of experiences anyone has with your company anytime is one to remember as you consider your institutions brand.

As we have discussed before, it’s clear that the concept of branding is unclear to many financial services executives and marketers. To illustrate that point, I want to use an example that was brought up during the roundtable discussion at the conference.

At one point during the discussion, one of the participants made a statement like:

“I don’t understand why people consider Commerce Bank as having a powerful brand and value proposition – their customers are always coming into my branch and complaining about the service they receive; and, I always see long lines in their lobbies. How does this translate into having a powerful brand?”

And, the point was made that Commerce Bank’s position is not based on service or short lines – it’s based entirely on convenience. The bank touts itself as “America’s Most Convenient Bank”, not as “The Bank with the Best Service” or “The Bank with the Shortest Lines” – the bank’s marketing, branding and delivery choices are made within the context of being the most convenient bank in America.

Commerce Bank is focused on creating the perception of being the most convenient, what perceptions does your brand create?

Branding Roundtable Discussion at the ABA Marketing Conference

Earlier this week, I attended the branding roundtable discussion at the ABA Marketing Conference in Baltimore – which reinforced my belief that branding is still one of the most misunderstood initiatives in financial services. The session was short and the issues presented for discussion were not covered in sufficient depth; so, I would like to continue the dialogue and offer some insights relative to the topic of branding as it relates to today’s financial services industry.

The first issue that was brought up for discussion during the roundtable was defining exactly what branding is; and, clarifying what the process of branding looks like.

While branding has a variety of definitions, we understand effective branding to be the process whereby consumer perceptions are deliberately created and carefully managed. And, this creation and management of perceptions extends well-beyond your name, logo and tagline.

It’s important to remember that people already have perceptions of your institution and your brand. This is important, as many people involved in the branding discussion were talking as if they don’t have a brand because they hadn’t yet addressed the issue or undergone some kind of formal branding process.

With that, the process of branding your institution will look different depending on who you talk to. And, people in attendance at the session gave me the perception that they were trying to compare apples to apples with a discussion of costs relative to a branding project – at some point during the discussion, it was decided by the facilitators that a number between $50k and $150k should be considered a “good deal” in hiring a branding firm to work with you.

While there are plenty of firms out there that are capable of helping financial institutions create more powerful brands, it’s important to understand that their processes are likely very different. And, institutions that simply look at bottom line costs involved in a branding program are likely overlooking very important issues like how much time a firm will spend getting to know you or the scope of work involved (many creative firms will sell you a logo and tagline and call it “branding”).

It’s encouraging to see the issue of branding being discussed among bank marketers and executives – but, I think a presentation, as opposed to a roundtable discussion, could have brought some much needed clarity to the topic.

Targeting the First-Time Home Buyer Mindset

Many institutions target first-time home buyers in some capacity; but, I wanted to draw your attention to ING Direct’s Move Out, Move Up! campaign, as it really works to tap into the mindset of first-time home buyers.

The frustrations associated with renting an apartment are well-known. And, ING plays on three of them in their humorous animated website – having a baby, moving in together and getting away from bad neighbors. The site establishes a connection with these renters by stating what they are undoubtedly experiencing “Paying rent isn’t just getting old, it’s getting expensive.”

It continues to say that “Now may be the time to move out and move up.”

The site has games and videos associated with each of the three scenarios – and really does a great job in appealing to those first-time home buyers looking for an fresh and approachable presentation of mortgage products. ING does a great job in presenting a solution to a need, in this case it’s the need for more space that comes with having a baby or moving in with someone; or getting away from the hassle of bad neighbors and apartment buildings.

Perhaps the greatest value of the site is the fact that ING will pay the closing costs for those people that find a hidden code on the website (it’s not that difficult to find). This encourages the user to search throughout the website for both the code and the prompt where the code should be entered. After entering the correct code, ING issues a certificate which covers the closing costs.

Overall, this site does a great job tapping into the needs of first-time home buyers, rather than simply telling them what mortgage products and rates you can offer them – and it’s presented in a fresh, appealing and fun way that’s easy to navigate and understand.