It has been three years and Wells Fargo is finally rebranding Wachovia, whom they purchased for $15.1 billion dollars at the beginning of the financial crisis. Their methods range from changing signage on Wachovia branches to rolling the Wells Fargo stagecoach down Pennsylvania Ave in D.C. In addition, customers (especially those in the D.C. area where Wachovia had a larger footprint than any other financial institution in the state) can expect to see advertisements on public transportation, billboards and television.
One of the hardest elements of a rebranding campaign is retaining customers and assuring them that service will not only be as good, but get even better. This can be done through in-branch advertisements, direct mail, email, etc., but a strong branding campaign triggers emotions (hopefully positive) in the hearts and minds of customers that can establish loyalty and assuage fears.
According to Lori Kolbert, Wells Fargo’s mid-Atlantic sales and marketing director, the bank will continue pushing their stagecoach image because it “inspires confidence in our nation’s growth [and] it signals progress.”
For Wells Fargo, the notion of guiding clients through their financial journey – like a stagecoach making the journey westward – is also strong, but it remains to be seen whether or not the gold-rush image of the stagecoach will gain traction with east coast consumer and commercial clients.
Sep 11
16
ICANN to Allow Custom “dot” Suffixes…For a Price
The nonprofit organization in charge of Internet addresses (ICANN — Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) has announced plans to allow custom suffixes named after brands, hobbies, political causes, and just about anything else.
That is, for those who can afford it. Right now, a web address ending in .com or .org runs less than $10 a year. It’s a bargain, especially compared with what the new novelty addresses in the generic top-level domain names (gTLD) category will cost: $185,000 to apply and $25,000 a year to maintain.
Before you whip out your checkbook and pony up for your own “.YourLastName,” there’s more. The application for a new domain names runs 250 pages long. If neither the price tag nor the tedium of completing the application doesn’t give you pause, then go for it.
These address options will create new marketing opportunities for companies large enough to foot the bill and willing to do the paperwork. And, there may be opportunities for the rest of us. It will be possible for organizations to purchase names such as .florist, .bank, and .sport, and then sell licenses for their use to smaller businesses.
For financial institutions, I can’t help but think there might be an advantage in sending customers to .YourBankName instead of.com. Perhaps not from a search standpoint, but from a security assurance and, to a lesser extent, marketing standpoint, it could be. It would be difficult (ideally, even “impossible”) for phishers to send email from, say, .zionsbank.
Quick Response (QR) codes are the latest tech gadget to engage folks with smartphones and other mobile devices equipped with a camera.
These codes are fun, and simple to use. Just point the lens of your smart phone or other compatible mobile device at the code, and wait to see what pops up on the screen. Usually, it’s a website. But it can also be a cell phone number, an email address, a text message, or even a YouTube video. And that’s just for starters.
The final result is a lot like you get from typing in a URL, but QR codes offer some distinct advantages. One is the novelty factor, but another is convenience. Typing a URL on a smart phone can be frustrating. By contrast, a QR code only requires you to point, and your phone does the rest.
The ease, spontaneity and fun of using QR codes may make them the interactive equivalent of the Point of Purchase (POP) display. You don’t even have to tell customers where the code will take them (many will simply point their smart phone at a code purely for its mystery appeal).
Your imagination is the limit when it comes to how your bank can use QR codes. Here are just a few ideas:
• Low, introductory CD rates — aim and presto!
• Apply for a credit card — aim and presto!
• Test different marketing and ad strategies — aim and presto!
• Enter a sweepstakes — aim and presto!
You can add QR codes to any marketing program to increase interactivity and, thus, effectiveness. The QR code is more than cool–it is the ultimate involvement device. If your marketing isn’t featuring them, it’s high time to get started.
For banks to maintain market share — and profit margins — in an uncertain economic climate, marketers will have to “think outside the box.” Please pardon the use of a cliché; in this case, it happens to fit. Increasingly, banks must walk the fine line between profitability and not letting new or increased fees drive off good clients.
A good option to consider: partnering with merchants.
This can be done with joint promotions, in which clients receive a discount when making a purchase using your bank’s credit card, debit card, or check payment. Vendors and banks can focus the promotion on specific merchandise or a minimum purchase. In turn, bank and vendor can each communicate the promotion to their own respective clients. Doing so will drive traffic to the merchant, while increasing use of bank services.
In other words, just when you feared that card-based loyalty programs were becoming prohibitive or passé, merchants have begun stepping in to fill the void by partnering with their banks and third party providers. For example:
- Online and regional financial institutions such as Ally Bank, Beneficial Bank and the South Carolina Federal Credit Union already offer discounts and promotions via customers’ online accounts.
- American Express and Levis partnered to offer online coupons via smart phones, eliminating the need for coupons and other methods of delivering discounts.
- During the Austin South by Southwest Interactive (SXSW) Conference, American Express and Foursquare piloted a program in which users who registered an American Express card with Foursquare were eligible for merchant discounts.
For clients with smart phones, you can make the process even easier by including a QR (Quick Response) code. Users need only aim their phones to download anything — from an app, to a coupon, photograph, website, video, you name it.
Soon you’ll also be able to use NFC (Near Field Communication) apps like Google Wallet for smart phones, meaning all it will take is a quick swipe to access a promotion.
A good starting place for merchant partners is, of course, your bank’s existing business clients. It’s a great way to increase your and their revenues, not to mention a great way to retain valuable merchants as clients of your own.