Know-How Exchange : Taglines/Names

Dear Sherry,

Right now, with bank layoffs popping up like dandelions, with Madoff in the hoosegow, AIG dishing out TARP bonuses like M&Ms,
and all the other jiggery-pokery going on in the world of high finance, the last thing I’d be calling my bank (were I in the process of re-branding one), is “aggressive”.

If you’re looking at an initial focus on local and regional levels, you’ve got to talk regionally and locally, to regional and local people and businesses, about the regional and local issues that matter to them, not to your chairman’s bottom line. At the moment, there are millions of extremely angry people who, quite rightly, see the vast majority of bankers as, how shall I put this? Back stabbing, dream killing thieves!

And who can blame them?

If the approach is to appear all touchy-feely in public, but to act
all Wall Street-ish behind the scenes, “crush the opposition and bank the profits offshore before the SEC gets out of bed!”, your marketing will nose dive. There’s been too much emphasis on privatizing the gains (lots of cash going into very few well paid pockets), and socializing the losses (Joe public picking up the tab because the “best of the best” caused the problem to begin with).

You’ve said “The bigger focus will be shift to customer concentration, while highlighting the bank's electronic services platform.” I think you’d do better to consider focusing the bank’s attention on meeting and exceeding people’s needs, on helping them, on giving them financial vehicles that work, that perform, and that don’t blow up in their face because they’ve been sold something they didn’t need, but that came with all kinds of bells and whistles designed solely to increase someone’s commission.

And “highlighting the bank's electronic services platform”? Pushing a cold, hard, number crunching, digital point pounding, feature over good old, up front, face to face, “Nice to see you Mrs. Jones. How’s your home extension coming along?” service? Will that work?

If it will, go on and good luck to you. But I can see it not sitting well with lots of people.

Personally, I think any bank's vision needs to be threefold:

Customers services is the core of everything they do.
Customers services is the core of everything they do.
And, customers services is the core of everything they do.

From THERE they can be positioned as the (not “a”, the) prominent bank of choice for their specific region and locality. Why? Because they are sympathetic and progressive, not “conservative yet progressive”.

What the world of banking needs is more of the attitude of Leonard Abess Jr., the Miami banker who quietly gave $60 million of his own money.

www.miamiherald.com/515/story/920298.html

Without knowing where your bank is based, it’s difficult to be specific on names, but perhaps these will help:

Name and tagline suggestions:

Pacific Atlantic: Your local international bank
American Value: Your local international bank

My opinion is offered with the best of intent and as food for thought, not as an attack on your or your client. I don’t envy
you, but I do wish you the best of success. Good luck to you.

Gary Bloomer
Wilmington, DE, USA

I'm afraid I agree with Gary: The client's direction to you has sent you on a fool's errand. "Conservative yet progressive" sounds like "up but down" or "left but right." They've simply found a bunch of words -- some contradictory or mutually exclusive -- and tried to put them together into a coherent mission statement.

"Local and international" is another absurd requirement. And "a prominent bank of choice" doesn't mean anything, other than that they want to succeed at something.

You will look smart if you suggest some market research to see what their target audience likes and dislikes about the other banks in the area. You'll probably uncover a few opportunities that would set you apart from competition, and you'll find a few things that are "must haves" to make it into the consideration set.

As Gary says, your customers are the only thing that count. Get to know them better than anyone else, and satisfy their most important needs better than your competition. And pick a name that reflects the benefit you promise them.

@ Gary,
I agree that the times are tough specially for the banking sector hence my dilemma about the name and tag line; to come across as a bank that cares about its customers and offers competitive services, but there is nothing exclusive in terms of services that can be cashed upon.

@ mgoodman,
No time for market research, I have to send the names in first thing Monday morning.

How does everyone feel about "TransAction Bank" for the name. If so will need tag line suggestions.

Thank you all for your participation.

Gary,

What does "It's as flat as a kipper" mean?