Tip:
In fact banks are providing "switch kits" to aid people
who want or need to switch financial institutions. Additionally
banks are providing "concierges" to assist customers
to move and change over everything they have. (These Concierges
only work with customers who have $250,000+ in assets to move!)
- Provide "switch" advice/forms online with follow-up
processes to aid/inform people as to the status of moving all
accounts.
- Banks lose 14% of their customer annually.
- Immediately push online bill payments because users of this
service are 75% less likely to defect!
Source WSJ article 8-14-03
Tip:
- Design & send a Thanksgiving Day card instead of a generic
Holiday card. Thanksgiving is truly an American Holiday. You'll
stay clear of upsetting ethnic & multicultural targets with
in appropriate In-Culture & In-Language mistakes/oversights.
- Send (if so desired) a calendar to all contacts in mid-December.
- Or, if you do not utilize a calendar in December, send out
a “First-of-the-year-card” or post card the first
week in January.
Your marcom piece is more noticeable & separates you from
the norm. Additionally your extended marcom pieces (either the
calendar or first-of-the-year-card) will also have a higher awareness
impact!
Tip: A new book out on marketing that is absolutely a "must
read" for ALL marketers -plus it's a very short read at 145
pages for you non-readers…
"Purple Cow -Transform your business
by being remarkable" by Seth Godin.
Tip:
- Hispanics spend more per capita on consumer & vehicle
loans than all other cultural segments.
- By the year 2020 Hispanics in America will have more buying
power than all of Canada combined!
- The top ten Hispanic states for buying power are totally different
than the top ten states for blacks.
Notes from my attendance at American
Demographics Multicultural Marketing Conference in NYC on April
10, 2003.
Need help on HOW to market and reach-out to your ever-growing Hispanic
community? Contact me today at Paul@PaulJLucas.com
Tip:
February, 2003 BtoBPatrick Marketing
Group
- Generating leads (new prospects)
- Launching new products
- Finding niche markets
- Reducing costs
- Recruiting
- Re-branding
- CRM
Tip: In terms of recall, consumers remember cinema ads better
than TV ads -
43% vs. 6%!
2/2003 American Demographics Magazine
Tip: 1/2003, Paul J. Lucas
1. Fully educating your colleagues.
2. Fully integrate marketing plans.
3. Proper use or creation of co-brands (brand extensions)
Need help in planning or implementation marketing/business plan?
Or, would you like help in improving your internal/external messaging
and/or marketing efforts?
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Tip: Paul J. Lucas
- Person-to-person
The BEST method to build long-term relationships, trust and
friendships.
- Telephone (Land or wireless)
- Introductions, follow ups, thank you's, negotiations, etc.
- Great to use for follow up on e-mailed correspondence.
- Working out details.
- If important use land line always over wireless.
- E-mail
- Proper "netiquette" is a must. Email me for a complete
netiquette list.
- Great for confirming/forwarding logistics, information, negotiations
etc.
- Great follow up tool.
- Super for inquiry processes.
- Important feedback vehicle.
- IM/SMS - Instant messaging/Short
messaging services. Great for BD/SEG people to use.
- Personal letter/card - best used
after either person-to-person/telephone.
- Bulk direct mail letters - Never,
ever!
- Direct Mail post cards
- Best bang for your buck!
- Retail rules!
- Newsletters - a must but content
& style are the KEY!
Tip:
American Demographics Magazine, November
2002
- 58% of consumers can recall a toll-free or local vanity number
after hearing it just once in an advertisement! Examples: 875-CASH
or 800-NEW-HOME.
- Hybrid numbers (those with combinations of numbers and words
like 800-555-HOME) only draw 44% retention.
- Regular phone numbers with or without area codes like 877-2444
draw only an 8% retention rate!
- Furthermore consumers are 41% more likely to correctly recall
a vanity number with an 800 exchange rather than from the other
toll-free prefixes such as 888, 877 or 866.
- Need more help go to www.phonespell.org
Tip: Paul J. Lucas
- Develop your strategy first.
- Make sure senior executive staff supports AND participates.
- Seek feedback, support and involve frontline staff.
- Make sure IT issues are worked out beforehand.
- Consider online incentive programs for increased usage.
- Tie-in to overall compensation.
- Make it fun and interactive if you can.
- Post success stories often.
- Test & reward.
- Change often.
Tip: Paul J. Lucas
- Concept statement
- Competitor/financial assessment/analysis
- Measurable goals & objectives
- Strategy
- Tactical components & communications
- Operational/growth contingencies
- Community/PR tie-ins
Tip:
If you would like help in improving your internal/external messaging
and/or marketing efforts-contact me today at Paul@PaulJLucas.com
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Tip: SalesAndMarketing.com 7/2/02
- Vary the location.
- Allow time for fun.
- Recognize Achievement.
- Search out fresh ideas.
- Make sure your agenda is relevant.
Tip: PaulJLucas.com
- Show & compare results of progress/budget.
- Assign educational readings/research by individuals to report
back to the group (be creative with this task make it fun).
- Delegate authority for special projects thereby creating command
competencies.
- Always review previous agenda and summarize and communicate
highlights from current agenda afterwards -always repeat this
communication process.
- Encourage strategic partnerships of all kinds -thus the buy-in
for teamwork becomes easier.
Tip: S&MM, June 2002
- Rampant Gossip
- Playing Favorites
- Intense Competition
- Lack of Communication
- Overt Manipulation
Tip:
- Trade-out Marketing is simply the
process of two businesses marketing each other to their members/customers
at no cost to each other -simply a "trade"-out. This
process is used a lot in pro & college sports marketing.
In fact, I learned this concept many years ago from Robert Goodman
who was then the Director of Sports Marketing @ The College
of William & Mary.
- Fact: As VP of Marketing for 1st
Advantage from 1995-2000 we utilized this type of marketing
very successfully and I have taught this tactic to others who
have also used successfully as a consultant.
- Example: While ISO an additional
touch-point in our retail messaging systems we did a "trade-out"
with the regional Papa Johns Pizza franchise. We offered to
print up (at our cost) all the flyers Papa Johns taped on their
pizza delivery boxes -if we could have 1/3 of the flyer for
our messages. In return Papa Johns offered a coupon to our members
and our members only for an additional $1 off "any deals"
they had going at any time -as long as the person showed the
coupon.
- Fact#2: We provided our members
with an added value and secured an additional "pure-retail"
messaging level with a stronger target demographic (see Fact#3
below).
- Fact#3: Pizza coupons sit around
the average household longer than any other print media item
and receives 3x as many views. Additionally the viewer is more
than likely female making her, additionally, 3x more likely
to act upon it!
- Fact#4: Looking for increased name
awareness? This is a GREAT marketing-awareness idea for community
or near-community CU's and a smart tactic for CUSO's -if used
and planned for strategically!
- Finally: Once you develop and experience
success at this -the ideas and types of "trade-outs"
you can do are staggering and only limited to your imagination
and sophistication.
Need help in planning or implementation marketing/business plan?
Or, would you like help in improving your internal/external messaging
and/or marketing efforts?
Tip:
Mystery Shopping (MS) -People employed
to pose as consumers and shop at either your own or your competitors
branches/CUSO's, various phone/loan centers, Internet & other
e-commerce sites/services. The "shoppers" purpose is
to compare service, cross sales, sales-culture, prices, displays,
etc.
Basics of Mystery Shopping (MS):
1) The main purpose of MS is to
train people/employees exactly what to do -let them know they
will be shopped & ultimately you want them to view every member
as a MS! ALL major financial & retail institutions do this.
Remember though if you don't make people accountable by this process
-then don't even do MS.
2) MS needs to be tied directly
into compensation, a person's personnel file and their annual
review process. Specific goal needs to be set for managers on
down -make employees accountable. A lot of institutions and CU's
base yearly bonuses & raises directly to MS results.
3) A good idea is to give an "Instant
Reward" of cold-cash ($20 or $50) to individuals who score
95-100 -the reasons for this are very obvious.
4) Pick one MS vendor & stay
with them. Build a long-term dB of results. Additionally results
of MS are now immediately returned to you daily via the Internet.
Here's a tip: -wait a couple of days before you give individual
feedback -the reason here is so the employee can't identify the
specific individual MS.
5) Put a lot of work in the MS
questions/process & make sure it reflects how you want your
employees to behave. Don't forget to update and change questions
yearly -keep it fresh. MS should occur every single month or at
least quarterly. Yearly is not effective at all -don't waste your
time with this tactic.
6) Finally if a certain branch
is consistently not performing you might want to consider "Video"
shops -this is the new "wave" for "for-profit"
retail institutions & it is VERY effective -but costs more.
Miscellaneous MS Things to Remember:
-
-Do not train & hire people yourself.
- "You can't manage what you don't measure!"
-
is the key in using MS! Holding each employee accountable for
their performance (through measurement) will show your BOD an
ROI for your training, MCIF/CRM (MRM) and HR practices. In fact
this is the classic case of spending more money to "make
money" thus measuring each department's effectiveness!
The pay back will be bigger over the long-term.
- -Go to
www.mysteryshop.org
or go to www.Google.com and simply type in "Mystery Shopping."
Tip: Advertisers are realizing that their ads need to appeal
to the human psyche -an easy way to accomplish this is thru the
use of mascots &/or icons.
- A mascots personality can distinguish a brand.
-i.e.: Mack Trucks' mascot, the bulldog
evokes toughness & strength.
An icon can show the very distinctive and differentiating
features of your brand. -i.e.: Nike
use sports celebrities as icons showing determination &
accomplishment!
Beware -there's more to than choosing an animal and naming
it after your CU/CUSO or company (disaster examples; Aunt Jemima
& Domino's 'Bad Andy').
If you would like help in building a mascot/icon or clearly defining
your brand/co-brands or brand extensions email me paul@pauljlucas.com
I have extensive & successful experience in development of branding
strategies.
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Tip: BusinessWeek 1/14/02Positioning for growth is one of the keys to successful
marketing and now is the time to strike! During a down economy
media rates decline and there are fewer messages for consumers
to digest. After the extensive growth in assets financial institutions
experienced in 2001 why would you not position your brand &
core values for the upturn that is surely coming soon? "Put
another way, it's a great time for the strong to press their rivals
to the wall."
Tip: 12/2001, Outdoor Advertising
Association of America, Inc. - www.oaaa.orgThe definition of outdoor advertising has changed dramatically
as the industry has developed new formats in response to the needs
of advertisers. Today, outdoor means billboards, street furniture
and transit advertising…as well as alternate formats! For
a description of an old method used to test a standard billboard
message email me paul@pauljlucas.com
Tip: 9/2001 Youth Markets Alert
by EPM Communications, Inc.
How about a Debit Card for those traveling teens? Bank
Rhode Island teamed up with FirstDebit Corp to issue a debit card
designed specifically for students/teens who might be traveling
in the US or abroad. The prepaid MasterCard is accepted for currency
at ATM locations worldwide -it can also function as a prepaid
phone card globally!
Tip:
"Most executives will admit that their discipline involves
a lot of guesswork. But by borrowing a statistical technique long
applied in other fields, marketers can develop campaigns that
targets with uncanny accuracy."
read the October,
2001 edition of the Harvard Business Review, page 135 titled "Boost
your marketing ROI with experimental design."
Tip:
- Think simple
- Big is better
- Sans are safe -Sans serif type faces-fonts without little
flourishes on the ends -tend to work best on the Web, especially
for text copy.
Need help in building or clearly defining your brand/co-brands
or brand extensions email me paul@pauljlucas.com
I have extensive & successful experience in development of branding
strategies.
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Tip: Advertise on Lifetime Television for Women! Lifetime is
now (2001) the #1 watched cable station in all female categories
-Nielson Media Research. Also
women tend to watch TV more than men
-AdAge, July, 2001
Tip:
The old P's were Product, Price, Place & Promotion. Apparently,
all you need to know about marketing can be force-fit into those
four words. After all, once you design a product, figure out how
much to sell it for, set a retail price, and then promote it,
you're pretty much done -right?
NOT ANYMORE! The new P's are !
Tip:
The most misused marketing research tool today is Focus Groups!
In fact institutions have become "focus group happy"
and will conduct 1 or 2 and then set policy by this process. Note
these points:
- Focus Groups are not quantitative research & should never
be used as such.
- Have a specific target, product or service. The biggest mistake
about Focus Groups is selecting people that might not be truly
representative of the target segment your after.
- Focus Groups are great for disaster checks & finding out
impressions.
- For an accurate analysis you must combine mail or e-surveys,
phone surveys (maybe even exit interviews) and only after these
should you conduct focus groups! Once done you now have true
quantitative findings.
- Focus Groups must be well moderated by a person(s) who will
lead the group not guide them!
- A good moderator will subdue the stronger personality types
within the Focus Group and lead the group to reveal their own
& true impressions.
Tip: Effective marketing to women isn't "painting the brand
pink" but painting it transparent. Meeting women's higher
expectations in a neutral-sounding way makes the products &
services appeal more strongly to consumers of both genders. -
"Top of Mind: Say No to Pink Parasols,
Kinky Princesses" by Marti
Barletta for Brandweek
Tip: All About Women Consumers -
2001 Edition
Whether marketing to women online or offline the most important
tactic is to establish credibility and trust.
Need help in planning or implementation marketing/business plan?
Or, would you like help in improving your internal/external messaging
and/or marketing efforts?
Tip: American Demographics
Financial products must be sold to consumers with a simple
message, even if the product itself isn't that simple. In fact
in America (1997 study) more than 3/4's of all those aged 25 and
older did not have at least a bachelor's degree. There still exists
a huge untapped market for savings products.
Tip: 68% of financial online shoppers research online then purchase
what they want in a branch or in a financial institutional office.
In fact in America only 28% of all household financial decisions
are planned for -the other 72% are cross-sold at POP. !
Tip: "All about women consumers"
2000 edition, EPM Communications, Inc
A marketing trend that continues to motivate females are
cause-related tie-ins; women are more likely than men to switch
products & services because of an association with a good
cause.
Tip: Do you know what your consumer/members values will be in
the future? Do you know what they are now? Who will the future
belong to? Value or Values? Pure retailing is polarizing. On the
one hand, we are already seeing the "value for money"
builders and, on the other hand, those who are building "values"
into their brand(s).
Tip: Thinking of sponsoring an event? A simple no cost method
to find out whether a cause has popular support is to simply circulate
a pro/con survey (or email) to all your employees –but only
use this method if you have more than 25 employees. If most employees
favor the cause, odds are it is widely popular. Then you must
"evaluate the options" & "run the numbers."
If you would like help in improving your internal/external messaging
and/or marketing efforts-contact me today at Paul@PaulJLucas.com
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