GOOD, BAD AND UGLY

Attitude- we use the word so often. As marketers, we always face situations where only Attitude can come to our rescue. If someone asks me what is Attitude? I would say it has to be Clint Eastwood in the 1970 blockbuster “THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE UGLY” What he might have never thought was...how apt the title was! Nope today’s doashboard funda isn’t about the movie but just a thought on the increased positioning efforts by the Indian Banks, given the sorry state of Indian Economy. So we are talking about sinking (UGLY) economy, the Major Investment Banks falling (BAD) and the traditional Indian Banks which are now reinforcing their “low-risk-trust-me-I’m-good-for-you” image in the minds of the customers (GOOD). So who comes to rescue – my gurus - Ries-Trout with their gift to the marketing bibliography “POSITIONING”.

Well do you remember those early days of an ATM in India when ICICI boasted of its presence in umpteen locations? Then slowly came in the concept of credit cards and other financial products. Also the meaning of banks for an average Indian changed from mere deposits to a complete investment kitty where he could now think about investment and returns. Until now if you ask about decent ad spends and positioning efforts, ICICI would top in the brand recall and next would be HDFC.

Just a touch up on the banking industry before we proceed. It has been growing faster than the real economy, resulting in the ratio of assets of commercial banks to GDP increasing to 92.5 per cent at end-March 2007. Ever since the banking operations had been opened to the private sector in 1990s, the new private banks have been increasing its role in the Indian banking industry. Simultaneously, driven by the expansion of the middle class population, increase in private banks and the burgeoning national economy, the domestic credit market of India is estimated to grow from US$ 0.4 trillion in 2004 to US$ 23 trillion by 2050. With such a favourable scenario, India is likely to emerge as the third largest banking hub in the world by 2040, says a Pricewaterhouse Coopers report.

Wow, now coming back to the positioning of the banks. Banks are primarily a HIGH INVOLVEMENT THINK PRODUCT. We touch upon a few banks which have off late been advertising to catch the eyes (read minds) of people. Possibly one bank which tried positioning itself long before others was BANK OF BARODA calling itself India’s International Bank – pretty straight but no major impact despite getting Dravid on the block. Remember Dravid saying “Taking advice is great. But the point is whom you take it from!”. Then comes the the fabulous recall-intensive TVCs of Bank Of India. Wait a minute- can you forget Sunil? There were many to follow this, this bhaisaab TVC and this one too when they spoke about their telebanking services !!Then came this stealer for Education Loans. Well if you were to see these days, banks like IDBI Bank and Union Bank of India flooding with TVCs which speak volumes about the trust.

Lets speak about IDBI Bank first. If you have seen the TVC (click here) you will notice what it says: “Not just for the big boys- Banking for all” Ahh so who really are the big boys? Are they the “high risk- high return” customers they are talking about? Or is it a taunt to the Big IBs whose corpses are in our minds or rather in the news discussions happening? It has to be someone – but the positioning is clear – “We are banking for all”. Just like their TVC shows football isn’t just for kids but even for the baby elephant.

Next in block is the Union Bank of India – they’ve had 2 TVCs. One shows the father arranging for cab early morning for his son (see here), who insisted on doing things all by himself. Another one a cute kiddie collecting broken tooth and sowing it for a golden tooth in return(see here). The tag line says “Good people to bank with”. Desired positioning here is to show that “our services are like the ones your family members do to you. So grow with us like you grow with your family.” The golden tooth shows clear sign of INVESTMENT and the father-getting-cab phenomena speaks about the RETURNS. Thus with these two TVCs running I’d give a thumbs up for the unknown-brand of UNION BANK.

Also probably the last in the class of the GOOD but certainly not the least, we have a thriller from the ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND (RBS). Wow with Sachin as the brand ambassador, a straight warning to the existing players as the voice over says “Once in a lifetime, there comes a player who changes the rules of the game”. Their website says, "Like Sachin Tendulkar, we believe that actions speak louder than words. That's why we've become one of the largest banks in the world with a reputation for helping customers get things done".With the tag line saying “Make It Happen” the positioning is not too clear but certainly it says one thing for sure- In the mushy bank-TVCs, here is a player who means serious business.

So...hopefully the Good gets better and we see a further buoyant Indian Banking system and if not- what are marketers for, they’ll position it appropriately for you!!!