Branding Archive
Banks: Less Differentiated Than a Bar of Soap
A study found that banks had the least differentiation and soap brands had the most. What's to blame?
BofA Execs Create Merger Ballad From U2 Hit
When Bank of America merged with MBNA back in 2006, they had a big internal event for bank executives. Two of them got up on stage and performed a remade version of U2′s hit single,
Podcast on building financial brands
“Building a financial brand is very, very hard.” — The Brand Show podcast A blog entitled The Brand Show has turned its attention to branding financial services in its latest podcast installment. The 30-minute segment
‘Rewards Checking’: Bancvue’s Ubiquitous Differentiator
“Aren’t you ready for real differentiation?” Financial institutions across the country are duking it out over high-interest checking accounts, the ones paying upwards of 6.25%. These high-interest checking accounts were a differentiator for a brief
Happy Banking
Singing kittens. An interview with a talking flower. Make believe statistics. Surely the “Happy Banking” campaign from Australia’s BankWest seems a little strange at first. That’s because it is a little strange. But that’s a
Competing with Goliath
The cover story of ABA’s Bank Marketing January/February 2008 edition examines the ways in which “little guys” (sound familiar?) can compete against the megabanks. The article is titled “Can David Compete with Goliath?” Insights they
Compared to peers, Canadian P2P has conservative image
This past week saw the launch of not one, but two peer-to-peer lenders. The first, IOU Central, introduced Canadians toP2P lending with a conservative look compared to its U.S. peers. The website features images of
9 Points About Financial Branding
In the January 2008 edition of Credit Union Business magazine, correspondent Lin Grensing-Pophal writes that the “small town, homey brands” many credit unions have simply doesn’t cut it when expanding into business services. In the
Reminder: Differentiate or Die
“In today’s business environment, the word ‘same’ could be shorthand for ‘out of business.’” — Dan Clark
Three steps to a strong brand
“Most credit unions seem stuck in the mud when it comes to competitive differentiation.” In an article titled “From ‘As-Is’ to ‘Will Be’,” John Redding, principal with the Institute for Strategic Learning, offers advice on
Gen-Y CU staffer defines financial branding perfectly
Never mind that the author of this blog post is only 21, this kid nails it: “The best way to draw people in is to show how you are different from a bank; rate and
“Better sameness” vs. true differentiation
“The challenge is that most banks have a long legacy of product-centric, ‘everything for everybody’ ways of thinking. This leads to decision-making and resource commitments that reinforce ‘better sameness’ rather than true differentiation.” – Frank
A look back at NewGround research from 2004
The Northwestern Financial Review ran a story back in 2004 on research conducted by financial consulting firm NewGround Resources. The study included 480 credit unions. From the article: Only 2% of those in the survey
Ahead of their time: ‘Redbrand Credit Union’
In 1889, Peter Sommer invented a machine that wove steel wire fence to replace traditional wooden timber fences, making life easier for millions of American farmers. His invention spawned a midwestern steel giant, Keystone Steel
