www.pmint.co.uk
(relevant information on professional services
marketing case studies, tools, events etc in
the UK and internationally)
Item
3: Our Favourite Academics / Thinkers
Philip
Kotler
(pre-eminent thinker on marketing management)
David
Aaker
(one of the brand gurus)
Malcolm
McDonald
(marketing planning par excellence)
Frederick
Reichheld
(well before Peppers and Rogers, Reichheld
was a thought leader in customer loyalty and
retention)
Gary
Hamel
(provocative and prescient thinker on strategy)
Item
4: Bank Branches Still Preferred Option
A recent survey by US financial services consultancy,
TowerGroup, shows that in the US consumers (including
those who have access to online banking) continue
to use branches as the preferred method of contact
with their main financial services institution.
The
survey of 3,000 US households found that 92%
of those surveyed had used a bank branch(including
ordinary tellers and in-store branches)
to perform a financial transaction in the last
month.
Moreover,
85% of those with access to online banking had
used a branch within the last month.
In
Australia, St.George CEO, Ed O'Neal, re-confirmed
his organisation's commitment to the bank branch
earlier in the year; while both Westpac and
the National maintain their investment by ongoing
experimentation with branch design and configuration
to meet changing customer needs.
The
US research confirms that consumers want and
use a range of delivery channels, with face-to-face
contact still rating strongly as an option.
Item
5: Barclays extends branch opening hours in UK
market
A bank finally recognising, in the words of
its CEO, that:
"..Customers
demand the right to access their banking services
at a time, place and method of their choosing,
not ours".
Over
the next two years, Barclays will increase its
opening hours in all branches, with 50 key branch
locations staying open until 8pm.
In
addition, the number of branches open on a Saturday
will be increased to close to 400 around the
UK.
During
the extended hours, customers will be able use
the full range of branch services, as distinct
from the more limited "cash and dash" model.
We
wait with interest to see whether Australian
institutions follow suit, adopting a more contemporary
approach to serving their customers' interests.
Item
6: Email Marketing: Key Predictions - A Summary
CRM thought leaders, Peppers and Rogers, website,
1to1.com, host regular expert panel discussions.
A
mid-year panel on email marketing brought together
five US experts to discuss their predictions
about future trends. The salient points are
summarised below:
Rich
Mediain Email
Still
in experimental phase, but highly relevant
for consumer, communications and publishing
companies.Higher clickthrough rates and respectable
pass-along rates for those who have incorporated
rich media messaging.
However,
before focusing on rich media, marketers
first need to get people to open an email.
Once it's opened, response rates for rich
media tend to be higher.
Transactive
Email (i.e. conducting transactions
entirely within the email)
Panel
is split: Some consider it will be the most
significant area in email development (as
it means email recipients don't have to go
to a website, or provide more information,
to make secure transactions).
However,
other panel members consider data sets aren't
yet rich enough to ensure effective individual
targeting; in addition, it could be limiting
for companies with a diverse range/catalogue
of products - which are better showcased
by driving traffic to a website.
Dynamic
Personalisation
Future
of dynamic personalisation is in the data.
Catalogue companies and telcos are leading
the way; Barnes & Noble is a good case study
- they send tailored online promotional content
to customers, as well as trying to drive store
traffic, based on user profiles developed
for each individual customer.
Viral
Marketing
Again
the panel is split. Some panel members predict
viral marketing will play a major role in
email, and are finding that up to 15% of total
business of any campaign results from "tell-a-friend"
strategy.
Others,
however, consider that the spate of email
viruses has dampened viral campaigns - and
it will need another 1-2 years before it
starts to really impact - and then only
on a limited scale, because it is neither
"projectable" nor predictable.
Wireless
Email Marketing
On
balance, the panel considers the wireless
email marketing industry will grow at a much
slower pace than current predictions: market
penetration is small; there are major issues
around privacy; cell phone interfaces are
too small and not conducive to many marketing
messages.
For
full discussion see "Predicting the Next Email
Business Model" at www.1to1.com
Item
7: New Business Wins
In
recent months, Davis and Associates has
won the following projects and appointments:
Strategic
review of ASX Perpetual's proposals
approach, documentation and processes
Marketing
strategy advice and implementation for
Oakvale Capital (Australia's leading
independent treasury and financial risk
management group)
E-learning
marketing provider to NSW Women in
Business.
Item
8:AMI
Seminar on Marketing and the New Privacy
Act
The
Australian Marketing Institute is holding
an evening seminar on Thursday, 20 September
at The Renaissance Hotel, Sydney, on the
key marketing issues and implications
associated with the introduction of the
New Privacy Act.
For
details contact Furness Associates on
02 9438 4141, or email furness@ozemail.com.au.
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