Marketing Campaigns That Get Consumers...conference where customers can speak to and see a banker or advisor.” Mintel research finds that, while technology has made banking easier

1 mintel.com© 2016 Mintel Group Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Confidential to Mintel.

Marketing CampaignsThat Get Consumers

TO TAKE ACTION


ABSTRACT

Information overload. It’s a reality. We are all

consumers and we know that both our professional

and personal lives are inundated with information from

every angle. The brands we work with, and those that

want us to, are using everything in their marketing

arsenal to get our attention; to get us to ACT. The

result? An environment of constant scrolling and

skimming to absorb and differentiate between what

we need to know and what we can pass on.

Though most brands strive for an “omnichannel”

strategy, many end up relying heavily or even entirely

upon digital tactics to execute that strategy due to

cost and, to some degree, time savings. And ‘digital’

means all digital channels available to marketers. This

list primarily includes email, mobile (in-app, push, SMS,

etc.), online ads, social media, video, among a host of

evolving channels.

There is a clear distinction between the

communications that leverage digital; they mostly are

customer communications, while “traditional” channels

like direct mail are still heavily leveraged for acquisition.

The reason is that the sophistication in targeting

needed for effective prospecting in most cases is still

limited to the traditional channels alone. Concepts such

as targeted digital marketing are evolving and being

tested but not adopted commonplace yet. As more

brands have increased their presence across the digital

universe, the battle for screen time and attention has

begun to heat up like never before.

Brands seek to connect with their customers. And, their

customers are most definitely tied to their screens. We

all know this. It is, of course, important to be present

on those screens in as many and varied ways as one

can be. But consumers do not engage with their lives

across one channel only. They go online to apply for

a credit card offer they received in the mail, use their

mobile phone to research a product they saw on TV,

and turn to social media to get recommendations from

friends, family, and even strangers as to which retailer

has the best selections in their neighborhood. In today’s

landscape, brands must be omnipresent in order to grab

consumer attention. A presence within every channel is

integral to remaining relevant. Direct mail in particular is

a relevant and effective advertising channel within the

context of this omnichannel strategy.

The question one must ask him- or herself is: “At what point does the competition for screen time begin to erode the return on my investment?”


INTRODUCTION

In order to prove this point, Deluxe engaged Mintel

International, a third-party independent market research

firm, to conduct research around the effectiveness of

advertising focused on checking, savings, auto, and home

lending products. Direct mail and email promotions

were curated from nine brands across these four main

consumer categories. The research took the form of an

online survey of 20 minutes in length and was completed

by 3,175 individuals.

One example from a leading credit card issuer features a “Remind me later” button in a promotional

email, allowing the consumer to disregard the message in the immediate term, but gives the brand

permission to re-contact them at a later date.

Deluxe commissioned this quantitative marketing effectiveness survey to accomplish three main goals: 1. Which ads are most effective at capturing investors’ attention?

2. What promotional offers and messaging statements are considered to be the most interesting?

3. Which specific features of these ads drove appeal?


WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE MARKETPLACE

Fstr Hypr

Time has always been precious, but mass adoption of the internet of things has set new expectations for instant gratification. Financial services communications have increasingly included direct calls to action, encouraging consumers to open an account, compare rates, or simply learn more about the brand’s offerings.

Time estimates are another best practice. Similar to the “remind me” button, a time estimate puts the control in the hands of the consumer. Combining this ability to delay correspondence with a specific time estimate truly put the consumer in charge. One note of caution, however – accuracy will matter. Knowing how long account onboarding will take may encourage customers to finally follow through and complete the onboarding process.

This ad from US Bank promotes their mobile app, allowing the consumer to bank 24/7 from anywhere.


Mostly in their tweens and teens, the iGeneration can loosely be defined as kids between 8 and 20 years old, deeply entrenched in technology and social media, brought up in a real-time world with instantaneous information available at their fingertips, and considered to be more pragmatic about their futures than their Millennial counterparts. All of these characteristics present a unique opportunity for banks to reach this growing segment of the population – their customers of the future and the children of their customers today.”*†

“

”

Human Touch

Recognizing the value of a consumer’s time, financial institutions have increasingly launched innovative ways to connect with their customers. From Mintel’s 2016 Financial Services Trends: “While the branch is not going away, the purpose of the branch is evolving into more of an advice center than a transaction channel. Additionally, we’ll see chat capabilities move away from typing to actual video conference where customers can speak to and see a banker or advisor.”

Mintel research finds that, while technology has made banking easier to do on one’s own, it also has a role in building and strengthening personal relationships between customers and bankers.

And looking ahead… Starting Early

With $200B in spending (and saving) power, marketing to the Millennials has already proven a viable strategy, but what do we know about the next generation of customers?



But even in this fast-paced culture of information overload, there’s strong evidence that non-digital channels still hold relevance for younger consumers. A November 2015 study conducted by MarketingSherpa and published in the Wall Street Journal found that half of 18- to 34-year-olds said they wanted to receive direct mail promotions, compared to 61% of consumers between the ages of 55 and 64. †† This comes as news to brands who question the value of direct mail among their younger audience.

The financial services sector is rapidly evolving and this progression allows consumers and brands to have a closer relationship than ever before. Reaching your customers at their convenience, on their level, has become ever more important in securing your next accountholder. The following results from Deluxe’s marketing effectiveness study will show you that meeting your customer (new or old) on the channel they prefer, with an engaging message and design, can continue to help grow your customer base for the foreseeable future.


WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU?


Direct mail is still a viable channel for consumer preference and appeal

Respondents indicated, through their ratings of the ads they viewed, that direct mail pieces scored higher than email. And, when asked about channel preference, email and direct mail were basically at parity.

Direct mail pieces most frequently had the top index scores, though consumers do pay attention to their email inbox when they receive these types of marketing collateral

In the consumer category, two direct mail pieces consistently scored the highest across the key index score metrics.

MARKETING EFFECTIVENESS ANALYSIS



Consumers are quick to notice a large reward amount, but do also take the offer as a whole into consideration, looking at customer perks, fees, and the more minute aspects of any banking account

When asked why they chose a particular top checking ad, 61% of those who preferred it over three alternative ads, selected it because of the reward amount and overall offer, making a straightforward $500 introductory offer the biggest overall attention-getter. The popularity of reviewing the entire offer reveals that respondents wish to pay attention to the overall promotion – looking at checking fees, brand loyalty messaging and any other customer benefits that are offered.

Grabbing consumer attention at the outset of the purchase cycle will be an integral part of the acquisition process. Leading with the most attractive portion of a promotion or offer could spark further consumer interest.

Consumers are not aware of most brands when doing their initial research. In this sense, unsolicited mail may matter most to consumers, whether they know it or not. Brands that can be “first-to-mind” gain a competitive advantage. Diversifying one’s channel mix can help ensure that the consumer thinks of your brand first, particularly in financial services.

When shopping for new financial products, 47% of consumers responded that advertising was most appealing at the outset of their financial service research, followed by 23% during the “consideration” phase. After this initial phase, consumers are quick to go online, ranking the internet as their #1 choice for a top information source, followed by recommendations from friends and family which serves as a reminder that word of mouth is an important aspect of the financial services industry.


Core principles matter

Offer is important – value and relevance are most significant

With a commoditized product like a checking account, offer matters to get the customer “in the door.” Consumers are looking for the overall value of an offer, not just the actual monetary incentive, and its relevance for their current financial needs. They are still looking to financial institutions to be leaders and are looking for direction from a trusted partner.

Never underestimate the importance of good design

Consumers are now looking for personalized brand experiences. Customized landing pages and shortcuts to pertinent information will create a memorable experience for them. Make the consumer feel as though you are marketing specifically to them. Good design matters across the board, but especially in relationship banking.

Diversify your investment

Consumers are present in every channel and move freely between them. Just as it is important to diversify your personal investments, your marketing strategy can benefit from being available across multiple channels.




Top Pieces Across Consumer Categories

There is no one standard for ad appeal – consumers relate to ads based on topic, design, and offer in varying increments across categories. Based on in-depth verbatim coding, the main reason why consumers chose the ad they were the most interested in varied based on the subject matter of the ad they saw.

The overall reward and offer are most salient for those products which are the most commonplace – checking and savings accounts. When looking to products with more niche appeal – mortgages and auto financing – design, brand fit, and relevance play larger roles.

Reasons for Selecting Favorite Marketing Message

*“Letters (A, B, C, and D) represent findings that are significantly higher than the same feature for another type of account. For example, under checking, the ‘BCD’ next to ‘Reward amount’ indicates that that feature was more influential in determining a favorite among the checking advertisements than it was in determining a favorite between savings, auto loan, and home loan advertisements.”


WHAT MAKES A TOP PERFORMING PIECE?

DESIGN ease of use messaging

savings

auto loans

STRONG OFFER reputable brand – good design

checking

home loans

DESIGN AND RELEVANCEaccessible buying process

DESIGN AND RELEVANCEbuy on your own time process



Checking Direct Mail:The top selection within checking ads has a simple, high-reward message. The $500 reward amount was the most significant reason for consumers to choose this ad as their top selection. Brand awareness and fit were a distant second in making this ad more interesting to consumers.

Checking Email:Capital One’s offer of “refreshingly” free checking without fees, along with strong customer service and ATM location, appealed to the greatest number of consumers. The overall message was seen as consistent with the Capital One brand, and over half of the respondents thought the piece was visually attractive.

Savings:While no one savings ad truly stood out from the competition, Wells Fargo’s savings ad was generally viewed positively. The offer to “build savings the easy way” was well received, revealing a consumer interest in learning ways to set asides savings in a convenient way. Its design, brand fit, and relevance were focal points for consumers as well.



Auto:The overall design of Capital One’s auto financial direct mail piece interested consumers the most. The brand reminds customers to finance their purchase before shopping for a vehicle, making “car buying easier than it’s ever been”. As with the mortgage advertising, when evaluating advertising, consumers consistently think about what relevance the ad plays in their life at that particular moment.

Mortgage:Relevance played a key role in the selection of SunTrust’s mortgage ad as the top choice among consumers. SunTrust focuses on making the mortgage process less intimidating, comparing the end of renting an apartment to the conclusion of a personal relationship with “Break up with your apartment… Say goodbye to renting.”


METHODOLOGY

ABOUT DELUXEABOUT MINTEL

Of the 3,175 total interviews completed as a part of

this study, responses were weighted down to a total

of 2,336 to account for an intentional over sample in

Minnesota and Pennsylvania, two areas of interest for

Deluxe. In order to address the specific objectives of this

research, a 20-minute online survey was fielded between

the dates of October 12-19, 2015. Each respondent

evaluated three (3) ads from within the same channel

type across all of these measures. Topics included ad

breakthrough, favorability, brand influence, message

resonance, and behavior. Specific metrics included ad

clarity, relevance, and likelihood to notice, read or seek

more information about these financial services ads. Ads

were curated from nine different brands – Capital One,

First Commonwealth, SunTrust, TD Bank, PNC, Chase,

US Bank, Wells Fargo, and Citibank.

Deluxe Financial Services helps financial institutions

increase customer engagement, and turn those

relationships into profitable revenue. We focus on the

customer lifecycle — acquire, onboard, engage, and

operate — with a growing array of inventive, client-

inspired FinTech solutions designed to help our clients

grow in a changing, competitive landscape.

Deluxe is a trusted business partner to more than 5,700

financial institution clients across North America. We’re

known for listening to our clients, collaborating and

developing solutions together. They value our practical,

down-to-earth attitude, along with our passion for

progress and enthusiasm for helping clients solve

new challenges.

Mintel is the world’s leading market intelligence agency.

For over 40 years, Mintel’s expert analysis of the highest

quality data and market research has directly impacted

client success. With offices in London, Chicago, Belfast,

Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Munich, New York, São Paulo,

Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto, Mintel

has forged a unique reputation as a world-renowned

business brand. For more information on Mintel, please

visit www.mintel.com.

Documents

Marketing Campaigns That Get Consumers...conference where customers can speak to and see a banker or advisor.” Mintel research finds that, while technology has made banking easier