Mobile Banking - Product Marketing

I have recently noticed that there’s subject that has not received adequate attention – product marketing. To date everyone in the industry has been trying to figure out how to design the perfect solution. The discussions all revolve around SMS vs. Browser-Based vs. Rich UX (Downloadable); however, we must keep in mind that this is not a “build it and they will come” product. Yes - there are a handful or early adopters that will seek out the product, but a far greater number of clients will need to be actively engaged.

To compound the problem, marketing requires money and as we all know the business case for mobile banking is already a little fuzzy. For more on this topic I’d recommend reading Mobile Banking: Where's the Business Case? by Karen Epper Hoffman.

So, the question is, “how do you market mobile banking with limited funds?” The answer is – with a fully integrated guerilla campaign. Here are a few ideas to jump-start your right-brain creative juices.

1) Begin with internal marketing. The other day I read the article Mobile Banking – Driving Adoption by Julie Ask and I was reminded how critical the front line employees are in the adoption of a new product or service. So, my advice is to start with internal marketing. Write an article for the intranet, run an internal promotion to get employees using the service, offer to speak and give a demo at regional sales meetings. The list of possibilities is nearly endless and very inexpensive.
* Note: mobile banking will also facilitate a “stickier” client so be sure to work with retail management to ensure employees are paid incentive compensation for each client they enroll.

2) In branch marketing. I would begin with posters, tent cards, and a stack of simple “take-ones” at each teller station. This is extremely cost effective because once the printer is running the incremental cost is fairly negligible. Plus, if you were successful with your internal marketing program (see above) the tellers are now mobile evangelists capable of answering any questions the clients may have. Finally, this will also help you avoid the truly expense components of marketing such as postage and the expenses related to newspaper, radio and television advertising.

3) Take your message to the homepage. Create a banner image promoting the benefits of mobile banking for your homepage with an associated “landing page” including a strong “enroll now” call to action. Within the last few years many banks have begun to realize the importance of web analytics; and as such, they have developed a keen appreciation for how valuable the marketing areas of their homepage can be.

4) Piggy-back on existing marketing initiatives. If you have a friend in the marketing department this can be a very simple and free solution. Simply add a “snipe” to the corner of a newspaper ad, a line to the bottom of a direct mail piece, or a link to an existing email campaign. Again the possibilities are endless and as long as the message is simple and non-intrusive you will likely not receive much resistance.

For more ideas I’d recommend conducting a brain-storming session with the marketing team or reading Jay Conrad Levinson’s book - Guerilla Marketing.