One of the greatest challenges that we, financial communication professionals, face is how to help reach the business objectives of private banking entities. A challenge that, after more than 20 years managing the reputation of private banking entities, managers, brokers, and insurance companies, has proved possible to achieve.
Dual Advantage
Communication is used by companies to channel the information generated by their habitual activity for the benefit of their business. In private banking, this translates into a double objective:
- Assist in attracting new high net worth clients
- Create an image of stability and quality that generates pride of belonging among clients and attracts the best talent in Private Banking to join our institution
The best example of a successful communication and marketing policy is the case of Ferrari. Ferrari is a brand that has staunch supporters and customers, with a maximum level of pride in belonging, and legions of potential customers who one day aspire to join this select club. So much so that Ferrari doesn’t even need to spend money on advertising new products because orders are placed years in advance and are always out of stock. Its product line is very exclusive, and is only accessible to people with a lot of money, who consider Ferrari an essential part of their culture and personality.
Aspirational and tangible contents
Generating the illusion of joining an exclusive club by becoming a client of our entity is therefore key to our communication strategy. For this, we will need to build a story of the firm with aspirational and tangible messages, which we will export to channels and environments where our audiences of interest (clients and bankers) operate and are informed.
In practice, we will not only communicate our competitive advantages in profitability, business, size, and solvency, but also the values that motivate a client´s purchase.
The main facet of these values is trust, the mortar that supports the personal relationship between the banker and his client. So, if we can identify what convinces customers to join our club, we will have powerful messages to help solidify a long-term relationship with our entity. Additionally, we will have «prescribers» who will speak well of our organization to their family, friends, and professional social circles.
Coordination with marketing and other areas
It is key to work in coordination with the marketing team, which manages the specific positioning of the brand at all times. The marketing department will guide us in the selection of the calendar, the contents, and the areas where we will exercise the communication plan.
Because we must know how to choose when and where to launch press releases, participate as experts in events, collaborate in sector reports, publish posts on our blog and our profiles in RRSS and carry out other types of actions that impact the brand image. We will only achieve this if we know how to assemble communication and marketing strategies, aligning them with the company’s business strategy.
Moving messages, externally and internally, requires full alignment with senior management´s guidelines regarding how the company should be managed. For this reason, senior management must approve the strategy as a whole and the actions to be carried out, as it must insure that everything is executed according to schedule and with the intended purpose.
The potential of managing the information produced by the company provides advantages for the rest of the business areas. Communicating improvements, news, launches, strategies, business figures, appointments, etc., will make it easier to improve the perception of our products, prices, managers, advisors, and any other company asset. In short, it is the best way for the communication as a tool to support the objectives of the company as a whole.
Impulse to growth
In conclusion, a specialized communication strategy is an essential element for boosting business in private banking entities. It provides benefits in the short, medium and long term, strengthens the organization´s differential positioning and highlights the strengths of its business model and value chain. Furthermore, a well-developed communication strategy helps to achieve greater satisfaction among its customer base, generate a high pride of belonging among its customers and professionals and craft a better corporate reputation between the sector and the media.
Javier Ferrer
Proa Comunicación Consultant specialized in the financial services industry