It was in the Saturday PUNCH of December 16, that I read about FCMB’s new advertising campaign. This quickly aroused my interest to investigate the brand and authenticate its claims. The truth is that I have never had any concrete dealing with the brand and I needed verifiable platforms to support my viewpoint.
I remember signing a reference form for a neighbor and I had to probe his reasons for selecting such a bank! The new FCMB brand campaign is predicated on the thrust of improving service delivery for the benefit of the customers.
It is entirely focused on the new brand image of the bank. I believe the ultimate goal is to create a refreshing image beyond what it used to be. To authenticate the brand’s new proposition, I took an understudy of some branches to determine the level of compliance to the bank’s new brand campaign.
A visit to the Akowonjo branch revealed to a great extent that some employees have actually embraced the new brand direction to better the lot of the customers. I was pleasantly impressed with the attitudinal disposition of Oluwabiyi Olabisi, a customer service personnel. She is one individual that has the requisite skills to project the bank’s image properly. She exhibited the attributes of courtesy, good mannerism and she is indeed a worthy brand ambassador. I had an impression of the brand before entering the branch but my earlier impression vanished instantly. She took me through the different products and she demonstrated an in-depth knowledge of the brand.
She indeed is one person that aligns with the new brand proposition. The new FCMB campaign is anchored on providing qualitative service delivery to the customers. Now through with the process of its integration with FIN Bank, FCMB assures customers of excellence value by communicating its desire to serve them better.
I also detailed a colleague to visit the Oba Akran branches of FCMB and the report is encouraging even though some improvements are still needed.
The insights generated from the former FIN Bank (now FCMB) on Oba Akran revealed a customer centric bank that focuses on the customers as individuals.
The branch through insights has been customer friendly and proactive in its approach to customer needs. The ambience of the bank offers the customer a sense of belonging through positive association.
The internal aesthetics in the branch also portray the bank as a unique and appealing to customers. The old FCMB branch on Oba Akran, Ikeja has equally been known for good customer relations.
The branch retains it pedigree of attending to customer needs in an efficient manner. However, even with the positive signals, the bank still needs to immerse the internal stake holders in the new Better for You campaign. It is highly imperative for the staff to embody the values of the new FCMB brand.
This is one of the observations during the insight generation survey at this branch. Some of the staff needs to realise that the paradigm has changed and as a result, they need to exhibit positive values to make the new brand story real to the external audience.
The need to immerse the internal audience in the new communication campaign is further reinforced by the attitude of the staff at Allen Avenue branch. The response time to enquiries and attitudinal disposition needs to be improved upon.
The role of the internal stakeholders in the overall success of the communication campaign cannot be underestimated. The enlistment of the internal stakeholders in any communication campaign should be guaranteed before reaching out to the external audience. The Better for You campaign underscores the commitment of the brand to its external stakeholders but the internal stakeholders should live the brand and generate positive perception for the brand.
Ayopo, a communication strategist and public relations specialist, is the CEO of Shortlist Ltd. Email: mayomipo@yahoo.com
Source: National Mirror
