MESH EXPERIENCE LAUNCHES RETAIL BANK EXPERIENCE LANDSCAPE REPORT

MESH Experience, the award-winning global data, insight and analytics company, announced the launch of its first annual experience landscape report for the retail bank sector.

For the last year, MESH has been researching, trialing and building a new Real-time Experience Tracking subscription datastream for the retail banking sector. A number of the UK’s leading banks have now signed up for 2018 tracking, with more expected to follow.

With over 5,000 participants and 23,000 experiences collected over the last 12 months, the landscape report covers all touchpoints – paid, owned, and earned experiences, from TV to online to word of mouth - across all major banking brands, and includes detailed qualitative diagnostics.

The report aims to help marketers plug the gap in expectations versus reality when it comes to experiences across touchpoints.

Brand Experiences Work in a Wider Cultural Context
Many of the banks are converging around variations on the theme of human relationships and investments in causes. The stars of cultural affinity – for different reasons – are Nationwide and First Direct – ‘standing for something’ and ‘helping people fulfil their goals’. We found Nationwide stands in a unique position – ‘building society’ – and it reinforces this through experiences from campaigns through to in-branch experiences.

First Direct is held in affection – but in terms of tangible day to day experiences, it doesn’t create them as frequently as might be expected. This perhaps is a barrier to growth: a vague perception that First Direct stands for something, that is unratified in the day-to-day.

But in most cases, we found the push towards purpose has yet to translate into true brand meaning. There is continued cynicism around social trust, and concerns about the inauthenticity of cultural affinity.  All these trends speak to the need for banks to create a sense of relationship and wider purpose in a different way.

Brand Reach and Share of Experience capture the full dynamic of the market
The experience landscape shows significant variability in brands’ overall quality of experience: with challengers like Atom Bank now coming onto the radar.

In the mainstream, TSB are best in class overall. Smaller players like M&S, Metro, and BoS are also above average. Nationwide outstrip the pack.

Paid touchpoints relying on static advertising such as Newspaper, OOH and Online generate below average positivity, but operate in a supporting role.  Video and audio advertising used across TV, Cinema and Radio channels elicit more positive responses. But of course, the detail of execution is key.

Owned experiences offer potentially very cost effective ways for brands to provide their customers (and prospects) with great experiences.

People may moan about call centres – but the resolution of a problem in a timely way elevates the experience to the personal - generating the most positive and persuasive experiences of all Owned touchpoints.

Many of the main players are offering a similar level of experience in branch. However, Nationwide are clearly superior in this area.  Positive experiences of Nationwide people are widely reported.  In general, the branch is an underutilised asset, and as news about branch closures continues to drip through the market, perhaps banks should instead rethink their role.

The residual impact of the financial crisis still reaches the news (TV, Newspaper, Radio), along with new reports of banking failures and misconduct, often having a negative impact on retail banks.  This is countered by the positive day to day experiences of customers who often share stories of good customer service, banking offers and promotions and products and rates with family, friends and colleagues. That is where banks can do more to control their earned experiences.

Andy Dexter, adviser to MESH Experience, who has been instrumental in bringing the project to market, commented: “I’m excited by the unique perspective MESH Experience brings. This feels like a genuinely innovative way of understanding differentiation and opportunity within a crowded sector. We know clients have long been seeking more cost effective yet holistic brand tracking - and here it is, all in real time.”

MESH Experience’s unique approach aims to help clients see the world through the customer’s eyes. The company collects and analyses data in real time across the full spectrum of what people experience about a brand - all paid, owned, and earned touchpoints – allowing brands and campaigns to be set in their proper context. The report has been designed to help address key issues that clients are currently grappling with:

• Discover whether, when, and how banks should be using TV advertising in a world undergoing deep and rapid technological change.
• What messages can you successfully land and what are best avoided? What channels work best for categories of messaging – product, brand, switching, and so on?
• What campaigns cut through most engagingly, and why? What can we all learn from these campaigns?
• Do’s and Don’ts from a year where negative earned news reached almost one in ten people: the implications for managing messaging in a crisis.
• People talk a lot about trust. But what does it really mean? Is trust worth investing in? How can you create it? Which banks are leading the way?
• How well does sponsorship work in affecting brand consideration? What is best practice for retail banks?
• If mobile apps are transforming people’s lives, how can you communicate within the app environment without undermining the experience?
• With banking real estate continuing to be under pressure from cost control and online banking, what is the role of the branch? What is best practice, and what is potentially new and innovative opportunity?
• Digital and social media marketing: effective or overclaimed?
• Which challenger banks are starting to make an impact, and why?

About MESH Experience
MESH helps clients make quicker and smarter decisions about their marketing investment.  With offices in London, New York and Sao Paulo, MESH drives client success through their proprietary Experience Driven Marketing approach and award-winning Real-time Experience Tracking methodology.  More information on the company’s notable achievements, case studies, key leadership and history can be found at www.meshexperience.com.

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