News: SBI - More glamorous too

(TH 05/04/2006) Mumbai - We have realised that the first choice for a bank in the case of a high net individual is not necessarily SBI. There has to be continuous effort on our part to tell such people that SBI does not wear the same hat as other PSU banks. The perception that we are a bureaucratic, rule-bound, slow bank has to change," says T. S. Bhattacharya, Managing Director, SBI.

Industry observers also think it is time that the bank highlight its assets and change the market perception of it. "All these years, SBI has been focussing on the mass market. At the same time, it probably has more corporate clients than all the foreign banks in the country. It loses out to the private and foreign banks simply because it does not have the right marketing push and focussed communication about the kind of products it offers," observes Ashok Das, Managing Director, Hansa Research.

As Rensil d'Silva, Senior Creative Director, O&M, elaborates, "Although SBI has a solid and trusted image, it was still not considered to be an approachable bank. Through the campaign we are approaching the new Indian, a generation with new disposable income, and at the same time retain the loyalists who have been consumers over the years."

"The purpose is to open up the consumer base and in all our future campaigns we will try to sustain the interest of the consumers and continue to connect with the youth," states d'Silva.

Strengthening its offerings and services across the gamut of its retail products, SBI believes it is offering a unique selling proposition in every aspect of retail banking - ranging from car and home loans to its credit and debit cards. Creating added awareness of each of its retail products is an ongoing exercise for the banking behemoth.

For instance, in spite of having a 14 million customer base for its debit cards, the product lacked adequate visibility in the market. Claims Joydeep Dasgupta, Group Business Director, Mudra (the agency handling its debit card account), "The concept of a debit card is still novel in India. We found the biggest reason to have a debit card was that it was a secure way to carry cash." SBI has released a campaign where it shows pickpockets going out of business due to a `cashless' world.

However, SBI's campaign has come in for much surprise and criticism. Many have wondered why the bank needed to tag itself "Surprisingly SBI" and have called it self-deprecating. BrandLine sought the opinions of a few in advertising.

M. G. Parameswaran, Executive Director, FCB Ulka, says, "Being India's largest bank, SBI has a leadership image to protect. It also has to protect the image of the banking industry. Doing ads which are funny for the sake of being funny ends up devaluing the SBI brand and the banking industry."

K.V. Sridhar, National Creative Director, Leo Burnett, says, "SBI needs to have a more positive, upbeat image. The debit card commercial is in bad taste and you end up sympathising with the protagonist. It is a wasted opportunity for the SBI brand and shallow thinking on the part of the agency to have created an ad like this in today's day and age."

Defending his debit card campaign, Madhukar Kamath, Chairman and Managing Director, Mudra, says, "The ad is shot with a simple idea about creating a cashless world. At the same time we are addressing a social menace such as pickpocketing and how it is being taken away from the streets. We stand by the campaign."

In its efforts to provide a well-rounded banking experience, SBI has been tying up with various companies to strengthen its retail products portfolio. It has been associating with companies such as Maruti Udyog, Hyundai Motors and Tata Motors for its auto loans and Thomas Cook and Raj Travels for its travel-related retail products such as its Easy Travel scheme and Vishwa Yatra card.

Elaborating on the added thrust in its retail banking initiatives, Bhattacharya says: "We perceive retail lending as a tool to increase the profitability of our advances portfolio as well as to widen our customer base by building relationships through a range of products. The bank proposes to impart a sharp focus to certain types of retail loans such as SBI personal loans, mortgage loans and education loans. SBI's personal loan or Saral will cater to all the segments of the market, both salaried and non-salaried. It is tailored to meet the needs of the customer without any insistence on security. The bank will also be focussing on educational loans to attract the younger generation and build a lifetime relationship."

At the same time, SBI is not scouting for a brand ambassador. "We feel that all successful ads do not have brand ambassadors. In our case, the advertising should have quality in its presentation. It should have something novel and unique to attract consumers and the face of Amitabh Bachchan or someone else is not necessarily going to work," says Bhattacharya.

The business of the bank stands unaffected despite its lack of marketing push. In spite of intense competition and pressure on spreads, the operating profit for SBI crossed the Rs 10,000-crore mark, going up by over 15 per cent, and net profit rose by almost 17 per cent to Rs 4,304.52 crore in 2004-05.