ABA Banking Journal
No Result
View All Result
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive
SUBSCRIBE
ABA Banking Journal
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
ADVERTISEMENT
Home Retail and Marketing

Not the Kitchen Sink!

April 14, 2016
Reading Time: 4 mins read

By Hillary Kelbick

In a parity industry like banking, it’s not easy to develop competitive points of difference. You’re usually working with a series of small, incremental advantages—a slightly more affordable checking account, an overdraft policy that’s a bit less aggravating, a few more bundled services for customers with higher balances. Often there’s no big wow factor that sets you apart.

Unfortunately, that often leads to the dreaded kitchen sink syndrome: the temptation to conclude that your marketing advantage is the sum of these small advantages, and the more of them you can throw in, the better. So you create promotions that are brimming with bullet points. Your online banners are so copy-dense, people have to hit the zoom button to read them. And you’re constantly calling your ad agency to say, “I’ve got one more thing to add! You can make it fit.”

But please, not the kitchen sink! If I had to name one pivotal lesson that applies universally to banks large and small, it’s this: simplicity and consistency are the keys to getting your message across. Believe me, your bank’s bottom line will be the better for it. Here are a few tips to de-clutter your communications and create simpler, more effective, more memorable messaging.

Come up with one key advantage per product line.

Have you ever been guilty of a headline that says something like, “Why Business Banking Is Better at [Yourbank]”? It’s an approach that forces readers to wade through your supporting arguments, and in most cases you’ve lost them before they get to the second advantage. Nothing’s memorable, nothing sticks, and potential customers remain unpersuaded. In effect, you’re asking them to do the work of selling themselves on your bank. And readers have better things to do.

Instead, think long and hard about the one customer benefit your bank can deliver most effectively for that set of products. For business banking, maybe it’s your expertise or your ease and convenience. For personal banking, maybe it’s the breadth of your lineup or your economical choices. For private banking, maybe it’s your personal service. The point is, you need to begin carving out a consistent niche for yourself in each competitive marketplace. Think of this exercise as the marketing equivalent of an elevator sales pitch: if you can’t sum up the key selling proposition of each product line in five words or less, you’re not focused enough.

Does that mean you can’t mention other kinds of benefits or innovations? Of course not. Say you’ve just launched a great new cash management platform for business customers. That’s not just a technology innovation. It supports your claim of greater ease and convenience. It supports your claim to deliver economical banking choices. Conveying new selling points through the lens of your overarching advantage is easier than you think. And it creates an instant hierarchy of messaging. Your communications become clearer, more consistent, more organized and more memorable.

Stick to your message, over and over and over.

What you say and how you say it needs to be in one voice wherever you communicate. Whether your message is viewed only in one channel or in several, your viewers need to experience surround sound—meaning the message is reinforced and is consistent everywhere.

It’s important to recognize that consistent does not mean the same—messages must be customized with different levels of detail and served up appropriately within each channel. One of the great advantages at our disposal today is the sheer breadth of channels available to us, from traditional advertising and direct mail to digital and social media and even guerrilla marketing. But with this opportunity comes the challenge of creating cohesive messaging across all channels. What you say in a banner ad or an email is different from what you can say in a direct mail letter or a Facebook ad.

And that’s where your brand voice comes in. Needless to say, all of this messaging must be delivered in the same voice—and that means your brand needs to offer you a certain level of flexibility. Not only do you have new channels to consider, but you may also need the ability to compete on price when it comes to one set of products, and service when you’re promoting another. If your brand is too limiting to allow you to do that, you may need to consider making some adjustments. Because it’s your brand that must deliver consistency and cohesiveness across all touch-points.

So spend a few moments reviewing your recent communications efforts with a critical eye. Are they delivering a consistent set of benefits across all channels? Are they focused on a few clear, simple advantages that customers can really appreciate? Or are you just throwing lots of separate benefits at customers willy-nilly, hoping a few of them will stick? Remember, the kitchen sink is good for washing plates and glasses (and maybe for cleaning vegetables if you’re feeling ambitious). But for your marketing efforts, you’ve got better things to throw at your readers.

 

Hillary Kelbick is president of MKP communications inc., a New York based agency specializing in financial services marketing and merger communications. Email: [email protected].

 

 

ADVERTISEMENT
Tags: Customer communications
ShareTweetPin

Related Posts

Podcast: Old National’s Jim Ryan on the things that really matter

Podcast: Old National’s Jim Ryan on the things that really matter

ABA Banking Journal Podcast
June 12, 2025

Jim Ryan has led Old National Bank to 250% asset growth. On the podcast, the ABA American Bankers Council chair discusses the bank's growing profile and footprint, his views on deposit insurance reform and the experience of leading...

Bank community engagement: Yes, you can help bank veterans

Bank community engagement: Yes, you can help bank veterans

Retail and Marketing
June 9, 2025

AMBA partners with the ABA Foundation to recruit banks to provide our nation’s veterans access to safe, reliable and flexible financial products and services.

FHFA finalizes strategic plan for 2022-2026

Marketing Money Podcast: Why leadership matters more than likes

Retail and Marketing
June 6, 2025

For bank marketers, the value of being strategic is great.

Looking for trouble?

Podcast: What bankers need to know about ‘First Amendment audits’

ABA Banking Journal Podcast
June 5, 2025

"First Amendment auditors" have long tried to provoke public officials into stopping them from recording in public settings. Now, some auditors are targeting banks.

ABA: Proposed quality control rule for AVMs would overburden banks

Bank survey: Uncertainty weighing on prospective homebuyers

Community Banking
June 4, 2025

Roughly 60% of current homeowners and prospective homebuyers are uncertain whether now is a good time to buy a home, up from 48% two years ago, according to a recent survey by Bank of America.

Looking for trouble?

Looking for trouble?

Compliance and Risk
June 4, 2025

So-called ‘First Amendment auditors’ target bank employees with provocative filming. Here are tips on responding.

NEWSBYTES

ABA, associations urge CFPB to rescind changes to adjudication process

June 13, 2025

ABA DataBank: May inflation cooler than expected, but still above Fed’s 2% target

June 13, 2025

Consumer sentiment rebounds in June

June 13, 2025

SPONSORED CONTENT

AI Compliance and Regulation: What Financial Institutions Need to Know

Unlocking Deposit Growth: How Financial Institutions Can Activate Data for Precision Cross-Sell

June 1, 2025
Choosing the Right Account Opening Platform: 10 Key Considerations for Long-Term Success

Choosing the Right Account Opening Platform: 10 Key Considerations for Long-Term Success

April 25, 2025
Outsourcing: Getting to Go/No-Go

Outsourcing: Getting to Go/No-Go

April 5, 2025
Six Payments Trends Driving the Future of Transactions

Six Payments Trends Driving the Future of Transactions

March 15, 2025

PODCASTS

Podcast: Old National’s Jim Ryan on the things that really matter

June 12, 2025

Podcast: What bankers need to know about ‘First Amendment audits’

June 5, 2025

Podcast: Accelerating banking for quick-service restaurants

May 8, 2025
ADVERTISEMENT

American Bankers Association
1333 New Hampshire Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
1-800-BANKERS (800-226-5377)
www.aba.com
About ABA
Privacy Policy
Contact ABA

ABA Banking Journal
About ABA Banking Journal
Media Kit
Advertising
Subscribe

© 2025 American Bankers Association. All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive

© 2025 American Bankers Association. All rights reserved.