FITCH helps HSBC launch A new global offer HSBC Advance


FITCH helps HSBC launch new global offer, HSBC Advance

HSBC responds to evolving customer needs by offering tailored banking propositions

As part of WPP’s teamHSBC, leading global branding consultancy FITCH has been working with HSBC Group Marketing to launch HSBC Advance, a new paid for banking relationship designed to meet the needs of the emerging mass affluent segment estimated to be around 154 million worldwide

This is in line with HSBC’s global strategy to increase its market share among mass affluent consumers, complementing its sister offering, HSBC Premier, which is targeted at the internationally oriented mass affluent segment with slightly higher investable assets.

The launch is set to roll out in 30 markets over the next year. Hong Kong is the first market to launch followed by the U.K. also in February, and Brazil due to launch in March.

HSBC Advance is a banking relationship designed to help customers manage their money in a future focused way, to allow more direct control of their money and help them move to the next stage of their lives. Key benefits within HSBC Advance include on-demand, informed and direct banking and financial services geared towards creating, protecting and accumulating financial assets.

This launch is part of a larger objective by HSBC Group Marketing to re-organize the brand’s global communications architecture around “propositions” tailored to the needs of specific customer segments, rather than individual products. Each of the five propositions being rolled out will deliver a differentiated combination of offerings to its defined target customer, all driving value back to the parent brand and its positioning around helping its customers unlock the world’s potential.

The scope of work for this project involved both strategic and design deliverables, including brand architecture, communications hierarchy, brand identity development brand management toolkits (guidelines), online and in-branch communications and brand-in-the-hand collateral such as credit and debit cards, welcome packs, stationery and brochures.

HSBC Advance targets customers whose needs and aspirations are moving beyond a standard banking product set. A piece of global research identified this defined group of customers and their changing needs and expectations. Fitch and JWT collaborated to distil the research findings into meaningful insights about this particular audience, dubbed “emerging mass affluents” and began developing a profile of these customers and their brand worlds, overlaying the resultant profiles against HSBC’s core strengths.

TeamHSBC’s in-depth strategic analysis into the world of these consumers exposed a young, ambitious, connected and technologically-aware generation of customers, inclined to “help themselves” in their quest for new opportunities to move on and up, but needing help identifying new directions. These insights led to the development of the new proposition’s key organizing thought: “Who could you be tomorrow?” and to its eventual name “HSBC Advance”.

The logo for HSBC Advance is presented alongside the parent logo, and acts as an “identifier” for the offer, ensuring that the proposition is clearly and confidently linked to the HSBC brand. An arrow graphic device was created to link to the HSBC symbol and allude to the directional and aspirational themes of the Advance proposition. The photographic style clearly presents this as a personalized offering, structured around the individual, with their unique ambitions and desires. Consistent with HSBC’s position as “the world’s local bank”, global markets are emphasizing the globality of the offer, which research had shown to be an attractive element of the idea, by using a diverse, international selection of images.

The brand identity work resulted in Fitch being tapped by HSBC to develop a consistent look and feel across the entire family of HSBC propositions.

The launch is being supported globally by a number of creative campaigns devised by teamHSBC, which make use of a diverse range of communications platforms including mobile applications and social media programmes.  

Lucy Unger, project sponsor and MD of Fitch’s London studio, said, “this project highlights Fitch’s great capacity to translate customer insights into a relevant and inspiring brand expression. These days consumers are demanding that brands are structured around their lifestyles and aspirations and the launch of this proposition demonstrates why HSBC is at the forefront of defining how banks need to be communicating with their clients in a modern age”.

“We are proud of the very distinct identity we have created for HSBC Advance. TeamHSBC has worked with us to produce a comprehensive range of communication materials including advertising, direct mail, digital, collateral and brochures, in branch and ‘out of home’. All of the work has the same high aesthetic that HSBC values and we believe this work will translate into meeting our high, new-to-bank customer acquisition targets”, said Tracy Britton, Group Head of Marketing, HSBC.

 

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