Kotler (1999) defines a brand as A name, term, symbol or design (or a combination of them) which is intended to signify the

goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors. A good corporate brand is important since it provides:

Instant recognition: so that consumers feel they know what they can expect and know what to ask for if they are seeking services Differentiation: so that the well-branded MFI can stand-out from the crowd in a competitive market Credibility: so that consumers can believe in the organisation (which is particularly important for those offering savings services) Warranty: of the quality and reliability of services offered by the MFI Facilitated Promotion: since promotion efforts can spend less time on who the MFI is, and more on its competitive advantages and products Word of Mouth Marketing: so that customers can easily recommend the MFI and its services, and those hearing the recommendation can remember the MFIs name Goodwill: so that the MFI is better equipped to come through problems, and better positioned to talk to stakeholders above and beyond its existing customers from government officials to donors

Strategic Marketing - Toolkit Author: MicroSave "Marketing attempts to understand the needs of the client and to adapt operations in order to meet those needs and achieve greater sustainability. It addresses the issues of new product development, pricing, the location of operations and the promotion of the institution and its products. Marketing is a comprehensive field aimed at strengthening the institution by maintaining focus on the client. In doing so, it creates exchanges that satisfy individual and organisational goals. - Kotler, 1999

Customer Service - Toolkit Author: MicroSave MicroSaves experience with Action Research Partners demonstrates that customer service can be one of the key differentiators for an institution, particularly in a competitive market. Since many financial products are relatively similar and intangible, customers will often judge you by

the service you provide. They will seek out institutions that can meet their service requirements. It is clear that to stand out from the competition you must have more than a friendly, welcoming staff. In fact, customer service depends on a wide range of variables, including:

Product/service range - not only the core products and services offered, but also the additional services (such as customer rewards and incentives) as well as the delivery augmentations outlined below.

Delivery systems - systems need to be efficient, effective, responsive and reliable, mass services are typified by limited contact time and a product orientation. Delivery environment - the location of branches and their opening hours, as well as their physical layout and design, and atmosphere space, colour, lighting, temperature etc. in the branches. Technology - often integral to a product for example ATMs or card-based savings accounts.

Employees - the staffs role in providing excellent customer care cannot be overstated. Product Marketing - Toolkit Author: MicroSave The Product Marketing toolkit includes the development and differentiation of products. It is a process of continually and systematically assessing needs of the market and its different segments to support product development and innovation that caters for those needs in the most feasible and profitable manner. Selling products is made considerably easier when approached in a systematic manner. There is a relatively straight- forward method for preparing the key messages for a product marketing strategy that is built on taglines, ultimate selling propositions and benefit statements. An MFIs sales strategy will depend on its products and its target market. These will dictate the balance between pull-and-push based strategies to selling the products. This toolkit covers: 1. Definition of Marketing and its Role 2. Information and Market Segments 3. Customer Value and the Marketing Mix 4. Growth and Marketing Strategies 5. Product Development and Differentiation 6. Product Pricing 7. Developing the Marketing Messages

8. Marketing Communications 9. Developing the Marketing Plan

Financial services From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Pleaseimprove this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (December 2010) Financial services refer to services provided by the finance industry. The finance industry encompasses a broad range of organizations that deal with the management of money. Among these organizations are credit unions, banks, credit card companies, insurancecompanies, consumer finance companies, stock brokerages, investment funds and somegovernment sponsored enterprises. As of 2004, the financial services industry represented 20% of the market capitalization of the S&P 500 in the United States.[1]

Contents [hide]

1 History of financial services 2 Banks

o o

2.1 Banking services 2.2 Other types of bank services

3 Foreign exchange services 4 Investment services 5 Insurance 6 Other financial services 7 Financial crime
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7.1 UK

8 Market share 9 See also 10 References 11 Further reading [edit]History of financial services The term "financial services" became more prevalent in the United States partly as a result of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of the late 1990s, which enabled different types of companies operating in the U.S. financial services industry at that time to merge.[2]Companies usually have two distinct approaches to this new type of business. One approach would be a bank which simply buys an insurance company or an investment bank, keeps the original brands of the acquired firm, and adds the acquisition to its holding company simply to diversify its earnings. Outside the U.S. (e.g., in Japan), non-financial services companies are permitted within the holding company. In this scenario, each company still looks independent, and has its own customers, etc. In the other style, a bank would simply create its own brokerage division or insurance division and attempt to sell those products to its own existing customers, with incentives for combining all things with one company... [edit]Banks Main article: Bank

A "commercial bank" is what is commonly referred to as simply a "bank". The term "commercial" is used to distinguish it from an "investment bank," a type of financial services entity which, instead of lending money directly to a business, helps businesses raise money from other firms in the form of bonds (debt) or stock (equity). [edit]Banking services The primary operations of banks include:

Keeping money safe while also allowing withdrawals when needed Issuance of checkbooks so that bills can be paid and other kinds of payments can be delivered by post Provide personal loans, commercial loans, and mortgage loans (typically loans to purchase a home, property or business) Issuance of credit cards and processing of credit card transactions and billing Issuance of debit cards for use as a substitute for checks Allow financial transactions at branches or by using Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) Provide wire transfers of funds and Electronic fund transfers between banks Facilitation of standing orders and direct debits, so payments for bills can be made automatically Provide overdraft agreements for the temporary advancement of the Bank's own money to meet monthly spending commitments of a customer in their current account. Provide internet banking system to facilitate the customers to view and operate their respective accounts through internet. Provide Charge card advances of the Bank's own money for customers wishing to settle credit advances monthly. Provide a check guaranteed by the Bank itself and prepaid by the customer, such as acashier's check or certified check. Notary service for financial and other documents

[edit]Other types of bank services

Private banking - Private banks provide banking services exclusively to high net worth individuals. Many financial services firms require a person or family to have a certain minimum net worth to qualify for private banking services.[3] Private banks

often provide more personal services, such as wealth management and tax planning, than normal retail banks.[4]

Capital market bank - bank that underwrite debt and equity, assist company deals (advisory services, underwriting and advisory fees), and restructure debt into structured finance products. Bank cards - include both credit cards and debit cards. Bank Of America is the largest issuer of bank cards.[citation needed] Credit card machine services and networks - Companies which provide credit card machine and payment networks call themselves "merchant card providers".

[edit]Foreign exchange services Foreign exchange services are provided by many banks around the world. Foreign exchange services include:

Currency exchange - where clients can purchase and sell foreign currency banknotes. Foreign Currency Banking - banking transactions are done in foreign currency. Wire transfer - where clients can send funds to international banks abroad.

[edit]Investment services

Asset management - the term usually given to describe companies which run collective investment funds. Also refers to services provided by others, generally registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission as Registered Investment Advisors.

Hedge fund management - Hedge funds often employ the services of "prime brokerage" divisions at major investment banks to execute their trades. Custody services - the safe-keeping and processing of the world's securities trades and servicing the associated portfolios. Assets under custody in the world are approximately $100 trillion.[5]

[edit]Insurance Main article: Insurance

Insurance brokerage - Insurance brokers shop for insurance (generally corporate property and casualty insurance) on behalf of customers. Recently a number of

websites have been created to give consumers basic price comparisons for services such as insurance, causing controversy within the industry.[6]

Insurance underwriting - Personal lines insurance underwriters actually underwrite insurance for individuals, a service still offered primarily through agents, insurance brokers, and stock brokers. Underwriters may also offer similar commercial lines of coverage for businesses. Activities include insurance and annuities, life insurance, retirement insurance, health insurance, and property & casualty insurance. Reinsurance - Reinsurance is insurance sold to insurers themselves, to protect them from catastrophic losses.

[edit]Other financial services

Intermediation or advisory services - These services involve stock brokers (private client services) and discount brokers. Stock brokers assist investors in buying or selling shares. Primarily internet-based companies are often referred to as discount brokerages, although many now have branch offices to assist clients. These brokerages primarily target individual investors. Full service and private client firms primarily assist and execute trades for clients with large amounts of capital to invest, such as large companies, wealthy individuals, and investment management funds. Private equity - Private equity funds are typically closed-end funds, which usually take controlling equity stakes in businesses that are either private, or taken private once acquired. Private equity funds often use leveraged buyouts (LBOs) to acquire the firms in which they invest. The most successful private equity funds can generate returns significantly higher than provided by the equity markets

Venture capital is a type of private equity capital typically provided by professional, outside investors to new, high-potential-growth companies in the interest of taking the company to an IPO or trade sale of the business. Angel investment - An angel investor or angel (known as a business angel or informal investor in Europe), is an affluent individual who provides capital for a business start-up, usually in exchange for convertible debt or ownership equity. A small but increasing number of angel investors organize themselves into angel groups or angel networks to share research and pool their investment capital.

Conglomerates - A financial services conglomerate is a financial services firm that is active in more than one sector of the financial services market e.g. life insurance, general insurance, health insurance, asset management, retail banking, wholesale banking, investment banking, etc. A key rationale for the existence of such

businesses is the existence of diversification benefits that are present when different types of businesses are aggregated i.e. bad things don't always happen at the same time. As a consequence, economic capital for a conglomerate is usually substantially less thaneconomic capital is for the sum of its parts.

Debt resolution is a consumer service that assists individuals that have too much debt to pay off as requested, but do not want to file bankruptcy and wish to payoff their debts owed. This debt can be accrued in various ways including but not limited to personal loans, credit cards or in some cases merchant accounts. There are many services/companies that can assist with this. These can include debt consolidation, debt settlement and refinancing.

[edit]Financial crime [edit]UK Fraud within the financial industry costs the UK an estimated 14bn a year and it is believed a further 25bn is laundered by British institutions.[7] [edit]Market share The financial services industry constitutes the largest group of companies in the world in terms of earnings and equity market capitalization. However it is not the largest category in terms of revenue or number of employees. It is also a slow growing and extremely fragmented industry, with the largest company (Citigroup), only having a 3 % US market share.[8] In contrast, the largest home improvement store in the US, Home Depot, has a 30 % market share, and the largest coffee house Starbucks has a 32% market share.

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In last few years, India has emerged as the one of the most rapidly growing economies in the world. India has been categorized with nations like Brazil, Russia and China (BRIC Nations) who are going to be the prime drivers of world economy in next few decades. Since the time, India first opened its gates to foreign investment (FDI & FII), there has been a complete turnaround. Now the traditional Hindu rate of growth is a thing of past and clocking 8%-9% GDP growth rate is the common norm. India along with other Asian powerhouse China makes for the fastest growing

nations in the entire world.

Even if we take the case of ongoing global recession, India has managed to perform far better than other nations. Right from banking system to financial regularities, the country has thrived on discipline and out-performance. The booming Indian economy resulted in widespread growth and arrival of new industries. The most sparkling phenomenon is in form of financial market of India.

Financial services in India has taken a giant leap from the days of standing in banks queue for several hours for opening a saving account or trying to get some fixed deposits (FD) done. The financial services have increased manifold and now people have the choice to choose the one that most suitably fits the bill.

There are several services like broking firms, investment services, financial consulting, evergreen national banks, numerous private banks, mutual funds, car and home loans, equity market and other banking services. Services are many and offered by blue chip names of the industry. Most of the companies in financial segment offer taxation services, project consultancy services and all the services of wide financial gamut.

Whether its taking a car loan or booking your favorite house, going for pension plan or getting your child insured, numerous attractive financial services are available at affordable costs. Personal banking services have acquired an altogether new meaning. Now customers have multiple choices to choose from. One can find all the financial services on the internet that are just a call away.

Financial services
Definition Financial Services is a neologism created by banks, insurance companies,investment banks, and brokerages, to describe the industry in which companies providing all those services are fully integrated. This term arose around and because of the US Gramm-Leach-Billey Act of the late 1990s, which allowed these companies to merge. Critics say this is a term which attempts to make the unison of these operations sound natural, ignoring the possible problems from combining them, such as monopolization.

What is the Financial Services Industry: There is a potential source of confusion regarding careers in finance. On the one hand, there is a function called finance that is common to all business enterprises, in every industry. On the other hand, there is a

financial services industry. The primary focus of this guidesite is on the latter definition. Additionally, note that the finance function is but one of many possible career paths within the financial services industry. The Finance Function: The finance function encompasses a variety of job categories. Degrees and/or professional certification in accounting are necessary in only a minority of cases. Careers, for the most part, fall into these 3 broad categories:

Corporate Controller Staff Internal Audit Staff Corporate Treasury Staff

All financial services companies need to have marketing strategy. With a marketing strategy, financial services companies will be able to determine which tools they should be using to reach prospective clients. With a marketing strategy, financial services companies will know what they can do to use local newspapers, direct mail and the internet effectively in order to grow their businesses. Financial services with a marketing strategy will better know what message they are trying to communicate to current and prospective clients. And a marketing strategy will give financial service providers the tools that they need to show prospective clients why the products and services their company offers are better tools for financial planning than the products and services that competitors have to offer. When financial services companies are ready to develop a marketing strategy, it is important that they determined what message they will be communicating. It is equally important for financial services companies to know who they are trying to reach with their messages. If your comapany offers financial services and you are looking to set your business apart from others with the right marketing strategy, it helps to have a partner like www.retirementleads.com andwww.financialadvisor.org Their team has a great deal of online and print marketing campaign experience. To put your marketing strategy into action, it's important for you to work with a partner whose experience will allow you to set yourself apart from everyone else. They have that experience, but that doesn't mean that you will not be doing your share the work. When you partner with them, they will help you to learn from the mistakes that others have made and to keep your marketing strategy on track. They will help you to develop a marketing strategy that will get you the results that you have been aiming for. They won't just tell you what your marketing strategy should look like or be in order to accomplish your goals. Instead they will sit down with you and your team to discuss your financial services company's goals. Then they will help you work to integrate your print and internet marketing campaigns to make them as effective as they can be. They will work with you to create user-friendly, informative web sites. They will work with you to help you use your website to improve your communications with current and prospective clients. They will work with you to create banner advertisements and to create pay per click marketing campaigns that target individuals in your geographic location with your marketing information. In other words, they will work with you to show you how internet marketing tools work for

financial advisors, and explain how the internet fits into your financial services company's marketing strategy. But they won't stop there; they will wok with you to use those tools to generate financial services leads with customer surveys and opt-in mailing lists. Even while they help you to generate your own financial services leads, they will provide you with the leads that they are collecting. Their leads are distributed in real time, you get them when they do. Their leads are targeted to your area: when individuals in your area have made a commitment to developing a sound retirement plan and are looking for financial services you'll quickly find out about it. And not only will you know about it, but you'll be given the tools that you need so that you know how to communicate and form relationships with those leads. You will be given the tools that you need to convey that yours are the only financial services that they will need. When you are able to communicate that you have everything that your clients and leads need to plan for the retirement they've always dreamed of, it's easy to grow your financial services business. When you partner with an agency with experience, you'll be able to develop a financial services marketing strategy that cannot fail. When you're ready to grow your business, visit us atwww.retirementleads.com and www.financialadvisor.org to see how our marketing expertise, online and in print, can help you with your financial services marketing strategy.

Marketing and Financial Services

by J ONATHAN on MARCH 31, 2011

Financial services is a tough environment for marketers. Not so much because the products/services are intangible and largely devoid of emotion (credit cards being the exception to the rule) but more because financial services is such a brutal environment for creative people who do not believe that financial value is the only measure of worth.

I have just spent the day with the marketing team of a client in institutional financial services. They are struggling to achieve recognition for the business contribution that marketing can make, and how it can serve as an effective vehicle for business strategy. In another industry it would be acknowledged that the strength of the companys brand and reputation were significant factors in their success in the marketplace. In a financial services environment, the myth of pure rationality still reigns supreme. Market success is deemed to be purely a function of the quality of the product/service offer. End of story.

We intend to prove that an effective value proposition consists of more than a simple explanation of superior product functionality (as Scott Bedbury put it where you see performance, others will see parity). It encompasses a broader spectrum of value sources. Once we demonstrate that such a

value proposition produces a marked improvement in the effectiveness of their sales effort, maybe we will be some begrudging acknowledgement that marketing is about more than sales collateral?

Financial Services Case Studies

Financial services firms face unique challenges when it comes to differentiating themselves in the marketplace. As specialists in developing and implementing marketing and public relations programs for financial services firms, we know how to overcome those challenges. Weve been instrumental in helping accounting, investment banking, wealth management, insurance, restructuring, turnaround management and other firms be heard by prospective clients and referral sources. We provide strategic marketing planning, website development and enhancement, online marketing such as search engine optimization and pay-per-click advertising, direct mail and email campaigns, marketing materials design, and submissions for nominations and rankings. In addition, our public relations services encompass positioning financial services professionals as expert spokespeople with the media, placing and writing bylined articles, developing press releases and media pitches, obtaining speaking engagements, and maximizing the returns from participation at trade shows and conferences Just as financial services firms focus on obtaining results for their clients, we know how to deliver results that make a difference, specifically in:

Increasing and sustaining your visibility so that prospective clients are aware of your experience and expertise. Reinforcing your credibility so that you and your firm are seen as the experts in your discipline. Creating top-of-mind awareness so that prospective clients and referral sources think of you first. Generating additional leads and referrals from qualified prospects.

he case studies below summarize the results weve achieved for financial services firms. Please click for more information on what we can do for you and your professionals.

Industry
Client: Challenge:

Financial Services
Mid-Sized Accounting Firm Increasing the firms visibility and reinforcing its credibility. We worked with selected partners to package their expertise and position them as a resource for the media for background or expert commentary, story ideas, and by-lined articles. We also obtained speaking opportunities at financial service firms that served as referral sources.

Our Work:

Our client benefited from:

Enhanced visibility A steady stream of articles, interviews, and profiles, increased the firms visibility and reinforced its key-player status in financial services. Reinforced credibility Third-party validation resulting from speaking. Media attention emphasized their credibility and top-market positioning in financial services. Leveraging Rankings on lists increases a firms visibility and contributes to top-of-mind awareness. Opportunity for leverage Using published marketing material as communication vehicles extended visibility as well as the shelf life of the marketing investment.

Industry
Client:

Financial Services
Mid-Sized Accounting Firm

Challenge:

Generating qualified leads from privately held businesses. We implemented a cold-calling lead generation program to generate appointments with qualified targets. We developed the target list; interviewed, selected and trained the telemarketer; drafted the script and monitored the results.

Our Work:

Our client benefited from:

Increased lead generation We increased the number of leads generated and appointments set with qualified prospects. Increased the number of new clients A number of prospective clients were converted to clients and remained so for several years. Increased the number of prospective clients in the pipeline Keeping the pipeline full is a critical aspect of generating future clients. The program introduced the firm to potential future clients.

Industry
Client: Challenge:

Financial Services
Managing Broker-Dealer Expanding top-of-mind awareness and name recognition of financial services. We attracted media attention with intriguing article and story ideas; placed bylined articles; positioned firm management as expert spokespeople; obtained high profile speaking engagements; and secured relevant rankings.

Our Work:

Our client benefited from:

Enhanced visibility A steady stream of articles, interviews, and profiles, increased the firms visibility and reinforced its key-player status in financial services. Reinforced credibility Third-party validation resulting from speaking. Media attention emphasized the clients credibility and top-market positioning in financial services. Leveraging Using published marketing material as communication vehicles. Extended visibility as well as the shelf life of the marketing investment.

Industry
Client: Challenge:

Financial Services
Accounting Firm Communicating a small, long-established accounting firms overall business expertise in a specialized practice area and its culture via the founders personalities. We worked closely with the firms current website programming consultants to revise the sites navigation and content to be more user-friendly. We enhanced the websites content by adding material showcasing the firms expertise in a specific practice area. Additionally, we launched the companys blog then developed and drafted ideas for blog posts to keep it fresh and current. We also identified key opportunities for article placement.

Our Work:

Our client benefited from:

Increased market awareness Highlighting and continued support of the firms expertise in a niche practice area. Educated their markets as to the firms capabilities. Enhanced visibility Frequent articles, along with enhanced website copy and updated blog posts, increased the firms visibility and reinforced its top position among its peers. Top-of-mind awareness Communication via blog posts, and additional material in hard copy newsletters, kept the firm consistently in front of their prospective and current clients, and referral sources.

Industry
Client: Challenge:

Financial Services
Financial Restructuring Firm Improving visibility and name recognition of a highly regarded firm. We placed and ghostwrote articles that appeared in major trade and business outlets. We positioned professionals as media spokespeople in major business and industry media outlets and secured speaking opportunities at high profile conferences, working with the professionals to develop presentations. Further, we revamped the firms marketing materials and website and launched and regularly prepared the firms e-newsletter.

Our Work:

Our client benefited from:

Enhanced visibility Frequent articles, interviews and speaking engagements increased the firms visibility and reinforced its top position among its peers. Reinforced credibility Third-party validation resulted from interviews, media placement and conferences, which highlighted the firms credibility and status. Leveraging Increased visibility contributed to greater awareness in the marketplace. Opportunity for leverage Using marketing materials as communication tools, e.g. posting on websites, repurposing via e-newsletter, etc., provided even greater visibility and extended the life of the initial marketing investment.