Does your print advertising stand out in the crowd?

Financial Marketing News recently published an editorial piece by Simon Phillips of Structured Marketing Solutions* that says this:

Research has shown that clients tend to position several firms within clusters but within each cluster, one firm is almost indistinguishable from another. All the more important, therefore, to invest time in developing a clear identity within the cluster and actively managing clients’ perceptions.

This got me wondering - if I took the logos off the adverts in today's Sunday Times Money section, would I be able to guess who's ads I was looking at? And how well do those ads communicate the brand values and identity?

Out of 18 ads**, only 2 describe clearly differentiated benefits, 11 just list product features and 10 lead on a headline savings rate that varies between 2.4% and 5.3%.

Yet let's face it, with base rate as low as it is, how eye catching can headline savings interest rates be right now?

Let's look at the difference a savings rate actually makes. The average UK savings balance is about £7,500. Completely ignoring the differences in terms and conditions, over a year, the average UK saver will earn an extra £217.50, or just over £18 a month, by choosing the highest of the advertised rates over the lowest. Not actually all that much when you think about it.

Given the likelihood that the reason you currently have a big fat juicy worm rate to advertise in the first place is that you are hoping to start a profitable long term relationship with plenty of cross sales, why do none of these adverts do anything to encourage readers to consider choosing the brand for the relationship?

First Direct is in pretty much every marketing textbook as a classic example of a brand that grew from nothing through word of mouth generated by really excellent customer service - yet even it has fallen into the trap of pandering to the rate tarts.

Ask any of your sales teams and they'll tell you the first thing that your company teaches them in sales training is that customers buy benefits not features - yet all these ads are selling undifferentiated, easily replicable features.

Can it be that ads in these money supplements only really work when they offer high headline rates? If so, what increased response do you get from a quarter page ad as opposed to a placing in the best buy tables at the back?




*You'll have to register, then log in, then navigate to the Editorials tab and choose 'Positioning - The invisible foundation' - fortunately the article is better than the user interface.

** The ads belong to Fidelity, HSBC, NFU Mutual, Coventry, Chelsea, RBS, Nationwide, Chelsea, Post Office, Halifax, Alliance and Leicester, First Direct, Birmingham Midshires, thesharecentre, Alliance and Leicester, Halifax, Lloyds TSB and Prudential.