Communication for banks in the rural market

The role of banks in achieving financial inclusion objectives of the Government has assumed more importance as the Government is trying to organize its financial transactions with the multiple entitlement holders  it is obligated to  serve. The net of banking is thus poised for a n expansion bringing under its loop people thus far unattended and  unserved.  Now the question arises is whether banks will be able to engage with its new stakeholders and ignite desire for a consistent association with it.

There are many problems that are likely to come up in the process of familiarizing people, especially illiterate and semi literate  to the utility of the various banking services. Now with banks performing multiple functions apart from their core services of deposit mobilization and loan disbursements, additional effort is needed to make the people understand the institution of bank and its role in shaping their financial fortunes.  Even today in many parts of rural India, small non- institutional financial practices are a common feature. So it Is mandatory to change the habit of the people and this needs a complete awareness campaign highlighting the comparative advantages of conducting financial transactions though banks in preference to locally practiced methods.

This need to send the right message requires a different thinking and use of different channels. Vehicles of communication used in urban areas are designed to match their socio-economic profiles and media consumption habits. In rural areas, the same procedure can’t be copied due to a huge difference between media accessibility, spending power and lifestyles. Even though newspapers and televisions have penetrated deep into India’s hinterlands, yet their power to influence peoples habits and opinions, especially in financial matters remains doubtful. Several factors could be held responsible for the poor response of the rural people to the communications of the banks.

First of all, banks are using the wrong platforms to communicate with the people. Rural people as has been mentioned above are less exposed to the conventional mediums and more to ambient mediums. Communication opportunities could be identified at places of mass congregation especially at time of fairs, local festivals, and periodic market gatherings. Those events provide ideal opportunities for interacting and engaging with those groups. In India, due to its cultural diversity, the number of festivals and fairs are quite high, especially in rural areas where tradition has deep roots. Even though most of the fairs are religious in character, yet small floating markets come up around them at the time and the number of people rises accordingly. This is also the time when they keep they keep their purse strings loose and spend on various commodities. Attendance at fairs has not reduced despite the diminishing gap between the consumer and the market. Banks must leverage this unique platform and find creative idea s of interaction at those venues to capitalize on the opportunities it presents.

Apart from religious fairs, sports competitions witness huge gathering of crowds. These competitions provide nice sponsorship opportunities for banks as they can tailor their messages depending on the type and place of the game. Besides they can also vary the tools of engagement. Banks however have to be creative in designing the models of interaction and the contents of the message.

So if Banks could integrate technology with common sense, insights with innovation and creativity with knowledge of the local market, they can extend their footprints deeper into the rural pockets and succeed in their goal of becoming the catalysts of financial inclusion.

Lovable brands

There has been much research to identify the reasons that makes a brand more likable than others even if there is little difference in the character of their product,market positioning or scale of operation. Perception of people about a brand is found to be influenced by many factors that are extrinsic to the business and operation of the organization along with core factors that shapes an organization's brand image. Scope of product differentiation has considerably reduced due to uniform adaptation of technology and identical adoption of quality standards by all organizations.This has made it contingent upon companies to find out other modes of differentiation to project themselves as having the uniqueness unmatched by others.Understanding people in the context of their value orientations,their cultural moorings and their peculiar environments gives an incisive insight into the factors that shape his brand judgement. Without having any reference or allusion to the company's excellence in its products or services,an image is sought to be projected which is the outcome of the company's values and people friendliness. Brands that are adored by people have properties other than their commercial propositions. Those are brands that become part of people's lives rather than subjects of utility recall.They become part of their daily conversations. They acquire their status by aligning themselves with the concerns and sentiments of the people.This is achieved not only by their focus on quality of their products , but also by their power to to make the lives of their consumers more fulfilling,wholesome and enjoyable. This deep affinity with consumers extends beyond commercial transactions. As the brand commands trust and loyalty,people dont find it difficult to associate it with beyond commercial engagements. This further reasserts and reinforces the brand's commitment to public cause which makes it more acceptable and lovable in the public. Now the obvious question that arises is how brands go about the task of having that loving image through a deliberate process.Difficult it may appear , but it is quite achievable to build personalized affinity with the people. Knowing his emotions, understanding their problems,expressing solidarity and coming up with solutions facilitate bonding at an intimate level Brands must strive not only to meet the inherent or implicit need his product or service is supposed to satisfy or the customer is having, but also his unexpressed or latent need, satisfaction of which can multiply his happiness and provide him more enjoyable experiences. This needs understanding the life style of the people and the environment in which his decisions are made.The more the brand engages with the customer and widens its level of engagement,the more strong the relationship grows. People need attention to their needs as well their person. So a brand that discovers more opportunities to interact,to talk and to identify itself with the broader need of the people, ultimately emerges as a lovable brand.

Branding Institutions

Perfect competition works best in a market if the demand-supply dynamics is driven by players of equal strength and competence. People have better options and choices and the pace of shift is swifter. The ideal condition of a perfect competition exists if the products are fast moving or mass consumed and need consistent replacements. The demand for such commodities is continuous and not seasonal or cyclical in nature. Contrasted against this are the market for services, and most pointedly the market of services having an ethical string attached to it like education and health care etc. People expect educational institutions and hospitals to function not only as profit making businesses but as service institutions. Hence it gets difficult on the part of entrepreneurs in these fields to blend commercial objectives with social expectations. But it is not difficult. What the players in these fields must keep in mind that it also offers them an opportunity to forge a bond with the people that can outlast their business relationship and go a long way in a sustaining their goodwill and trust . People are prone to share their experiences and a positive perception about your brand is discussed and talked across a number of forums. It expands the horizon of your target base and increases the number of your potential clients. Staying competitive in these sectors requires attention to the changing need profile of the people and your preparedness to attend to them. Differentiations in deliverables have become mandatory due to the near homogenization of products and services. What is more important is to communicate persuasively to the masses about your distinctiveness. This requires smart communication planning. Educational institutions invest much of their capital in building infrastructures, rightly so because those are critical for the operation of the institutions and have functional usefulness. At the same time their competitors are also building the same strengths. The scope of differentiation is getting narrower by the day in terms of deliverables. For example the difference in the quality of facilities like buildings, labs, hostels, technical support and even faculty members is declining. Accessibility which was an advantage for some institutions has lost its edge due to the proliferation of institutions across the state. Besides concentration of institutions in a few clusters have made faster access to them easier due to better connectivity. So what we see that these features can’t be leveraged to produce a unique advantage for any one institution as these are shared by their competitors too. That necessitates creating a distinct identity through uncommon differentiators that shows your institution’s uniqueness which is unclonable and with proprietary properties. Even though it is difficult to find out that distinguishing feature, yet a perception could be generated showing your institution as having that unmatchable characteristic. This is done through a sequence of communication campaigns which progressively makes the message a part of his thought and spins an image around it. Your projected difference can be the foundation of your brand making you strikingly unique. The communication campaigns need to be fuelled by powerful content and indisputable market research data. Even common features could be creatively presented lending them the appearance of a distinguished attribute.. All these activities need careful planning, right media strategy, creative concept development, market research and Public relation campaign, cumulative output of which could be seen as a distinct brand image.