Wandering

Why exploring new channels or media shouldn’t mean compromising your brand’s identity.

This week

???First, flashback to last Sunday?when we talked about how the tide has turned for fintechs. Confirmation this week as Finextra reported on?loss-making neobanks looking on with envy as incumbents splurge cash in digital arms race?and AltFi published an editorial on why?it’s now JP Morgan vs Goldman Sachs vs fintech.

?????Now, read on?to learn why:

①?Old dogs?can learn new tricks.

②?Exploring?doesn’t mean changing.

③?Being poor?is expensive.

④?Blockchain is the most significant?evolution of software.

⑤?Even Meta?is facing headwinds.

⑥?Singapore?is emerging?as Asia’s new financial centre.

⑦?Your best technologist?should be CEO.

What's new?

① Two venerable old brands went off the marketing reservation this week. First,?NatWest took to TikTok?for a B2B campaign aimed at entrepreneurs. Then, and more dramatically, RadioShack’s Twitter feed went full on crypto bro.?Forbes has the story.

In short:

• “A lot of people thought RadioShack’s Twitter was hacked when it started posting stuff like…well,?this. Simply put, this is what electronic companies do when they start selling crypto.”
• “You might be thinking: Between the wild tweets and the fact that a twice-bankrupt electronic company sells crypto, this is all very bonkers. And, dear reader, you’d be quite right. At the same time, it’s also a remarkably effective marketing ploy for a company trying to find its footing in a realm of buck-the-trend enthusiasts. With clever wordplay, crude jokes and more than one reference to Elon Musk, RadioShack ensures that its crypto bid enjoys the widest possible audience.”
• “Sure, the tactic may drive away older or more conservative users. But in the process, it’s raising product awareness amongst its target base: libertarian-leaning and Gen-X crypto ‘degens,’ or ‘degenerates,’ a mantle many crypto advocates have proudly adopted. The crypto platform dubs itself as a ‘100-year-old brand embedded into the global consciousness’ that will ‘lead the way for blockchain tech.’”

Why does it matter?

I’d argue that the business using the RadioShack brand today is so far removed from the brand’s original purpose and target audience that its marketing tactics putting off its previous customers are of little concern. But I think the story matters because it highlights an interesting and growing tension between an established brand’s desire to stay relevant and the need to preserve its identity.

What's next?

Take action

It’s tempting when all the data indicates there are prospective customers just waiting to hear from you on the likes of TikTok and Twitter to focus your efforts there.?

② You absolutely should be exploring new channels and new media. Simply put: you need to be where your customers are. But - and I can’t say this loudly enough - you should also remain fiercely protective of your brand’s values and tone of voice. They’re integral to the perception of your brand and the trust you’ve worked so hard to earn.

Get help

Visit InMarketing, my resource library?for leaders in finance or technology who want to innovate, interact and influence.

Join my InMarketing Twitter community, where you can ask questions or comments of me but also your fellow community members of senior marketing practitioners.

Share

Can I ask you a favour??If you found this useful?or know someone who would, please share it. It would really help me to grow the community of regular IMTW readers.

What else?

Three other articles?that are worthy of your time.

FINANCE

Financial Inclusion Report highlights the UK’s financial exclusion crisis with 1 in 5 Brits feeling locked out of the system

③?Being poor?is expensive.

• “Access to affordable credit is vital for an individual’s financial stability and resilience but the report findings exposes that some sections of the UK population are repeatedly being badly let down by the financial services industry; 38% of people from a black ethnic group and 32% from all ethnic groups combined feel that they can’t access financial services.”
• “62% of respondents are using a form of credit: the average amount borrowed via a loan was ￡8,200, with men borrowing significantly larger amounts (￡9,952.32) than women (￡6,346.57).”
• “Compounding issues of financial exclusion is the limited comprehension of the credit scoring system in the UK, the report found that just 41% of adults know their credit score and 60% reported not knowing how credit scores are calculated. Traditional credit scoring methods often give an incomplete and outdated picture of an individual’s financial life, holding back over 20.3 million people in the UK from affordable financial services. There is mounting evidence that Open Banking technology offers a more accurate picture of an individual’s financial position and thus is an important tool in efforts towards a more financially inclusive society.”

TECHNOLOGY

Bank of America says crypto winter concerns haven’t frozen investor interest

④?Blockchain technology is the most significant?evolution of software since the internet.

• “Concerns about a so-called crypto winter have not frozen investor interest in the sector, Bank of America said in a report Tuesday. Conversations with some of the 160 clients made clear that ‘blockchain technology and the digital asset ecosystem are here to stay,’ the report said, and the bank remains optimistic for mainstream digital asset adoption.”
• “BofA said digital asset products may attract the first billion users, but the ‘next billion will likely require improved bridges between the fiat and crypto ecosystems and the creation of a crypto-native ecosystem, in which individuals are unaware of the applications that leverage blockchain technology.’”
• “The bank reiterated its view that the emerging ecosystem of Web3 applications has the ‘potential to transform every industry.’”

MEDIA & MARKETING

Zuckerberg prepares Meta employees for a tougher 2022

⑤?Even Meta?is facing headwinds.

• “At an internal meeting on Thursday, Mr. Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Meta, said the Silicon Valley company was facing one of the ‘worst downturns that we’ve seen in recent history.’ He told Meta’s 77,800 workers that they should prepare to do more work with fewer resources and that their performances would be graded more intensely than previously.”
• “Mr. Zuckerberg added that the company — which owns Facebook, Instagram and other apps — was lowering its hiring targets. Meta now plans to bring on 6,000 to 7,000 new engineers this year, down from a previous goal of around 10,000, he said. In some areas, hiring will pause entirely, especially of junior engineers.”
• “Meta has posted back-to-back profit declines this year, the first time that has happened in over a decade. In February, after?a dismal financial report, Meta’s stock plummeted 26 percent and its market value plunged more than $230 billion in what was the company’s biggest one-day wipeout.”

One more thing...

⑥?As?the Financial Times questions Hong Kong’s future as Asia’s financial centre,?The Economist declares that Singapore is on top.

• “Right now the map of Asian financial hubs is being redrawn. The city-state of Singapore looks to be the main beneficiary—provided it can handle some of the downsides of being a global centre for other people’s business.”
• “As China grows more authoritarian, the chances of Shanghai resuming its pre-1949 role as a global hub have receded.?Hong Kong is suffering, too. Many of its freedoms have been torn up by thuggish Communist Party rule. In commerce there are growing doubts over the independence of its judiciary and institutions.”
• “Singapore is also becoming a tech centre. It hosts both American firms building a base in Asia, and Chinese tech contenders launching their international operations. Alphabet, Meta and Microsoft, and Alibaba, Tencent and TikTok have all made the little red dot their regional or global home. By contrast,?China’s ‘great firewall’?prevents its cities from becoming bases for global tech firms. Hong Kong has also floundered over technology.”

Off cuts

The stories that?almost?made this week’s newsletter.

FINANCE

?????Credit Suisse ready for ‘big risk opportunities’?and?seeks to reinvigorate wealth management

???Basel Committee wants to limit banks’ digital asset exposure

???Nutmeg CEO exits

???SJP: Platforms can’t replace personalised advice

???BNP Wealth Management launches private asset platform

TECHNOLOGY

???AI to the metaverse: what tech will really transform banking?

???How fintechs are navigating the economic downturn

?????Is the EU now the friendliest place for crypto?

???NFTs have ‘fallen off the cliff’

??Société Générale joins Broadridge’s DLT platform

MEDIA & MARKETING

???Why your B2B marketing should feature case studies

???Retargeting vs. remarketing: What’s the difference?

???Gallery: 24 of banking’s best annual reports

????11 benefits of outsourcing your content creation

???Delete TikTok from app stores, says FCC commissioner

The last word

⑦?Marc Andreessen?talking to?McKinsey’s Rick Tetzeli:

“Find the smartest technologist in the company and make them CEO.”

About

Written for CEOs, marketers and other leaders in the financial sector,?InMarketing This Week?is a showcase for news likely to impact them - delivered with insight on why it matters and ideas on what to do about it. It’s published every Sunday to give you a head start on the week. Read it?here, or?subscribe?to?have it delivered straight to your inbox at six, before it's available anywhere else.