Brand Audit South India Bank

Through this study an analysis is made on Branding strategies by South Indian Bank, this refers to the communication that is being sent by South India Bank about its product, services and other such attributes and what is being received by the costumers. Banks are coming up with new strategies to market themselves, gone are the days when Banks were an unattractive lot and one stepped foot in a bank as a last resort for financial assistance. Now new strategies are being used by Banks for retaining their customers as well as acquiring new ones. This is where the importance of Brand Management comes in. PORPORTION OF ADVERTISEMENT (EMPLOYEE ) SPONSORSHIP EVENTS (CUSTOMER ) SPONSORSHIP EVENTS (EMPLOYEE) BILLBOARDS (CUSTOMER) BILLBOARDS (EMPLOYEE) SOCIAL MEDIA (CUSOMER OPINION) SOCIAL MEDIA (EMPLOYEE OPINION) CUSTOMER YEARS IN BANK NUMBER OF TRANSCATION ONLINE BANKING MOBILE BANKING PERSONAL LOANS WELCOME 22 29 29 30 31 31 32 35 36 36 37 37 38 5 1,22 1. 23 1. 24 1. 25 1. 26 1. 27 VALUE EMPLOYEE SIB FIRST PREFERNCE CELEBRATEES INDIVIDUALS TEAM SUCCESS ONLINE BANK MOBILE BANKING DATABASE MANAGEMENT 39 39 40 40 41 42 6 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 7 1. INTRODUCTION Brand: â€Å"A Brand is a complex symbol. It is the intangible sum of a product? s attributes, its name, packaging and price, its history, reputation, and the way it? s advertised. A brand is also defined by consumer? s impression of people who use it, as well as their own experience†- David Ogilvy A brand is a Name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one sellers good or service as distinct from those of other sellers. Brands are distinguished and this is protected by trademarks or service mark from authorized agencies. Brands are often expressed in the form of Logos, graphic representations, slogan etc. Good and powerful brands drive success in any competitive markets and help achieve company various difficult feats. Proper branding results in higher sales of not only one product, but on other products associated with that brand. Some people distinguish the psychological aspect, brand associations like thoughts, feelings, perceptions, images, experiences, beliefs, attitudes, and so on that become linked to the brand, of a brand from the experiential aspect. Brand Management: Brand management is the application of marketing techniques to a specific product, product line, or brand. It refers to all the strategies that are used for maintaining a particular image of the brand. It involves managing both tangible and intangible characteristic of Brand. In terms of service brands this includes customers? satisfaction, and intangible refers to emotional bonding or connection to the Brand. The success and failure depends on similarity between what is conveyed by the company to what is received by the customers. Branding is based on external experience and internal experience. External experience includes Name, Logo, advertising, Brand Identity and product and services. Internal experience includes Customer relation, brand values, training, quality, staff motivation, technology etc. 1. 1. The Banking Sector The Banking industry plays a dynamic role in the economic development of a country. The growth story of an economy depends on the robustness of its banking industry. Banks act as 8 the store as well as the power house of the country? s wealth. They accept deposits from individuals and corporate and lends to the businesses. They use the deposits collected for productive purposes which help in the capital formation in the country. Today, the Indian Banking System is known the world over for its robustness. The Reserve Bank of India is the central/apex Bank which regulates the functioning of all banks operating within the country. The banking system, largely, comprises of scheduled banks (banks that are listed under the Second Schedule of the RBI Act, 1934). Unscheduled banks form a very small component (function in the form of Local Area Bank). Scheduled banks are further classified into commercial and cooperative banks, with the basic difference in their holding pattern. Cooperative banks are cooperative credit institutions that are registered under the Cooperative Societies Act and work according to the cooperative principles of mutual assistance. Banking with the passing time has gain more importance as human civilization evolved, starting with just a place where to store ones money and for transfer of it. Now banks have developed to different horizons. Indian Banking because of its strict regulation from the Reserve Bank of India has always maintained a world class banking model which was clearly visible in the recession of 2008. A great leap in banking sector in India happened with the revolution in the IT sector which helped in great technological advancements such as online banking, database management, core banking etc. 1. 1. Profile of the Company South Indian Bank Limited (SIB) is a private sector bank headquartered at Thrissur in Kerala, India. The bank was founded in the year 1929. It is headed by Dr VA Joseph, Managing Director CEO of the bank. South Indian Bank has 705 branches spread across more than 26 states and union territories in India. It has set up 683 ATMs all over India. History: One of the earliest banks in South India, â€Å"South Indian Bank came into being during the Swadeshi movement. The establishment of the bank was the fulfilment of the dreams of a group of enterprising men who joined together at Thrissur, a major town (now known as the Cultural Capital of Kerala), in the erstwhile State of Cochin to provide for the people a safe, efficient and service oriented repository of savings of the community on one 9 hand and to free the business community from the clutches of greedy money lenders on the other by providing need based credit at reasonable rates of interest. . 1. 2. Products And Services Personal Banking-Under this bank offers wide range of personal banking products and services such as deposit, saving, loans, internet banking, mobile banking, demat services, credit card, debit card, etc. The bank offers mutual funds products of various funds houses such as ICICI Prudential AMC, Franklin Templeton, TATA Mutual Fund, Sundaram BNP Pariba s, UTI Mutual Funds, Reliance Mutual Funds, HSBC Investments, HDFC Mutual Fund, Fidelity Fund Management, Principal Mutual Funds, Fortis Investments, Birla Sun Life Asset Management Company and DSP BlackRock Mutual Funds. NRI banking- SIB also caters its banking products and services to NRI customers such as deposit, car loans, remittances, investment schemes, insurance are amongst others. Corporate banking- It provides wide range of products and services to corporates. SIB offers working capital finance, project finance, structured finance etc. 1. 2. PURPOSE objective OF THE STUDY †¢The purpose of the study is to analyze the brand value of South Indian Bank stakeholders which include its customers and employees. †¢Through this analysis the weak points in branding strategy will be covered to create a better Brand image of South Indian Bank. Brand Management study is to evaluate whether the South Indian Bank as a brand with its different aspects and qualities stands different from other names. What distinguishing aspects of SIB make it different from others? This includes name, logo, slogan, services, marketing strategies etc. 1. 3. Limitation Of The Study †¢Number of employees covered in the survey is very less because of the difficulty to access them; in the survey employees from only two branches were used. †¢The less number of sample might give a less accurate and imprecise data. 10 Chapter II RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 11 2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY In general, research can be termed as an inquiry in to the nature of, the reason for, and the consequences of any particular set of circumstances. It is the process of finding solution for the problem after a thorough study and analysis of the situational factors. It tries to solve a complex and complicated problem through use of various tools and techniques. These tools and techniques try to bring out a logical, accurate and scientific solution to the problem. Research methodology is simply a plan of action for a research which explains in detail how data is to be collected, analyses and interpreted. . 1. Research Design Research design is the basic framework, which provides guidelines for the research process. It is a map or blue print according to which the research is to be concluded. Research design ensures that the study will be relevant to the problem and employs economical procedure. The type of research design used in this study is Descriptive Research. Descriptive research is concerned with the research studies with a focus on the portrayal of the characteristics of a group of individuals or a situation. It includes surveys and fact-finding enquiries of different kinds of analysis. The main objective of this descriptive study is to gather knowledge and to find the state of affairs, as it exists at present. 2. 1. 1. Research Instrument A descriptive questionnaire was used to question the awareness, preferences and thoughts of the customers and employees about the Corporate Branding Strategy of South Indian Bank in. The data used in this study is both primary and secondary. 2. 2. Data Collection ? Primary data has been collected through questionnaires prepared for the stakeholders of South Indian Bank, in this case both customers and employees. Secondary data collection includes proprietary databases and search engines. These sources include company websites and reports, books, trade journals, magazines, white papers, Industry Portals, government sources. 12 2. 3. Sampling All the items under consideration on any field of inquiry constitute a „universe? or population?. Sampling is the process of selecting a sufficient number of elements from the population so that a study of sample and on understanding of its properties or characteristics would make it possible for us to generalize such properties or characteristics to the population elements. 2. . 1. Sampling Technique There are various types of sampling techniques classified under probability and nonprobability. In this research, we used convenience sampling which is a deliberate or nonprobability sampling. i. e. , when population elements are selected for inclusion on the ease of access, it can be called convenience sampling. 2. 3. 2. Sample Size The sample size is that of 58 with customers and 15 with employees, making a total sample size of 73. 2. 4. Area Of The Study Employee data has been collected from two branches of South India Bank in Bangalore, Indira Nagar Branch and Cantonment Branch. For customers both data has been collected from these branches as well from other parts, through the accumulation of an online form. It has been made sure that a particular region is not targeted when it comes to collecting data. 2. 5. Analysis Technique The analysis techniques used in this study are ? Charts representing the spread on various variables 13 CHAPTER III FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATION 14 The result of the study will be explained in the following chapters 3. 1 Marketing strategies by THE Ad agency All the current marketing communications are handled by an independent ad agency Jelitta publicity situated in Thrissur, Kerala. The ad agency was appointed in the year 1994 since then it is exclusively handling all marketing operations except for one year when it was handled by another ad agency FCB Ulka. Through these years the ad agency worked along closely with the SIB management and has contributed towards this brand building effort. The role of agency has included providing 360 degree marketing communication solutions for the bank. Above the line, Below the Line activities, events, PR are all handled by Jelitta. Customer service experience: The whole new approach comes in south Indian bank with its shift to 100 % core (centralized online real-time environment) banking, and banks approach targeting the huge NRI market. The bank needed more visibility and was going to be known as a next generation banker rather than an old generation banker. Technology based products were introduced and the NRI customer base in the Middle East were targeted in large scale. Media mix: Earlier print ads were used more as a medium, but down the years the agency has shifted more towards electronic media and outdoor activities. Now print ads are being more used to communicate the financial achievements, awards accolades, financial notifications like publishing balance sheet other financial results where as electronic media (predominantly TV Radio) is used for visibility, products services communication etc. Outdoor media has also been used simultaneously with the TV campaigns to get more impact and events PR activities are used to create better brand profile. Promotional events: They form the main tool used by SIB for the past several years. One such event was when 80 years of SIB was celebrated by conferring awards to globally acclaimed personalities for their life- time achievement. Dr. K. M. Cherian, the eminent Cardiologist, Mr. Adoor Gopalakrishnan, the film Director, Dr. Verghese Kurien, „the milk man of India? , the music- maestro Padma Bhushan Dr. K. J. Yesudas and Mr. M. A. Yusuff Ali, the prominent NRI. Public Relations: Every result announcement is followed by a press meet in Kochi and interviews one to one interactions are arranged with the press people. Entertainment programmes were organised in every major city in South India for SIB customers. Several 15 CSR activities like sponsoring a whole village in Kerala was done 2 years back. All the product launches are carried out with much fanfare and every new branch inauguration is organised with huge promotional activities. Right from designing a product to its end marketing communication, the agency has an important role in SIB. Ad agency interface: Marketing (Ad evaluation): South Indian bank has used well known personalities such as Mamootty, ZarinaWahab, M. Balamuralikrishnan in their ads with each being well known in their respective fields. The strategy is to use them as a means of reaching different line of customers. While using a brand ambassador it should be considered that the ambassadors suits the image of the bank. A bank which stands for trust and support should keep that in mind 3. 2 Services capes (External Experience) All the physical evidence of South Indian Bank has been evaluated based on the response from customers and employees 3. 3 NAME Bank for South Indians Completely Agree Completely Agree 7% 2% Disagree 23% Undecided 25% Agree 43% Fig 1. 1 Bank for South Indians When asked whether they think that South Indian Bank is a bank for South Indians, a majority of 43% believed it to be so. 16 South Indian Bank was formed in the year 1929 in Thrissur the cultural capital of Kerala, the name derived from being a bank from south India, the name gives the bank a restriction to its idea of spreading its reach all over India. India is a multi-ethnic society being basically categorised into North India and South India. When someone from North India hears of South India Bank the first impression itself goes that it is a bank for south Indians. Here is an evaluation of South Indian Bank brand name based on the standard criteria a brand name should follow. a. Uniqueness: South Indian Bank has a very unique name which easily distinguishes it from other brands b. Pronunciation and Spelling: South Indian Bank has an easily pronounced name which has a short abbreviation of SIB, but this is often confused with the more known SBI, which stands for State Bank of India the oldest commercial bank in Indian subcontinent. South Indian Bank is easily spelled as well because there aren? t any complicated words in it. . Legal Protectability: South Indian Bank has a name which can be legally protected. Having a very unique name to it ensures that other companies cannot take the same name. d. Related to product and service: The name South Indian Bank clearly states that it is involved in banking sector. e. Easily related with: The name South Indian Bank gives it a limitation of being associated as a South Indian Ban 3. 3. 1 Suggestion The b ank should consider in changing its name, the name forms a major constraint for the bank to associate itself with north Indian customers. A proper promotion strategy can be used to convey the change in name and in the long run it will help the bank. 3. 3. 2 Logo It is graphic mark or emblem which is commonly used by enterprises, organisations, and individuals with the purpose of creating public recognition. Logos are either purely graphic or are composed of the name of the organisation and in some cases both. 17 Cant say 4% Logo (Customer Opinion) No 3% Never Noticed 20% Yes 73% Fig 1. 2 Logo When asked about whether the customers like the logo of South Indian Bank, out of the 56 customers, 73 % found the Logo to their liking. South India Bank changed its logo in the year 2007. In the erstwhile logo of the Bank, the unique picture was that of a coconut tree. The fronds of the coconut palm form the basic theme of the new logo. The sharp ends of the fronds are smoothened, thickened and twisted to form a „S? denoting South Indian Bank. Thus the new logo has the continuity from their erstwhile logo. It can also be seen as two hands clinging to a strong pillar in the middle. The pillar is SIB institution; the upper hand represents SIB customers and the lower hand symbolizes SIB staff members. S† also projects a Safe, Solid, Smart, Strong, Secular, Shining, Schooled, Seasoned, Successful and Straightforward Bank. (Source: South Indian Bank website). 3. 3. 3. Evaluation of the logo: Simple: South Indian Bank has a very simple logo with not too many complications, though without reading the details such as what the logo stands for, it is hard to understand the true meaning behind the logo. Effectivenes s: The new logo being adopted only in 2007, need more aggressive marketing for the logo to reach wide coverage. Colour: The new logo is that of cardinal red. Cardinal red forms one of the three primary colours, the important feature of colour red is that it stands out easily from other colours. 18 Cardinal red is often denoted as symbolic of faith an attribute which is very important for a banking institution. Other attributes include that of energy, creativity, warmth and love. 3. 3. 4 Suggestion The Bank should continue with the logo, because of it likability among the customers. Changing the Logo periodically leads to a lot of confusion among the stakeholders. Worldwide companies try to maintain their logo, which is rarely changed except for times of total restructuring. South Indian Bank should maintain and increase the visibility of the logo to such effect that just looking at the logo all aspects and details of South India Bank should be realised. 3. 4 Slogan A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a political, commercial, religious, and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose. Slogans vary from the written and the visual to the chanted and the vulgar. Their simple rhetorical nature usually leaves little room for etail, and a chanted slogan may serve more as social expression of unified purpose, than as communication to an intended audience. Your Perfect banking partner 5% Good people to bank with 5% Sales Pure banking and nothing else 4% Experience next generation banking 86% Fig 1. 3 Slogan Awareness When asked about slogan of South Indian Bank along with some well-known slogans of other Banks a clear ma jority of 86% were able to identify SIB slogan. 19 Your perfect banking partner Good people to bank with Pure banking and nothing else Experience next generation banking Fig 1. 4 Slogan Employee Awareness When asked to identify the slogan all the 15 employees were able to mark the correct option. From both the cases it can be seen that the slogan is well recognised among both the customers and the employees. This helps South Indian Bank in brand recognition. The current slogan of South Indian Bank is â€Å"Experience Next Generation Banking† which signifies the bank? s current vision of making the bank technologically advance such that the services are easily accessible for the customers and easily usable by the employees. Through years the slogan has kept on changing. ? ? ? ? ? The South Indian Bank Ltd. In Step With Progress Growing To Serve You Everywhere Your Interest Above Everything Else A Bank For All Seasons Blending Tradition with Technology 3. 4. 1. Suggestions The present slogan is clearly recognised among the customers and the employees, they are able to distinguish the slogan from other. A slogan should clearly reflect the company? s commitment and intentions. The current slogan presents the Bank? s commitment towards embracing and using technological advancement to form next generation banking. . 5 Analysis of SIB’s Brand Ambassadorship Mammootty became the brand ambassador of South Indian Bank in the year 2007. Though several reasons came up for discussion as brand ambassador, the decision to take Mammootty 20 was unanimous. Decision to take Mammootty had obvious reasons. He was very popular among the target audience of SIB. The new logo of SIB was also launched along with his in troduction and the brand ambassador increased the visibility of the brand and clicked well with the NRI sector too. Mamootty an iconic Indian film actor with three national awards and other accolades is a well-known personality all over India, he is widely recognised among the target customers of South Indian Bank. His image is easily able to connect well with both old generation and new generation, he is known as a custodian of technology products and has a clean image regarding his public persona. Brand Ambassador (Customer Opinion) Mohanlal Don’t know 14% Rajnikanth 0% 4% Amitabh Bachan 0% Mamootty 82% Fig 1. Brand Ambassador (Customer) When asked about who the brand ambassador of South Indian Bank is, a clear majority of 82% mentioned Mammootty as the brand ambassador. Brand Ambassador 0% 0% 0% Amitabh Bachan Mohanlal Mammooty Rajnikanth 100% Fig 1. 6 Brand Ambassador (Employee) 21 Completely Disagree 6% Reflects Values Completely Agree 7% Disagree 14% Undecided 18% Agree 55% Fig 1. 7 Rightly reflects the values It was asked whether Mammootty is the right ambassador for South Indian ban k, 55 % agreed to it. This is a clear reflection of the Brand Ambassadors wide recognition. Various such ads with Mammootty have been made in an attempt to create a more personal and emotional bonding between the customers and Bank. 4. 5. 1. Suggestions Here yet again a small constraint comes to any ambitious strategy of spreading bank? s reach to North India, where Mammootty even with his Pan India recognition fails in identifying with a North India customer. Here South Indian Bank can use dual brand ambassador strategy; one such example is in the case of Muthoot Finance where in Kerala Malayalam moviestar Mohanlal is portrayed for the ads, whereas in north India for the same ads Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar is portrayed. Here both are famous in their respective regions thus they can relate more to the target customers. The lagging part of the ads of South Indian Bank has often been the lack of quality ads with few exceptions and the numbers of ads are less compared to other competitors. The telecasting of these ads should be made during primetime when more people are watching television. The best strategy here is that of telecasting the ad when there are more chances for the customers to view the ad. Showing more humorous and exciting ads there are more chances of the ad getting good coverage. 22 3. Advertisements Advertisements (Customer Opinion) Never 0% Always 4% Rarely 21% Sometimes 25% Very often 50% Fig 1. 8 Advertisements (Customer) When asked about how often they see advertisements from South India Bank, 50% of them replied with very often. Very often is a good sign that the companies advertisements are reaching the customers. But the target here should be â€Å"always†, which clearly reflects the effective advertising strategy. Very Dissatisfied 0% Advertisements (Employee Opinion) Dissatisfied 6% Very Satisfied 27% Average 40% Satisfied 27% Fig 1. 9 Advertisements (Employee) 3 When asked about their satisfaction level over the advertisements of South Indian Bank, a majority of 40% found it average while 27% found satisfied and another 27% were very dissatisified. 3. 6. 1. Evaluation of SIB ADS Ad on International ATM ad starring M. Balamuralikrishnan 24 ? ? ? ? ? ? M. Balamuralikrishnan a world renowned classical musician who hails from Andhra Pradesh and a very familiar face in South India. Portrayed as himself, he receives an invite to go to America, where later in the ad he is being given a global ATM card by his son for easy usage in America. The ad has a more personal touch to it with some good background score, along with a good cast of supporting actors. No audio conversation used in the ad Being an 80 year old bank the banks approach during this time period was to show its attachment to traditions. Here again one can see the Bank? s approach of targeting NRI customers. 3. 6. 2 Gold Insurance and Mahila Account AD starring Zarina Wahab ZarinaWahab is an Indian actress and former model is a well-recognised face in India especially in North India, has also represented South Indian Bank in their ads. The idea behind casting her is to reach the north Indian customers. 25 26 ? ? ? In this particular ad she is shown as a housemaker who comes to the market wearing her full array of gold jewellery This causes concern for her friend who is worried about the safety while wearing gold, This is when ZarinaWahab informs her about the gold insurance being provided by South Indian Bank along with benefits of Mahila account in the end a clever mention of junior account by the bank is made. ? ? The ad through one small story line represents three products of South Indian Bank. The language used is Hindi. Here again the ad serves it purpose of informing customers about the services of South Indian Bank. 3. 6. 3 NRI Account Ad: Starring Mammootty Mamootty has acted in many south Indian bank ads with this AD being one noticeable one. 27 28 ? ? ? ? ? ? Shown as South Indian bank manager who gets a call from one of the bank? s NRI customers from Dubai After which Mamootty is shown visiting the customers aging parents Mammootty gives assurance to parents to inform him whenever they need him followed by some scenes of Mamootty? social interactions with the parents In the end the son returns and Mamootty leaves with the message that south Indian bank would always be with its customers The ad is well supported by its cast and the message is clearly shown. One of the better ads from South Indian Bank 29 3. 7 Sponsorship Events Sponsorship Events (Customer Opinion) Never Always 4% 7% Rarely 39% Very often 32% Sometimes 18% Fig 1. 10 Sponsorship Events (Customers) Whe n asked how often customers hear about sponsorship events from South Indian Bank 39% replied with rarely whereas 32% replied with very often. There is not much difference between those who see it rarely and those who see it very often, this is probably because the coverage of a particular sponsorship event is not same in all areas. This is the case where a certain target area is focused upon. Sponsorship Events (Employee Opinion) Very Dissatisfied Very satisfied 0% Dissatisfied 7% 6% Satisfied 20% Average 67% Fig 1. 11 Sponsorship Events (Employee) 30 When asked to respond their satisfaction level about sponsorship events by South Indian Bank, 67% found it average, while 20% were satisfied with it. This shows how communication is well maintained within the organisation, thus employees are aware of the various events being conducted. One aspect where South Indian Bank needs improvement, though South Indian Bank is contributing to sponsorships, with the recent example of Grand Kerala Shopping festival which was yet again a strategy by the bank to target NRI customer market. Sponsorship events loses its purpose if coverage is not enough. But it is clearly not enough more such sponsorship should be given by the Bank. 3. 8. Billboards Billboards (Customer opinion) Always Never 7% 9% Rarely 33% Very often 27% Sometimes 24% Fig 1. 12 Billboards (Customer) When the question of how often the customers see Billboards of South Indian Bank, 33% replied with rarely whereas 27% as very often. Here there is a small difference between rarely and very often, which shows how a certain particular target areas are focused which leads to a certain group witnessing more of it. 31 Very Dissatisfied 0% Billboards (Employees Opinion) Dissatisfied 20% Very satisfied 0% Satisfied 40% Average 40% Fig 1. 13 Billboards (Employee) When asked the same question about the billboards to the employees a majority found it both average and satisfied. Billboards are one of the oldest and still an effective means of marketing. More contribution should be made to placing such billboards in highways and main metro cities this helps in easy coverage of the Brand. 3. 9. Social Media Evaluation Social Media (Customer Opinion) Always 7% Never 10% Very often 22% Rarely 35% Sometimes 26% Fig 1. 14 Social Media (Customer Opinion) 32 When asked about the visibility of South India Bank in various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin etc†¦ 36% responded with rarely whereas 25 % responded with sometimes. No 7% Social Media (Employees Opinion) No Opinion 0% Yes 93% Fig 1. 15 Social Media (Employee Opinion) When asked to the employees if they would like to see South Indian Bank more active in Social Media a clear majority of 93% responded with yes. This shows that the present level of presence in social media is not to the satisfaction of the employees. Social media is growing at a very fast pace with new mediums coming up day by day through which companies can communicate about their products and increase their visibility in this ever competing corporate world. Having a slogan which clearly states the bank? s commitment to embracing technology SIB should make their presence felt in social media. Here an evaluation is made on South Indian Banks involvement or usage of social media, analysis of South Indian bank? s Facebook, twitter, orkut pages, Linkedin is done. Youngsters like to spend most of their time in social media websites and companies can get the attention of these target customers through regular updates about the product and services and thus spreading awareness among the target customers. Facebook page 🙠 Things to remember: Like on a Facebook Page, in an advertisement, or on content off of Facebook, one is making a connection. A story about ones like will appear on one? s Wall (Wall / timeline- shows what all activities one does in Facebook) and may also 33 appear in one? s news feed. One may be displayed on the Page you connected to, in advertisements about that Page, or in social plugins next to the content you like. Facebook Pages you like may post updates to your news feed or send you messages. Your connection to the page may also be shared with apps on the Facebook Platform) source: Facebook. From the company perspective the morelikes leads to more visibility and thus more awareness about the company? s product and services. SEARCH RESULTS: Three for South Indian Bank were found in Facebook. LIKES: The first page shows the details of South Indian Bank, the source being Wikipedia, the page has 1608 likes and 22 talking about the page. UPDATES: The second page was created in March 2012 it is an incomplete page without any cover photo. There are no updates about any kind of services or info in the page. The page has 13 likes and 1 talking about it. BRAND AMBASSADOR – HIGHEST VISIBILITY the third page is he more active one having cover image of brand ambassador Mammootty along with his signature saying â€Å"My Card My Bank†. The profile image is that of South India Bank with its logo. South Indian Bank started the FB page in September 17, 2010. The page has 256 likes and 5 talking about the page. The page has updates about its services including youth plus, pay mate, puregold etc. It also posted links of the bank receiving awards such as best bank in asset quality among all private sector banks in India, the best â€Å"Asian Banking Web Site† award from the Charlton Media Group, â€Å"Best Bank† in the old generation banks? ategory „fe India? s Best Bank Awards? and others. There is also a link to Wikipedia giving details about South Indian Bank. QUERIES AND SUGGESTIONS were found posted in the timeline of the FB page by customers, but without any reply to them from South India Bank. Twitter: (Twitter is an online social networking service and micro blogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, known as tweets. Twitter has an option of following where twitter account holders can follow the company activities. 34 Twitter is a means of reaching out to the target audience. By tweeting (when you post an update) company? s product and services are communicated directly to the customers. If a company wants to launch a new product it can be made aware to the customers and thus valuable feedback can be gained. Promotion of the upcoming events by South India Bank can also be made through twitter. South India Bank has a twitter account but there haven? t been any tweets or updates from the Bank. The twitter page has 7 followers. Competitors such as federal bank and ICICI Bank have a well maintained twitter account with regular tweets and updates about their services. Federal Bank has 849 tweets 49 following and 221 followers, ICICI bank has 8,894 tweets, 3,556 followers, 5,436 followers much higher and active than South Indian Bank. Dated 15-6-2012 Orkut: Orkut some years ago used to be the most popular social media website in India, slowly and gradually it has lost its attractiveness with less and less people joining or maintaining an Orkut account. South India Bank has an Orkut page which has around 896 members, the page has the last update on March 16, 2012. Going through the website I ound that there had been regular updates earlier, with regular interaction with members, and equal amounts of feedback. But with less usage of orkut among members the updates and discussions have diminished. Linkedin:It is a professional social networking website. It is mainly used for professional networking. One purpose of the site is to allow registered users to maintain a list of contact details of people with whom they have some level of relationship, calle d Connections. Users can invite anyone (whether a site user or not) to become a connection. Source: Wikipedia Here companies make their presence felt with regular updates about their employees and their profile. This includes new recruits, interns etc. This gives a very good transparency among the connections, with better profile of the employee leads to goodwill in the community. South Indian Bank? s Linked In page consists of 318 employees and 888 followers (those who are regularly updated about company? s activities) Date; 15-06-2012 Competitors such as Federal Bank have 690 employees and 916 followers, HDFC has 20,376 employees and 31,364 followers, ICICI Bank has 23,040 employees and 40,729 followers. Date; 15-06-2012. 5 Other notable sites where south Indian bank can make its presence felt is google+, BIGADDA, Ibibo. 3. 10. Suggestion As clearly seen from the survey majority of the customers have not seen much activities of South India Bank in social media websites. A bank which has a slogan of â€Å"Experience next generation banking† should keep this in mind as wide usage of internet as a means of providing services is part of next generation banking. In comparison with competitors such as Federal Bank, HDFC bank, ICICI bank who have dedicated teams to contributing into social media websites, South India Bank does not have such presence in this field. It is high time that South India Bank contribute more into Social media, which can help the Bank in targeting youth market in India which has high potential. For the study it has been made sure that the right sample size is chosen. Customer years in the Bank 10 years 20% 14% 5-10 years 27% 1-5 years 39% Fig 1. 16 Customer Years in the Bank Here it can be seen that the majority of the customers that is 39% in the survey have been customers with South Indian Bank between 1 to 5 years and 27% have been customers between 5 to 10 years and thus the right sample to take for the study. 6 Number of transaction with the bank gt; 6 times a week 9% none 12% 3-6 times a week 25% 1-3 times a week 54% Fig 1. 17 Number of transaction with the bank The majority of customers in the survey make 1-3 times a week transaction with the bank. For any brand it? s all about delivery of the promise which is being given out by all the branding strategies. When the company does its marketing communication a com mitment is being made to the customers about the goodness and wellbeing of the product. Very Dissatisfied 4% Dont know about the service 10% Dissatisfied 2% Online Banking Very Satisfied 10% Satisfied 26% Average 48% Fig 1. 18 Online Banking 37 Asked about how satisfied the customers are about Online Banking 50% found it as average, while another 25% found it satisfied. Dont know about the service 13% Very Dissatisfied 0% Dissatisfied 2% Mobile Banking Very Satisfied 8% Satisfied 19% Average 58% Fig 1. 19 Mobile Banking When asked how satisfied the customers are about Mobile banking 58% felt it was average. Dont know about the service Very Dissatisfied 11% 0% Personal Loan Very Satisfied 3% Dissatisfied 4% Average 18% Satisfied 64% Fig 1. 0 Personal Loan When asked how satisfied the customers are about Personal Loan 64% felt it was satisfied. Suggestions One can see that level of satisfaction is average in terms of technological services whereas service such as personal loans is to the satisfaction of the customers. Thus the Bank really should put some more effort in services which are technologically aided. With the bank? s 38 commitment to next gener ation banking, customers expect the same from the bank, if this is not delivered it would lead to a reduction of brand value 3. 10 Internal Experience 3. 10. Customer Relation The relationship between the customer and the company helps in bridging the gap between the two. Better this relationship is the better the chances of the company surviving in the long run. South Indian Bank being in the service sector must really put a lot of effort into maintaining a healthy customer relationship. Never 2% Welcomed Rarely 9% Always 21% Sometimes 23% Very often 45% Fig 1. 21 Welcomed When asked whether the customers felt welcomed in the Bank, a majority of 45 % responded that they felt so very often, whereas another 21% felt so always. This clearly shows the good customer relationship maintained by the employees which makes the customers more welcomed. Customer relationship forms the tangible part of service brands. This shows that South Indian Bank is putting its strategies right when it comes to maintaining a healthy relationship. 3. 10. 2 Staff Motivation Employees form the driving force of any organisation. Any kind of branding of the company starts with the employees, who carry it and reciprocate it in their interaction while providing services. 39 Completely Disagree 0% Values Employee opinion Completely Agree 0% Disagree 20% Undecided 13% Agree 67% Fig. 1. 22 Values Employee Opinion To the question whether South Indian Bank values employee opinion, the employees responded with 67 % agreeing to it whereas 20% disagreeing to it. This shows the bank? s commitment to its employees. South Indian Bank first preference No Opinion 0% No 7% Yes 93% Fig . 1. 23 South Indian Bank first Preference When asked to employees if South Indian Bank is their most preferred bank for employment, a clear majority of 93% responded as yes, this reflects a good working environment and culture in South Indian Bank which makes the employees favour the bank. 40 Completely Disagree 0% Celebrates individual and team success Disagree 0% Completely Agree 20% Undecided 33% Agree 47% Fig. 1. 24 Celebrates Individual and team success A question was asked to the employees on whether South Indian Bank celebrates individual and team success to which 47 % agree with 33% undecided on it and 20 % completely agreeing to it. Here again the Bank? s commitment to its employees is clearly visible. 3. 11Technology Technology is growing at a very fast pace. With the difference between companies often based on how well they use the technology. In terms of bank currently database management forms on of the most important aspect. South India Bank adopted 100% core banking in the year 2007 making service implementation faster. Very Dissatisfied 7% Online Banking Very satisfied 13% Dissatisfied 13% Satisfied 13% Average 54% Fig 1. 25 Online Banking 41 When asked to rank the satisfaction level 54 % of the employees found the services as average. Very Dissatisfied 0% Mobile Banking Very satisfied 14% Dissatisfied 0% Average 13% Satisfied 73% Fig. 1. 26 Mobile Banking When asked about their opinion regarding mobile banking services provided by the Bank a clear majority, 73 % of employees felt satisfied with the services. 42 Dissatisfied 0% Database Mangement Very Dissatisfied 0% Very satisfied 20% Average 53% Satisfied 27% 1. 27 Database Management When asked about their satisfaction level regarding the database management by South Indian Bank, 53% felt it was average whereas 27 % felt that satisfied with it.. 3. 12 Brand Identity Prism Brand Identity Prism: In 1992 Jean-Noel Kapferer developed the Brand Identity Prism, which charts the brand identity along a constructed source and constructed receiver axis, with externalization on the one side and internalization on the other. On the externalization side brand identity consists of physical facet, relationship and reflected consumer. On the internalization side brand identity consists of personality, culture (values) and self-image or â€Å"consumer mentalisation. In this respect Kapferer positions brand personality as one factor within brand identity. Source:Wikipedia. Brand Personality: This refers to association of human personality traits to a brand to achieve differentiation. This can include many human traits such as, trustworthy, conservative, openminded etc†¦ such differentiation is achieved through continuous marketing of the brand, it gets complicated if a common strategy is not used, this may lead to confusion and no solid image of the brand. This includes character and attitude. 43 Brand Culture: Symbolizes the place of the brands origin and what values it stands for. This forms one of the most important part which helps in differentiating between brands. Self Image: Is what the consumer thinks of himself/herself while using the brand. This can be the internal mirror of customer as user of brand. Brand Physique: it forms the basis of the brand. It can be described as the outline of the brand. The physical aspects are included in this. This is what the brand does. Relationship: This stands for the relationship between the customers and the company. This helps in aiding and creating of the culture. Reflection: Is all about the consumer? s perception for what the brand stands for. It stands for customers? view of the brand. Physique Personality Brand Identity Prism Relationship Culture South Indian Bank Reflection Self Image 44 3. 13 Brand Identity Prism for South Indian Bank Physique: Banking Personality: Trustworthy, friendly, conservative Relationship: Trust and welcoming Culture: Importance to human values Reflection: Supportive and open Self Image: Sense of honesty 3. 14 Web Diagram Bank for South Indians Social Media Brand Ambassador 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% Online Services External Customer Internal Customer Mobile Banking Most Preferred Bank Advertisements Slogan Billboards Sponsorship Events Here an effort is made to find the difference between what the external customers and internal customers (employees) have opinion about South Indian Bank. This analysis is based on the common question asked to both the customer and the employees. The figures are based on percentage as the sample size of Customers and Employees differ. The weightage is given 45 to the customers? opinion based on which the same response from the employee is compared. The questions asked were based on ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Brand Ambassador Slogan Online banking Mobile Banking Most preferred Bank Advertisements Sponsorship Events Billboards Social Media South Indian Bank a bank for South Indians Here one can see a close similarity for the Brand Ambassador, Slogan, online services, mobile banking, and most preferred bank, this shows that what the opinion of external customers and internal customers does not differ much. There is a significant difference in the opinion when it comes to social media exposure of the Bank, and on the opinion if the Bank is for South Indians. When it comes to experiencing Social media the difference in opinion is wide showing that it is not uniform. Having a Bank which has a clear stereotyping name of South Indian Bank, bank should focus on avoiding on creation of such an image, thus here what the external customers perceive of the bank is different from the internal customers. Here the Bank should focus on bridging the gap in order to avoid any complications. 46 CHAPTER IV FINDING CONCLUSION 47 Conclusions and Suggestions South Indian Bank is clearly headed the right way in many aspects such as customer relationship, employee satisfaction etc. But there are certain areas where the Bank must clearly rethink its strategies. With all the good services that the Bank provides there is a limitation as to how much this acts as a marketing strategy. This may help in retaining the customers but when it comes to attaining new ones, a more aggressive marketing strategy must be adopted. With the presence of more than 80 years in the banking field the Bank has enough experience to be the top bank in the country. A rethinking of the marketing strategies should be considered by the Bank. Some suggestions have been given in this study, such as more presence in social media websites, activeness in internet banking and healthy recruitment from all parts of India to avoid any mark of being called a bank for only South Indians. 48 BIBLIOGRAPHY http://www. southindianbank. com http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Brand http://www. slideshare. net/Sarvajeet/brand-management-process-building-big-brandspresentation http://www. managementstudyguide. com/brand-management. htm