Stanchart's new brand promise

Most large foreign banks operating in India have well-publicised catch phrases. While Citi has ‘Citi never sleeps’, Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) likes to refer to itself as ‘The World’s Local Bank.

Standard Chartered, present in India since 1858, has just joined the league, with its new catchphrase -- 'Here For Good’. Drive along any of Mumbai’s arterial roads and you would find it hard to miss the bank’s double helix-like logo in green and blue accompanied by the slogan ‘Here For Good’ emblazoned on numerous billboards and street lights.

Not to mention the 60-second-long commercials created by Chinese film maker Tian Zhuangzhuang playing on TV. Stanchart’s campaign was created by international advertising agency TBWA and graphic artist Stephen Sagmeister and rolled out across print, TV, web and outdoor media across all major locations.

So what was the need for Stanchart to reassure customers in its 150th year in India that it is not going to leave the country? Sreeram Iyer, the bank’s chief operating officer, says “the ‘good’ can be viewed through many ways. One is that we have been in the country for the past 150 years and plan to stay here for at least another 150. Secondly, we are here to do good for our customers and the broader community.”

Iyer says the bank also wanted to choose a brand promise which has an international flavour but is flexible enough to adapt to local campaigns. Consequently, the prosaic ‘Leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East’ message that was affixed to its earlier logo has been done away with.

The timing of the new campaign has also been well chosen as the bank is in the process of carrying out the first-ever issue of Indian Depository Receipts (IDRs).

The issue will be the first instance of a foreign company listing its shares on an Indian stock exchange. Stanchart Group CEOPeter Sands says this is a homecoming of sorts for the bank which started out in Kolkata as Chartered Bank in 1858.

But Stanchart says the timing is just coincidental and the bank wants its new catchphrase to be a long-term hook. In any case, the bank has chosen to list its shares in India not because it needs capital but to create a larger presence for its brand among investors

“So far it was business performance pulling our brand. But now we think our brand is big enough to pull business towards us,” says Iyer.

Unlike other foreign lenders, the London headquartered bank emerged from the financial crisis stronger and more profitable than when it entered it. And its Indian business is the jewel in its crown, generating a profit before tax of more than $1billion (Rs 4,500 crore) in 2009—just a shade below top performer Hong Kong.

Bankers say this is an attempt by Stanchart to create a brand identity, finally.

“The brand recall for Stanchart is not as high as some of the other MNC banks. Stanchart at a global level is not as large as some of its competitors such as Citi and HSBC. This seems like an effort to increase brand penetration ahead of their IDR issue,” said a senior executive of a foreign bank.

But Stanchart is unfazed by such comments. “A new brand promise, which we didn’t have earlier, would help the bank enunciate what values it stands for, Iyer says.