Marketing Communications

TARGET GROUPS, OBJECTIVES AND TASKS 325

KBC is one of the major Belgian banks. In 2000, it decided to launch an advertising campaign to stimulate online

banking by switching regular customers to KBC on-line, a service that is free of charge and by which KBC customers

can carry out their banking activities electronically. The online activation is done during a visit to the bank. The

duration of the campaign ran from early 2000 to February 2003. During the first stage of the campaign, awareness

and interest were built with the slogan ‘Always your banker at hand’. The second stage focused upon the adoption

of the new product: ‘Don’t be the last one to become a KBC on-liner.’ During the last stage, the KBC on-line

customer was reassured: ‘Everything under control with KBC on-line’.

Especially during the early stages of the campaign, there was a risk that employees would not buy into the online

idea. They may have been offended by the fact that they would be replaced by a computer, and they may have

feared that, in the long run, their jobs could become redundant. Therefore, KBC involved the employees in the cam-

paign in different ways. In the first stage of the campaign, the focus was on the importance of the availability of the

personal banker. In TV spots, billboards and print ads, customers were shown in various circumstances, literally

holding the hand of what appears to be their personal banker. The message is conveyed that online banking enables

you to do your banking business wherever and whenever you want, but at the same time it stresses the point that

human contact is indispensable. The mailings to customers were sent out from local branches to increase the link

between the bank and its employees on the one hand, and the customers on the other. Each campaign stage and

tool contained an opportunity (for both the employees and the customers) to engage in a personal conversation.

All personnel received the campaign material six weeks before the start of the campaign so they could prepare

themselves for an efficient personal follow-up to the mailing. The campaign took into account the potential negative

fallout of advertising campaigns on the motivation of the employees, and tried to integrate internal PR and external

communications to avoid negative side effects. The campaign was a considerable success and won a Belgian Gold

Effie Award in 2003.^16

BUSINESS INSIGHT

KBC on-line: involving employees in an advertising campaign promoting

online banking

Table 10.2 PR objectives and tasks

Corporate Marketing

Internal External

Public affairs Financial Media

Information Impact of trends Information Information Support marketing agenda

Training Public visibility Credibility Opinions

Motivation Information Trust Corporate image New products

Building corporate identity Opinions Sponsorship

Attitudes Goodwill Events

Corporate image

Build goodwill

Influence

decisions

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