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8.7 Case Study: FNB and Idea Bounty
FirstRand Bank Limited is one of South Africa’s largest listed companies. It features on the
Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s Top 100 index, with First National Bank (FNB) as its retail and
commercial banking brand. FNB employs twenty-five thousand people in South Africa and serves
over six million customers.
Figure 8.6
Source: Used by permission from First National Bank.
The nature of banking in South Africa is rapidly changing, though, and FNB is striving to remain at
the forefront of social developments with progressive marketing and advertising strategies. One of
the early adopters of holistic eMarketing in the finance sector, FNB is a proponent of social media as
a way to reach its consumers and engage with them. FNB uses Facebook as a way to communicate
with its community of clients and fans, and it maintains pages that promote FNB-sponsored events
such as the FNB Whiskey Live Festival. These groups inform consumers about promotions, events,
and happenings within the financial-services industry, allowing two-way communication and a high
level of consumer engagement.
In October 2008, a segment of FNB, FNB Premier Banking, took its commitment to social media one
step further: the bank committed itself to a rapidly growing social media tactic known as
