“The campaign is inspired by the insight about individuals and businesses being on unique journeys to their progress. It is within each one of us to be pursuing the next thing, whether it is as small as your next holiday or as big as buying your next business,” explains Nontokozo Madonsela, head of marketing PBBSA, Standard Bank.
“We are the brand that seeks to encourage the target market to never stop asking this reflective question: ‘What’s Your Next?’. The answer to this question allows us as Standard Bank to partner with customers by enabling their nexts in a way that is personal as each person or business has a different next.
“It’s about bringing data, technology and service excellence together with new ways of working to empower our customers and ourselves to continuously deliver an exceptional, personalised experience,” she goes on to explain.
I interviewed Madonsela to find out more about this ‘next’ for Standard Bank.
Why is this idea right for Standard Bank?
As a brand, we see Africa as our home and we play an active role in driving her growth. We are passionate about fulfilling aspirations and changing lives. Enabling one’s progress is at the heart of what we exist for because when one succeeds (whether it’s an individual or business), there is a positive multiplication impact on those around them.
We put people at the centre of everything we do by seeing each one of them as the dynamic and unique individual they are – each on their own unique journey towards progress.
We are a dynamic team that’s human above all else, because we believe that ‘motho ke motho ka batho’ (an African proverb that means ‘we are because you are’). We are about taking responsibility when we get it wrong, but learning from it quickly and striving to be ten times better!
How do you plan to help your customers achieve their personal aspirations and ambitions?
Everything we do is about enabling nexts: Standard Bank’s role is to enable and fulfil the ambitions of our customers, whether that’s a second house or growing their delivery fleet for their business, or even using their card to buy a special gift, we’re all about what’s coming next. And those nexts are never done, there is always another next that everyone is striving towards – and no two individuals or businesses’ nexts are the same.
This campaign doesn’t just call on Standard Bank staff to step up, it encourages our customers to reflect on their aspirations and know that we are there to partner and enable them with personalised products and solutions moulded to their individual needs.
What was the vision for the TV commercial?
Just like our billboards, we wanted our TV commercial to impact on an emotional level; something that would make people smile and would make us working at Standard Bank proud. The story is told through the lens of different individuals who are pursuing journeys unique to them.
Visually, the commercial is fresh, has happiness all over it, and celebrates our key brand vision, our brand images – such as our shield – and the fact that we are the real ‘blue bank’.
What is the key message?
We want to engage in a conversation where a customer is able to reflect on what their next is. The core message is that our customers are on journeys and they are driving their own ways to their own unique aspirations. We would love to partner with them as an enabler because when their pursuit of progress is fulfilled, we know that lives are being changed.
Standard Bank gives them personalised banking that fits in with who they are, banking that enables them to craft their own success and define their own individual, non-standard nexts.
What’s Standard Bank’s next?
We’re changing our style, cutting through the clutter and talking like human beings, not bankers, to reveal a fresh, contemporary and dynamic identity. We’re excited to reintroduce ourselves to South Africa and win over many hearts.
We also have exciting product launches that are in the pipeline, so watch this space.
What’s your next?
Finding my Idris Elba. I hope he’ll be reading this. :)
