Today, Zocalo Group's second Recommendation Index was announced, focusing on how consumers are recommending and talking about the Consumer Banking segment. In a joint effort with M/A/R/C Research, the study provides a list of the most recommended banks and the words used to describe them, while creating a score that marketers can use to compare against other brands in the same category.
Due to tough economic times, banks nationwide have seen more frequent restructuring and closures, making the need to meet consumer demand more important than ever before. For those still standing, it becomes imperative to know how their brand is being recommended and which words or services drive that conversation.
How would you describe your own bank? Positively or negatively?
Ever wonder what others are saying about it and how it compares to competitors?
This quarter's Recommendation Index helps shed light on those very questions, looking at more than 40 banks in both online and offline analysis. Which of those most recommended? The results are in.
Leading the pack are PNC Bank, Wells Fargo, Capital One, ING, Bank of America, HSBC, Merrill Lynch, Wachovia and JPMorgan Chase. Although, not a specific brand, credit unions placed second on the list overall behind PNC Bank.
Top drivers of recommendation in the overall consumer banking category include: positive customer service experience, good interest rates, rewards programs and incentives, convenience (foremost online, followed by brand locations), and the perception of being trustworthy and dependable.
Alternately, leading causes for negative consumer word of mouth include: poor customer service, followed by overdraft fees, changes to rates or services without adequate warning, the perception of being untrustworthy, and additional fees or charges.
In addition to key brands and themes, the Recommendation Index offers an average for the entire category - consumer banking falls at 13.5 - illustrating that consumers provide positive recommendations 13.5 times more often than negative recommendations. This provides an industry standard for judging the impact of a brand's marketing efforts.
For additional details on the Recommendation Index as well as results from 2009's analysis of the Casual Dining Restaurant category, please visit www.recommendationindex.com.
Which banks do you recommend and why? What is the single most important thing a bank can do to keep your business?
Due to tough economic times, banks nationwide have seen more frequent restructuring and closures, making the need to meet consumer demand more important than ever before. For those still standing, it becomes imperative to know how their brand is being recommended and which words or services drive that conversation.
How would you describe your own bank? Positively or negatively?
Ever wonder what others are saying about it and how it compares to competitors?
This quarter's Recommendation Index helps shed light on those very questions, looking at more than 40 banks in both online and offline analysis. Which of those most recommended? The results are in.
Leading the pack are PNC Bank, Wells Fargo, Capital One, ING, Bank of America, HSBC, Merrill Lynch, Wachovia and JPMorgan Chase. Although, not a specific brand, credit unions placed second on the list overall behind PNC Bank.
Top drivers of recommendation in the overall consumer banking category include: positive customer service experience, good interest rates, rewards programs and incentives, convenience (foremost online, followed by brand locations), and the perception of being trustworthy and dependable.
Alternately, leading causes for negative consumer word of mouth include: poor customer service, followed by overdraft fees, changes to rates or services without adequate warning, the perception of being untrustworthy, and additional fees or charges.
In addition to key brands and themes, the Recommendation Index offers an average for the entire category - consumer banking falls at 13.5 - illustrating that consumers provide positive recommendations 13.5 times more often than negative recommendations. This provides an industry standard for judging the impact of a brand's marketing efforts.
For additional details on the Recommendation Index as well as results from 2009's analysis of the Casual Dining Restaurant category, please visit www.recommendationindex.com.
Which banks do you recommend and why? What is the single most important thing a bank can do to keep your business?
