Marketing Strategy of ICICI

Saira Ansari (03)Bikram Snehi (24)Rajiv Siddhartha (21)Anuja Deora (28)

Introduction

• India’s second largest bank• 614 branches and extension counters• 2200 ATM’S• Biggest private sector bank in India• Most valuable bank in India in terms of market

capitalization• Described by the competitors and industry expert in

one word – “Aggressive”

Firsts in the Industry• Introduced concept of branding in the Indian banking industry• Process, People and Physical evidence – brought to life by ICICI• Product Innovation – Put the ‘customer first’ in the true sense• Cash on the celebrity fever – Introduced the concept of brand

ambassadors• Introduction of DSA’s and DST’s• Unleashed the power of the internet – introduced the concept of

net banking and e-mail marketing• First bank to focus on retail banking as a driver for growth• Comprehensive data centre availability & data protection

solutions

In effect – changed and shaped the Indian Banking Industry

Focus areas of marketing effort

• Target marketing and customer acquisition• Share of wallet• Channel strategy and management• Relationship management and database marketing• Product development & innovation• Credit approval

Basis for segmentation

• Occupation Different products for different occupational segment

identified • Income Minimum balance serves as a income segment barrier• Geographical Concentrated on Tier 1 & Tier 2 Cities trying to extend

reach• Age Different products like student account

Nature of banking in India

Banking in India was focused on the upper income group

Targeting

Differentiated Marketing Strategy

• Tailors its marketing campaigns to meet the needs of its target prospects

• Creates differentiated product offering for different segment

• Use of technology in tracking customer segment

Targeting

Converting potential to actual

Positioning• Core proposition – ‘Hum hain na’ – trust, credibility, total

financial solution provider (brought about through its cross selling effort)

• Modernization – process and physical evidence – technology as the backbone and accelerator

Caveat • ICICI bank is absolute appalling. Their slogan of “Hum hain na”

is very apt, only that it applies to their customers (i.e. us poor mortals). Hum hain na &&& to bank with ICICI.

• ICICI bank the most amazing bank with a punch line as “Hum Hain Na”, i think they mean ” Hum hain - -na (not available)”

• (Earlier I was with ICICI) I must say they rock; very good bank with great customer support. […]

Need identification

• Adapting international practices to the local context• Information system warehouse• Product development department – continuously

studies market and analyses competitive landscape

Product Portfolio

ICICI Bank

Personal BankingDepositsLoansInvestmentsCardsInsuranceDemat ServicesOnline Services

NRI BankingMoney TransferBank AccountsInvestmentsProperty SolutionsInsuranceLoans 

Corporate BankingCorporate Net BankingCash ManagementTrade ServicesTradewayForex OnlineSME Services

Product differentiation Variants in various basic products like savings bank

accounts to suit different customer base and customer needs

Product augmentation Redefinition of the banking products with extra benefits

and features added to the products

Creating concepts

Cash Back

BalanceTransfer

Loans onCredit CardsCo-Branding

CrossSelling

PRODUCTS

CONCEPTS

Selling Gold

Pricing

• Penetrative pricing aimed at achieving large market share

• Philosophy of profit through volume• Effort to drive out competition• Price leader in retail banking product• Aggressive pricing facilitated through low cost of fund

acquisition

Pricing

Duration Interest Rates (% p.a)

SBIInterest Rates (% p.a)

ICICI

7 days to 14 days   3.50 3.75

15 days & upto 45 days 4.75 4.5

46 days and upto 179 days 5.25 6.00

180 days to less than 1 year 6.25 6.30

1 year to less than 3 years 6.75 7.71

3 years to less than 5 years 7.00 8.32

5 years and  up to 10 years 7.25 10.09

Distribution Strategy

• Cross selling of products as a major area of focus• Creation of concept of DSA (Direct Selling Agent)• Creation of concept of DST (Direct Selling Team)• Effort on the part of the bank to reach the customer

rather than waiting for the customer• Use of internet, mobile, ATM’s and other technological

device to reach and serve the customers

Channel Strategy

PromotionStrategy

Corporate Branding Product Branding

Providing experiencesto the customer which customers connect with

Customer’s Mind & Heart

Challenging Conventions…The Brand ICICI

Outcomes

Attitudes

PreferenceICICI

Interactions

(Image formedin the mind and heart of

the customer )

CustomerInterface

Loyalty

AttachmentBusinessProcesses

Product Promotion

• Aimed at generating sales• Communicates product features and benefits• Mainly through print media• Point of purchase promotion tools for different products

to reach the relevant customer segment

Advertising

A man strolls down a beach, "Zindagi naam hai, mushkil ko aasaan banaane ka. Zindagi naam hai zindagi ko aasaan baane ka."

Cut to a house, a man addresses the members, "I am Ajay Sharma from ICICI. Ma'am your home loan has been sanctioned."

Amitabh Bacchan turns to face the camera, "Bas. Ek bharosemand saathi hona chahiye."

MVO: "Saathi jo zindagi ko aasan banaaye." Super: 'ICICI Group. Saral. Surakshit. Samajhdar.'

An old woman tells her daughter about their neighbour's plans for going to Haridvar

"Ab is umar mein kya jaayenge? You want to ka matlab nahin you have to", continues the mother.

While the young woman, with her ICICI credit card, books tickets for her, online.

As the older woman takes a peek at the screen, she is pleasantly surprised.

The site downloads and the super reads, 'Haridwar in a week.' As the daughter tries to convince her...

...the MVO adds "ICICI Credit cards. The power to give your loved ones what they really, really want."

A couple enter ICICI Bank and are served coffee as they wait to open an account.

Super: How long does it take to open an account with ICICI Bank?

The man takes a swig from his cup...Super: Before your coffee goes cold. The executive smiles at their...

... disbelief and hands over the documents. VO: Have you opened an ICICI Bank account as yet?

Public Relations

Purpose - To deliver communication that is uniform in its message and yet customised for specific target audiences

• Media relations– Press conferences– Press Releases– 1-1 interviews

• Investor relations• Analyst relations• Government relations

Outdoor Activities

‘Need to be seen…everywhere!!’

• Events at corporate campus• Promotional material at channel partner outlets• Billboards• Signages• Kiosks in residential and commercial complexes

Other Initiatives

• In-film promotions - Baghban• Co-Branding Initiatives

– Alliance with Amway India for launch of the international credit card. The card will enable Amway distributors to purchase Amway products and earn and redeem reward points

– Indian Railways Catering And Tourism Development Corporation, in conjunction with ICICI Bank, announced the launch of mobile payments and ticketing system, offering IRCTC customers to book railway tickets via SMS and make payments through their ICICI Bank accounts

Other Initiatives

• Cross brand associations - acquiring databases of high net worth clientele of lifestyle products : Tie-up with ‘Woven Hues’

• Young Stars Account – Promotion through tie-up with Cartoon Network, and in-series promotion through Tom & Jerry

• Seminars in partnership with media channels

People

• Orientation towards customer service

• Division of SME, Personal Banking and other functions at the branch level

• Effort towards providing sophisticated and modern image of the bank through its people

Process

• Use of technology for both internal and external processed

• Process are system driven and independent of the people handling it

• Standardization of service across the branches • Extensive investment in software solutions for process

systemization

Physical Evidence

• Ambience in the branch which projects modernization and sophistication

• Consistency across branches in construction ambience etc.

ICICI discovered that, in India, there is a large untapped rural market which lacks awareness of financial services as well as convenient access to remittance delivery services. To service this market, ICICI faced two challenges:

1) Designing a tailored product specific to these customers.2) Providing them with easy access to funds.

ICICI launched a pilot program in six villages in the southern state of Tamil Nadu (TN). TN was selected for the pilot due to its status as one of the largest receivers of remittances in India and because ICICI has a wide distribution network in the area.

The objective of the pilot was to offer remittance services to rural clients who receive remittances as well as to provide them with financial literacy services. The vehicle for achieving this goal was introducing low-cost ATMs and rural kiosks.

Phase 1: Designing and Simplifying Access via Technology

Rural ATMs Since ICICI Bank has a strong branch distribution network in Tamil Nadu, a low-cost ATM network was deemed to be an ideal solution for the delivery of remittance funds. The development of this ATM was a joint venture with the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, and had already been pilot tested.

Cash Agent Model This model was piloted via existing Internet kiosks that were present in local ICICI centers and owned by local entrepreneurs. These kiosks used Internet connectivity through Wireless Local Loop (WLL) technology. In this pilot program, the kiosks were converted into cash agents and kiosk owners became distributors of remittance funds to the rural public.

The kiosk owner maintains a working capital of approximately US$100. There are numerous checks and balances from ICICI Bank to eliminate any possibility of fraud; for example, daily MIS reports are generated and reconciled with bank data on a regular basis.

Phase 2: Designing the Product

•ICICI Bank offers a range of remittance products that target the Indian diaspora worldwide.

•The two most attractive products are Speed Transfer and Insta Transfer, both of which offer the rapid transfer of funds.

•Both of these products are popular with NRIs living in the Gulf countries, where payments and fees are made to international exchange houses and are received for free by the remittance recipient.

Phase 3: Financial Literacy, Marketing, and Launching the Pilot Product

• During the first few weeks of the pilot, ICICI focused primarily on building awareness among the villagers. Sales personnel of ICICI Bank housed themselves in the kiosks and disseminated information on the free receipt of remittances.

• They distributed promotional material like leaflets and posters and took the opportunity to explain the various products and features of ICICI’s remittances program during regular interactions with clients.

• ICICI Bank also provided online chat systems to villagers so that they could inform remittance senders of ICICI Bank’s services. The sales personnel from ICICI Bank sent out printed, personalized invitations to households with NRI relatives.

•These invitations informed remittance recipients about the timing and schedule of the chat well in advance so that they could inform their relatives abroad. This scheme was a tremendous success and elicited an enthusiastic response from the villagers.

•In researching the use of remittance funds by clients, ICICI Bank discovered that the remittances were being utilized for monthly sustenance. As such, withdrawal of funds was highly likely.

•During this phase of the pilot, ICICI Bank began to influence withdrawal patterns and succeeded in altering the withdrawal frequency from once at the beginning of each month to several times in smaller amounts throughout the month, leaving more funds in the client’s account for a longer period of time.

•Customers are now typically withdrawing the money in four installments instead of the conventional bullet withdrawal which was prevalent earlier.