The Tweet That Sparked A (Banking) Revolution

Whilst the world is pre-occupied with regime change in the Middle East, there’s a revolution of a different sort happening in Australian banking.  It was the National Australia Bank (NAB) that lit the spark for this revolution with this teaser on Twitter late on Friday, 11 February:

 

 

What was the tough decision?  All became clear the following day. NAB launched a barrage of marketing activity beginning with a YouTube video of the break-up letter (timed to coincide with Valentine’s day) and a formal public announcement that it would refund exit fees for new home loan customers switching from competitors Westpac and the Commonwealth Bank (CBA).

 

NAB was publicly distancing itself from the other three major Australian banks.  Social media was key to the campaign and its character was clear – quirky, personal and in the face of the other banks.  Very un-bank like in fact.

 

In a flurry of activity NAB plastered its ‘break-up letter’ in newspapers and on the side of buildings.  Promotional hit squads went to ANZ, CBA and Westpac buildings and handed out tissues and ‘break-up’ CD’s.  Helicopters flew across major cities with banners.  NAB is also reported to have created 60 humorous ‘break up scene’ videos that have a homemade quality to them that will appear via YouTube and Twitter including this ambush of a CBA executives lunch.

 

So what has been the response of social media networks to all this?

 

Using 6dgree banking industry analytics covering social media activity across Twitter, Facebook, blogs and discussion boards we have found that in the 3 days since the campaign launch, banking conversations on social media have jumped in volume by 66%.

 

Fees, charges and home loan conversations soared a whopping 418%, representing 61% of all banking conversations between 12 February and 14 February.

 

NAB has achieved at least one of its objectives: since the launch, 78% of all banking industry social media posts have been about NAB.

 

And the sentiment has ranged from overwhelmingly positive through grudging admiration to unimpressed:

 

… the overwhelmingly positive:

 

… the grudging admiration

 

… and the unimpressed

 

There’s no doubt though that NAB has broken new ground.

 

Social media posts about NAB’s effort now include words like ‘cheeky’, ‘original’, ‘ballsy’, ‘brave’ and ‘ambitious’.  When was the last time you heard that about a major Australian bank?

 

So has NAB improved sentiment towards its brand?  Initial signs are good – daily positive posts about NAB have jumped 320% and 6dgree’s net sentiment index has moved from the traditional negative for banks to a relatively healthy neutral and both Westpac and CBA remain stuck firmly in negative territory.

 

So, will the revolution last?  Time will tell.  But one revolution is definitely here to stay – social media has arrived as a major corporate weapon in Australia.  Hold on tight for the ride.