Targeting is key to securing customer loyalty

Words: Niamh Smith

Targeting is particularly effective for brands with limited budgets, according to FP Live! panellists.

Marketers have been urged to use segmentation and targeting strategies to achieve customer loyalty, especially when marketing within the constraints of a limited budget.

Speaking at FP Live!, Valentina Kristensen, director of growth and communications at OakNorth, said the bank used targeting and price to overcome customer disloyalty.

Price can serve as a competitive advantage in the banking sector because customers often switch between savings accounts and move to the account with the best rate.

This is a particularly effective strategy when brands are faced with a limited budget because it can result in free marketing in the form of earned media for the bank, according to Kristensen.

“You will appear on the top of the Best Buy tables and a lot of journalists will write about you to push for readers to go and check out your products and services,” she said.

Even though price is an effective tool of differentiation, brands must still target a very specific type of customer – one willing to switch but does not have high inertia, added Kristensen.

Rachael Singh, global product owner at Vodafone, agreed brands must think more strategically about segmenting their audience to ensure they are engaging with the intended consumers.

In particular, influencer marketing can be a cost-effective method of targeting specific audiences.

If brands have a limited marketing budget, Singh recommends financial institutions adopt the use of smaller influencers that have a smaller but more engaged audience.

“That is worth so much more in your strategic marketing approach than a big budget that targets everybody,” Singh said.