Cut the complexity: marketing in a post-Royal Commission world
What can financial services marketers learn from their sector’s annus horribilis? Copywriter Sara Howard believes choosing better words will help, for a start.
The Hayne Royal Commission has led to a year of hand-wringing and heartfelt apologies, of horror customer stories and broken reputations. But while poor governance, misguided culture and gaps in basic operational processes all share the blame, the very last thing marketers should do is retreat into vanilla, risk-averse language.
Here’s what we know. First, trust in the banking, finance and insurance sector is at an all-time low. That’s not a matter for debate: the latest report of the Ethics Index shows how confidence has been eroded by scandal after scandal.
Secondly, we cannot ignore the commission’s spotlight on financial literacy. Many consumers simply don’t know the right questions to ask a banker, broker or financial adviser. They don’t understand what they’re signing up for, or how that decision will affect the rest of their life.
Complex is easy, simple is hard. Banks use fancy words for simple ideas. ‘Remittance’ for ‘payment’ and ‘lump sum’ for ‘money’, for instance..
Very true Paul! And even those ‘fancy’ words can make the average (busy) person put off important financial decisions because it’s all too confusing. I suspect some people think making things sound hard gives their ‘advice’ more value, but that’s at the expense of the customer’s experience.
It’s always harder to write fewer words. It takes thinking (and communication between product, sales and marketing) to make sure it’s clear and unambiguous. But it’s worth it.
Thanks for reading.