First Bank of Nigeria and its luxurious lounges

By Atim Nkese Nkpubre
Keen observers of the Nigerian marketing communication terrain would remember the blitz that heralded First Bank’s 100th anniversary in 1994. The historic occasion had provided a great opportunity for the hitherto conservative financial powerhouse to reinvent itself, as it were, re-launching with a blast into the consciousness of Nigerians.

Back then, drive time jingles were considered incomplete without the popular “Man pass man, bank pass banki o…. , which was also a great delight on television and even in print. So memorable was the campaign that the song became an anthem in no time, even in an era marked by serious political impasse! (Ah, impasse, again? Never again! Good riddance…). The word, impasse, for those that can still remember became one hell of a word that drove a sharp division among broadcasters of that era… that is a story for another day! Sorry, I digressed.
Again, as the First Bank group moved into its second century of operations in 2004, the brand unveiled a new corporate identity with a new logo and new colours, showcasing the “iconic African elephant with navy blue and ivory colours”. The logo, an improvement of the earlier version came out simple, crisp and distinct, signalling the beginning of a new era for the brand.
A few weeks into 2013, likewise, First Bank of Nigeria Plc in its new found tradition of innovation has opened six luxurious lounges, three each in Lagos and Abuja with more to follow in the months ahead. The lounges, according to officials of the bank, comprise a large seating area with leather sofas, private meeting rooms, offices with Wi-Fi hotspots to enable the bank’s premium customers stay connected to their businesses while enjoying the ease of priority service. In addition, a designated relationship manager is always available to attend to queries, resolve complaints and provide services required by the customers at all times. This privilege, however, is by invitation only!
In terms of tangible benefits, the above listed features of the newly introduced facilities readily translate to convenience, comfort, security, luxury as well as priority services for qualified customers.
This pioneering offering by First Bank, which is borne out of consumer insight, is quite significant for a number of reasons. For starters, today’s consumer market is greatly fragmented. There are now all sorts of customers demanding all sorts of services and attention to boot. The bank has demonstrated a thorough understanding of its customers’ demographics and psychographics and has responded with the lounges of privilege for the cream of its customer base, to complement a range of online banking services. First Bank was able to do a segmentation of its customers so as to create different service offerings for the respective categories.
The lounges are a strong engagement platform where the privileged customers can experience afresh the First Bank brand. The experience of a royal treatment on the laps of luxury at this crucial point of intersection is likely to trigger the right emotions, memories and responses in the minds of qualifying customers and may create some kind of affinity and bond with the brand.
The lounges are also a permanent advertising platform connecting the brand to powerful emotions of trust, safety and convenience. The ambient environment conveys a strong image, status, prestige, convenience and security. Everyone appreciates being treated with courtesy. Human kind, especially those of affluent pedigrees, sometimes crave recognition, reverence and reward. What’s more? A happy customer will not only come back for repeat business but will gladly tell others about the company’s unique service and word of mouth advertising is quite powerful.
Moreover, they could also serve as a networking arena for customers of similar statuses as business could easily be closed while savouring privileges of the ambient lounges.
As everyone knows, the era of one-size-fits-all solution is gone for good. Henry Ford may have got away with making one car in one colour (black) for every customer, but that was ages ago! Times have changed so much so that nowadays, consumers’ tastes and preferences seem to be changing with the weather, especially in an era of globalisation, thus sending marketing experts back to the drawing table on a regular basis.
Pundits have predicted differentiation as a key to success in contemporary marketing practice. As a matter of course, differentiation and niche marketing appear as easy options for standing out of the crowd! Hap Klopp and Brian Tarcy, marketing experts and co-authors of Business Management, believe that the easiest way to sell is to differentiate oneself from the competition –in product, segmentation, pricing, distribution, and even communication.
First Bank has discovered a window of opportunity at the top of the pyramid and is deploying resources to grow the segment, which can be likened to putting one’s money where one’s mouth is. Nowadays, businesses have gone beyond merely satisfying customers to truly delighting them, making them love their product or service. First Bank has been able to extend the brand experience in a way that delights its affluent customers, an initiative that could be likened to meeting premium customers on their own turf.
It makes absolute business sense; really, because it has been proven time and again that the easiest people to sell to are those who already know you- your existing customers. All customers are not equal, mark you, to borrow a phrase from George Orwell’s Animal Farm, some customers are more equal than the others.
The Pareto Principle says that 80 percent of a company’s business comes from 20 percent of its customers. The challenge for companies, therefore, would be to identify that 20 percent and then tailor their resources to them, after all, business is about results!
The lounges of privilege, aside from massaging the ego of its existing customers may well be an additional driver to premium customer acquisition.
All said, it is heartening to note that customer royalty – the art of treating customers as kings-is taking firm roots in Nigeria, not only in the banking sector but also in other service areas.
Originally, incorporated in Liverpool in 1894 as the Bank for British West Africa, First bank of Nigeria is literally the first bank in Nigeria and was the only bank in Nigeria for many decades. With over a century of experience in its kitty, the bank has grown in leaps and bound and has survived the numerous storms and stress in the Nigerian banking industry, emerging as a stable financial institution.
Although the bank has created solutions to directly match the lifestyle of its customers, it remains to be seen whether or not the high net-worth individuals for whom the lounges are created would honour the bank’s invitation. The reason being that this category of customers hardly visits the bank in person. A lot of the time, they prefer to either perform banking transactions in the comfort of their posh offices or abodes or do so through proxies.
This is not enough to dampen the enthusiasm of the inventors as the bank on its part appears set to reap the benefits of its huge investment in the lounges of privilege in terms of business revenue, goodwill and ultimately, a more robust bottom line. “Success has its benefits”, indeed.