Appearing on a wall near you
My bride and I recently celebrated our anniversary with an Italian vacation, and I had to promise I’d do no work while traveling.
Still, the 4-hour layover at London’s Heathrow Airport made it tough to ignore the full walls of messaging for HSBC Bank.
THIS BELONGS IN EVERY BUSINESS LIBRARY!
Some ads were in the terminal, where 84 million passengers might see them each year. But the real news was the advertisements wallpapering the jetways inside and out.
HSBC had found a way to be in the right place at the right time to talk to prospects, while putting new revenues into the airport’s coffers. Brilliant!
By monopolizing every available centimeter of these walkways leading from the terminal to the airplanes, potential customers were guaranteed to see HSBC’s message in five languages touting trade, business, education and sustainability.
HSBC is following this strategy on thousands of jetways in 81 countries and territories. This effectively shuts out competition and ensures they’re seen by even casual observers looking out the window.
Studies show 92% of business travelers respond to airport advertising, so obviously HSBC is on to something.
Furthermore, with the extraordinary growth of air travel in the last few decades, airports have become a hub where their target audience spends time on a regular basis. Annual global air traffic is forecast to hit 14 billion passengers in four years, and as a global bank, HSBC wants to be where the growth is and where their customers connect.
Bank robber Willie Sutton was once asked why he robbed banks, and he answered, “Because that’s where the money is.” This appears to be HSBC’s logic; they advertise at the airports because that’s where their customers are.
It’s a valuable lesson for any business: Know who your customers are and where they congregate, then find a way to reach them with your message.
Plus, don’t be afraid to invest a little extra as insurance that your competition won’t have their message in the same place as you do. Shutting them out of the conversation is an important first step toward developing a solid relationship with your customer.
Research. Messaging. Investment. Consistency. These are the tools HSBC has used to grow into a global behemoth.
Suggesting, if you want to make your business fly, you should do the same.
With that said, I wish you a week of profitable marketing.
Join me online @askmistermarketing.