Industry News - August, 2007

Norton Rose can now advertise itself as both a firm with a speedy turnaround and a company that cares about the environment after two updates to its business.

At its London headquarters, the law firm is to install 480 Canon printers, of both black-and-white and colour versions, which will allow it to use separate types of printer for draft work and completed documents.

At a cost of £300,000 the company will now be able to market itself as a greener company, something which... more...

Michael Parkinson has not done a very good job of marketing professional services from his accountants, Vantis, after he pulled out of an investment that they advised him to put money in when he decided it was not ethical.

Accountancy Age reports that the chat show host wrote off an undisclosed sum of investment in a company which was involved in tax relief practices.

Although Parkinson admitted that he originally bought shares in Your Health International, to benefit from tax ... more...

Financial services providers would be advised to steer clear of using jargon in their advertising, as research has shown that the average consumer neither likes nor understands industry terms.

In a poll by TNS Finance, 80 per cent of people said that financial services providers should avoid investment product jargon, instead explaining financial terms more clearly.

Firms would be wise to ensure that when marketing financial services, they advertise themselves as providing si... more...

The BGL Group, a broker which owns several insurance brands such as Budget Insurance and Dial Direct, is using its divisional websites to deliver marketing communications to consumers as they surf.

Using Maxymiser's customer relationship management software, BGL aims to increase the number of returns made by people visiting the sites, Precision Marketing reports.

The software will make the online offers and products that are advertised on the company's webpages more relevant t... more...

Financial firm Axa has decided on a new marketing strategy, which will revolve around the concept of 'trust', yet ironically it has just been outed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) as one of the firms which was not transparent about hidden charges.

Axa has been advertising with the strapline 'You can't plan for life, but you can plan for living' and is now conducting research into the 'trust' idea before it will be used in adverts.

The firm now hopes that marketing its... more...

Britannia Building Society is launching a new campaign to highlight how it is different from other financial service providers, which may face constraints.

At a cost of £5 million, Britannia's brand awareness campaign is directed at growing its membership and showing consumers how its business may be fairer then other financial product providers.

Mortgage Solutions reports that Britannia's marketing campaign plays on the fact that the firm is not constrained by shareholder... more...

Polly Hughes has been announced as the new head of marketing for Mortgages PLC (MPLC).

Ms Hughes will begin in her new marketing role on August 29th, reporting to MPLC's marketing director Ian Whittaker.

The new appointment already has a vast experience of financial marketing, as she worked in marketing for UCB Home Loans, the specialist lender of Nationwide, for nine years and her most recent promotion was to strategic marketing manager.

At MPLC, Ms Hughes will be r... more...

Financial firms that offer pensions would be well advised to advertise their services on the internet, as a study has shown that people in older age groups are using the world wide web more than ever.

According to Ofcom's annual Communications Market Report, in 2006 people aged over 50 comprised a quarter of the British public who go online.

The over-65s may already have a pension plan in place, but finance firms could benefit from the fact that the elderly sit on the most mone... more...