Banker videos have great appeal

In a few weeks our portal with detailed profiles of bankers will go online to reach a broader public. The videos we have produced so far have already caused quite a stir among test clients. Without exception, the bankers and portfolio managers profiled were found to be very sympathetic, thanks not least to the work put in by our TV pros.

Opinions diverge on client favorites

Our tests also confirmed that there are no general favorites. Some test clients would rather entrust their portfolio to the eloquent young banker, while others tend toward the experienced partner of an independent asset manager. Our method of sympathy-based matchmaking helps the potential client choose his favorite from many client advisors.

Showcasing the person behind the banker

The questions and answers bring the banker closer at the personal level. We thought so too: When presenting Switzerbank.com we got to know the client advisors ‘merely’ as businesspeople. Only when we watched the video could we see the private people behind them. And those people appeared much more familiar to us afterwards.

Videos (left), mood photos (right) and personal statements show the person behind the banker.

Our TV pros Annina Furrer and Thomas Anhorn interview a portfolio manager.

Do private banking clients use the Internet?

The typical Internet video user is a man aged 40 with an above-average socioeconomic status, according to the Online Publishers’ Association (USA, 2006). This description also fits the profile of the younger private banking clientele, be they nouveau riche yuppies (young urban professionals) or the heirs of wealthy parents.

Don’t forget the ‘silver surfers’ (55 years and above)

But how are things with the older private banking generation? Across Europe, 68% of Internet users aged 55 and over already have a broadband connection. And at 26%, the annual growth in the number of new broadband connections being taken out by ‘silver surfers’ is growing far faster than the average of all Internet users (14%).

«Silver Surfers» study (PDF, Englisch)

Silver surfers: More and more seniors use the Internet, 53% of them for online banking and financial websites.

The new Homegate in private banking?

Similar to Switzerland’s leading real estate search portal homegate.ch, Switzerbank.com can also be used to search for suitable ‘properties’.

Hit parade of search criteria

The test with potential private banking clients produced the following ranking of important search criteria:

1) Bank type (e.g. national bank) or a specific bank 2) Client advisor’s language (e.g. Italian) 3) Client advisor’s location (e.g. Berne) 4) Client advisor’s age and gender (e.g. male over 40)

Search engine for efficient preselection

The number of client advisors matching this search profile can be whittled down even further: by their skills and training, by their track record and above all by their private interests, enabling new clients to effectively preselect their favorites. Finally, the photos and videos provide important starting points for that all-important gut decision. As previously, the client only enters into a business relationship after a personal meeting with the bankers he has preselected.

Screenshots: How it works (PDF)

Individual search criteria...

... produce a smaller selection of matching bankers.