Banking Doldrums: Sagging Profits and Credibility
Enhancing the Bank's Image - the Evolution of Bank Advertising
The earliest bank advertisements were definitely lacking in the human touch. Reporting only the bold facts and figures such as the names of directors, the extent of the bank's branch network, and ponderous statements of assets and liabilities, these "tombstone" ads typified the limit to which a bank would go to solicit business.
The power of advertising was brought home to Canadians during the First World War with the use of mass advertising by the Canadian government urging Canadians to support the war effort. The dramatic effectiveness of government ads emblazoned with the slogan "Your King and Your Country Need You" and the success of the war bond campaigns convinced bankers of the potency of advertising. In 1919, Royal Bank responded by establishing an advertising department to build goodwill and recognition.
In the 1920s bank advertising related more closely with the lives of average Canadians. The general public became acquainted with such bank services as savings accounts, safety deposit boxes, traveller's cheques, money orders, exchange transactions and money transactions through private wires.
Despite its conservative nature, bank advertising was well established by 1930. However, the Depression severely eroded the public's confidence in banking. To convince wary Canadians of the strength and stability of their banking system, Royal Bank launched a series of advertisements with headings such as "The Long View Pays," "Roots that Go Deep," "Of Proven Strength" and "Faith By Experience."
There would be no "hard sell" of bank products until the 1950s, when personal chequing accounts were introduced. Royal Bank advertising appeared in print only until the late 1960s when the bank took to the airwaves with the message: "will that be cash or Chargex?"
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