NEW YORK — The financial services industry ranks ninth out of the 10 industries studied in MBLM’s latest Brand Intimacy COVID Study, which analyzes brands based on emotional connections during the pandemic.
However, according to MBLM, the industry is showing improved performance during COVID. In the new report, a new entrant USAA, has taken the first place position in the industry, followed by PayPal and Bank of America, which rank second and third, respectively.
“Brand Intimacy is the emotional science behind the bonds we form with the brands we use and love,” the company said in releasing the findings.
The Top 10
The remaining brands in the top 10 among financial services providers are: American Express, TD Bank, Chase, Mastercard, Wells Fargo, Visa and CapitalOne. Additionally, according to the study, intimate brands continue to significantly outperform the leading brands in the Fortune 500 and S&P 500 indices across revenue growth, profit growth and stock price, the company said.
“While the industry is among the lowest ranked industries, it is notable that financial services brands have improved their percentage of customers in some form of intimate relationship by 24% since the previous study,” MBLM said. Additionally, the percentage of customers in sharing, the earliest stage of Brand Intimacy, increased by 41%, suggesting more users formed an emotional connection, the analysis stated.
A Focus on Assistance
According to MBLM, many financial services brands have also focused on helping consumers during the pandemic. Number one brand USAA is offering auto and property insurance assistance, payment assistant programs, and life and health insurance support, among others. The company has also donated more than $47 million to help military families and local communities impacted by the pandemic.
In December 2020, PayPal announced an additional $5 million grant program for black-owned businesses, extending its previous $530 million commitment to support businesses during the pandemic. Bank of America announced a $100 million commitment to offer food and medical supply assistance to local communities in April 2020.
“With the pandemic causing financial hardships for a large portion of Americans, many financial services brands have tried to provide important relief services during the past year,” said Mario Natarelli, managing partner with MBLM. “We think these brands have the opportunity to leverage the stronger bonds that they have built with consumers and focus on further increasing their emotional connections.”
Key Findings
Among the other findings:
- The industry has an average brand Intimacy Quotient of 27.9, below the cross-industry average of 38.1.
- The industry average is up 15% compared to MBLM’s previous study.
- Bank of America is the top brand for men, replacing PayPal, while women prefer USAA.
- Consumer preference for Bank of America has increased, while preference for Visa, CapitalOne and Citi has decreased.
- Daily usage increased by 19%, indicating that more Americans have been dealing with financial services brands more frequently during the pandemic.
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