Vinesh Venugopal Nair, Vice President, Global Marketing & Communications of Xpress Money, talks about the remittance market in India and its complexities, and the three words that work for the brand - simple, fast and safe
Q] Given the nature of the international money transfer business, is the core of your communication purely emotional?
In the remittance business, you are always talking to two sides - the sender and the receiver, which is a distinctive feature. You are looking at two kinds of audiences - in the Middle East, I am looking at a 27-year-old and his ageing uncle or parents on the other side as receivers. It is a very complex market. It requires catering to two diverse age brackets and finding a connect, which is generally emotional. What we try to do is look at the life of the typical expatriate. Our communications are a reflection of our understanding of that expatriate, be it in the Middle East or Canada. There are different segments and people from all parts of the world; so the communication needs to be emotional as well as have an element of tongue-in-cheek humour. We are trying to find the right balance in our communication.
Q] Is the communication used in India different from that of the West?
To be honest, emotion works anywhere in the world. We have this misconception that in the West, emotion doesn’t work. You will be surprised how well emotion is used in the West, though it is not as dramatic. For instance, in our latest TVC, we talk about the daily chores that an individual has to do, and showcase the convenience angle.
Q] What are the common factors in marketing strategy across geographies?
You need to understand what the consumer wants and how you can communicate the convenience of your service. To the person on the receiving side, we are saying we have a location close to their house and they don’t need to travel to get their son’s hard-earned money. On the sender’s side, we are saying we have the network, your loved one does not have to go through an ordeal to receive your money. This is common across all markets. The core is how we position convenience.
Q] You have chosen to work with Onkar from Peepli Live as opposed to any other mainstream star from any other movie. What are the insights behind this?
Onkar is the typical common man and he looks the part. He is from a place called Durg in Chhattisgarh. Look at the number of brands the mainstream stars endorse - our study reveals that people can’t even tell which star is endorsing which brand these days. We believe in keeping it simple, and this works for the nature of service we provide as well.
Q] What were the insights behind the mammoth re-branding exercise, undertaken last year?
We wanted to communicate to the consumer that we provide a simple, fast and safe service. Our study shows that people connect to these words, irrespective of the language, across all strata of all society. So we thought of using this as part of our brand positioning, because this is what we want to be. We did it in 100-plus countries in a mammoth exercise. In India, we have changed all signage and boards, which was a herculean task. We worked with the Spice Holding Group in Dubai; the exercise included talking to internal and external stakeholders of the company across geographies. One of the recommendations was that the consumer was not able to understand the difference between Xpress Money and agent partners, on whom we depend to provide our services. That is the way the model works - we needed a distinct point to say we are the service provider, not a retail location.
We got the words - simple, fast and safe - from consumer feedback of people who have used our service. We have video footage of this. These are the three words that work for us. The other communication that we use is ‘Bringing Home Closer’. Relocation is the second most stressful thing that happens to people, the first being death of a loved one. This is a research finding. So ‘Bringing Home Closer’ takes the stress factor away; to do this in some geographies, we even organize orientation sessions for people about rules of the land including financial inclusion, thus bringing home closer with an element of awareness and comfort.
Q] Is the Indian market still nascent when it comes to remittance?
It is, and there is a lot to be done, and we are willing to do it. We are looking to see if we can partner with any organization to spread awareness.
Q] What are the challenges you face in the Indian market?
The logistics of operating, the diversity of languages and the understanding of different cultures.
Q] India is currently a $64 billion remittance market. Which are the highest receiving States and what is the brand presence in these States?
Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Punjab are our top three markets. We have started to expand dramatically in UP. In Punjab, we have 7,000 agent partner locations, and an extremely strong hold in Kerala.
Q] What are the brand’s plans for the upcoming quarter?
A lot more activity targeted towards creating a demand for our service from both the customer and our agents. Expansion of both our audiences. Creation of a “Yes, I want to associate with Xpress Money” sentiment. We will be more aggressive on growth than ever before. There is a saying in this business: “Jo dikhta hain, woh bikhta hain (What is visible sells).” We have already increased brand visibility. We will be taking it to the next level.
Q] What are the pivotal factors that influence purchase decisions?
Earlier, only price or service charge impacted the purchase decision. Now, consumers across the board want somebody who is interested in them. Also, socially conscious organizations are being received really well. How you add convenience and communicate it to the consumer is very important, the more personalized the better. It is a reflection of people wanting a certain quality of life.
Q] What is needed to further the growth of the remittance industry?
Government intervention is always welcome, but it doesn’t need to stop at that, if the industry has to grow from the current $64 billion to $74 billion, projected at the end of the year, which in itself is a big step. There needs to be a vision map, and remittance companies need to come together to achieve this.
Q] How does the brand leverage the Digital medium?
We use digital social media like Facebook to disseminate information. The consumer feedback we get is given to our client servicing team to help them meet customer expectations.
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