LET'S GET PHYGITAL

The recent WFH has emphasised the need to transact digitally. However recent market volatility has also emphasised the need for advice while investing. This is especially true for the millions of new investors who have entered the markets and  are susceptible to the dangers of trading without advice. An extreme case in point is here 

As a full service broker, Motilal Oswal differentiates itself by providing not just cutting edge digital trading through its habit sensitive separate Investor & Trader apps ( see film here); it also provides an advisor on call to provide research and advise across the whole suite of investing products. The advisor acts as not just as a market expert decoding reams of information into actionable investing, he/she also acts as a sounding board and counselor-  especially important during volatile markets where emotions can get the better of anyone.

The Motilal Oswal investing experience is available on Click &  Call. Not just Digital. Not just Physical. But the best of both worlds. We call this a PHYGITAL investing experience. 

But isn't Physical experience reducing in terms of customer requirements; especially in lockdown? Why can't all this be done through increasingly intelligent digital platforms ? Firstly when we say 'Physical' it means the convenience of an advisor available on phone/video chat. If you observe consumer buying behaviour across categories, we see increasing adoption of the PHYGITAL model. This is especially true for high value items and where there is a lack of standardisation and need for a personalised experience. Like your hard earned investments where needs are not just a rational( data/analysis/convenience) but emotional (Greed & Fear ) as well.  

You may buy a mobilephone online but when buying a car you research digitally but experience a test drive physically. Both digital wallets as well as cash are considered essentials. Online groceries apps offer VFM and convenience but you also visit grocers to purchase fresh vegetables. Even while communicating; while emails and messages are the norm; we still do pick up the phone and speak to our loved ones. 

The combination Digital transactional convenience with the customisation/relaibility of the Physical experience is what makes PHYGITAL relevant even in today's rapidly changing era. We have noticed this in investing where advisors have spoken to clients and counselled them to stay invested even when markets were crashing in March 2020 ( benefits are being reaped now with the markets rebounding). Or when digital only platforms experienced outages and downtime on high volume F&O expiry day while the on-call advisor was available to place an important trade reliably.

Motilal Oswal is one of the few brokers to offer a truly PHYGITAL experience. This is a result of the technology backbone we have built and the large number of advisors available on call through our branch and business partner advisory desks. 

To make the PHYGITAL proposition come alive, we have created a campaign across touchpoints on the benefits of PHYGITAL investing experience. The campaign has been created by the in-house MOFSL creative team. 

Besides advertising; we have also tried to impart knowledge about PHYGITAL investing in various media ( example here )

Have a look

DIGITAL MEDIA

 

 

SOCIAL MEDIA

FOLLOW UP CAMPAIGN

 Here is some initial media coverage on the initiative

• https://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/marketing/motilal-oswal-financial-services-launches-new-campaign-phygital/76808564 : Brand Equity 
•  https://www.exchange4media.com/advertising-news/motilal-oswal-financial-services-launches-new-campaign-phygital-105896.html : Exchange4Media 
• https://www.indiantelevision.com/mam/media-and-advertising/ad-campaigns/motilal-oswal-financial-services-launches-new-campaign-phygital-200706 : Indian Television 
• https://www.adgully.com/motilal-oswal-financial-services-launches-a-new-campaign-phygital-94522.html : Adgully 
• https://www.mediainfoline.com/advertising/motilal-oswal-financial-services-launches-a-new-campaign-phygital : Media Infoline 
• https://www.mediabrief.com/motilal-oswal-financial-services-launch-new-campaign-phygital/ : Media Brief
• https://www.4psnews.com/brands/story/motilal-oswal-financial-services-launches-a-new-campaign-phygital : 4Ps news
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The Motilal Oswal Brand Campaign

The Brand Challenge –the financial advertising ghetto Due to the large number of players across asset classes in the investing space; the consumer is bombarded with umpteen messages from umpteen brands. Due to the similarities of the offerings; the lines between what one brand had to offer versus the other were extremely blurred. As a result all the financial brands were seen as offering similar offerings ; all bunched up close to one another – almost like a ghetto of brands. What’s more; Motilal Oswal being a late entrant did not have the legacy that some of the other brands (especially the multinational wealth management companies and Indian/foreign banks).The need of the hour was for a differentiated brand proposition in what was hitherto an undifferentiated space.


Understanding the Consumer The investor today can be divided into 3 archetypes 1. Self-directed – hard core traders who understand money and the stock markets. They do their own research and take investment decisions on their own. All they need is a speedy and reliable trading platform. 2. Validators – The bulk of today’s investors; they rely on an investment expert to provide them with research and insight into the markets. They use the advise given by the investment experts to decide on where to invest and where not to. 3. Delegators – People who do not have the time or the expertise to handle their investments. They delegate the same to experts who manage their money at their discretion. These would typically be people who invest in mutual funds, portfolio management schemes etc.


The Motilal Oswal Brand Differentiator Ever since the company was started in 1987; there has always been a strong focus on research based advice. Today; with 28 member equity analyst team tracking 200 companies across 26 sectors, research based advice is the Motilal Oswal brand differentiator. The proof of this can be seen in the numerous awards it has won at the AsiaMoney Brokers polls since 2003 as well as in the Starcom Mediavest Investment survey 2007, ET Starmine awards and Institutional Investor Awards for Research.


The Communication StrategyFrom the three consumer segments; the brand focus was on the validator archetype. Reason being that this was one segment that would be willing to pay a premium for the services that the brand would have to offer. Moreover; it also fit in very well with the brand proposition of research based advice.


Advertising Idea In the financial services space there are a plethora of brands trying to position themselves on providing the end benefit/payoff to the customer. As a result different brands of mutual funds, life insurance and wealth management were bombarding the customer with messages on better returns, fulfilling dreams, better service etc. Rather than focusing on these undifferentiated propositions; the brand positioned itself on an attitude. One that believed in putting research before everything else we do in the advice we give to our customers. Hence the advertising idea ‘Knowledge First’ To give the idea a larger than life feel, the creative idea was to link the fact that all great inventions, discoveries etc were based on knowledge. Hence be it science or creating wealth; it pays to know more.


Creatives

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wwjjHhGrEw


ResultsThe campaign broke in November 2007. We conducted a brand track in October 2007 and also in March 2008. In just 6 months of the campaign, brand recall has gone up from 64% to 89%. Brand Consideration from 24% to 58%. Brand Recommendation from 17% to 41%. On the key image parameter of ‘Has strong research’; brand scores have gone up from 12% to 52 %. (Source – Hansa Research Brand Track Study. See annexure for details) What’s more; in the Cirrus PR Tracking study for the year 2007-08; the company achieved a ‘visibility’ score of 6087, an ‘image’ score of 11020 and a ‘quality of exposure’ score of 181 – the second highest in the category(