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The National's Agribusiness Division launches its first major brand marketing campaign
The National Australia Bank's Agribusiness Financial Services Division this week launches its first major brand marketing campaign, after two years of product development and specialist recruitment. Aimed at securing a larger share of banking business from the nation's agricultural sector, the marketing push features an increased advertising spend and focuses on the close working relationship between farmers and their National Agribusiness banking manager. Hammond and Thackeray, a specialist advertising agency, was engaged by the bank to develop a print campaign of six agribusiness-specific brand advertisements for placement in rural weekly newspapers and agricultural magazines. General Manager of the National's Agribusiness Division, Mike Carroll, said while a large proportion of the country is still drought affected, the bank is aggressively investing in people and products. "Our outlay on this campaign demonstrates the National's optimism about future prospects for Australian agriculture," said Mr Carroll. "With solid infrastructure now in place, we are looking to communicate to both existing, and potential customers, the many benefits behind our Agribusiness brand," he said. The campaign is built around a creative theme of 'conversations' and highlights the interaction between the National's 530 agribusiness specialists and their farmer customers. The visual and verbal elements of the campaign work together to draw on the breadth and expertise of the Division's network, and its commitment to rural communities. "The main difference between the National and our competitors, is in our people," said Mr Carroll. "The National's dedicated agribusiness specialists are based in over 100 rural and regional locations. These bankers typically have farming backgrounds; they live and work in the country; they are mobile and they do most of their work with clients on clients' farms," he said. The National's specialist Agribusiness Division was created in September 2000 to deliver financial solutions to primary producers, processors of agricultural produce and agricultural service providers. Over the past two years the National's product innovations have included: - Flexible wheat harvest finance products that have contributed to competition in the market estimated to have saved growers $32 million over the past two harvests.
- Over-the-counter commodity price risk management (hedging) products giving farmers the ability to effectively manage fluctuating commodity prices up to three years in advance.
- Farm Business Plan that helps farmers to clearly map the direction of their businesses, their financial investments and their financial performance.
- National Agricover to protect farm assets and farmers' livelihood following catastrophes such as a storm or fire.
The National is confident it can grow its 30 per cent market share with the new brand marketing campaign. "The time is now right for the National Agribusiness Division to become more visible," said Mr Carroll. "We want to communicate to our customers the confidence we have in our people and products. Farmers in Australia should know the National can provide them with the best possible financial advice."
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