Bangkok--4 May--Bangkok Bank
Bangkok Bank has retained its status as Thailand’s Most Admired Bank in BrandAge magazine’s survey of Thailand’s Most Admired Brands in 2009. The bank was voted the most admired and trusted brand in all three bank categories surveyed: banking, credit cards, and debit cards.
Bangkok Bank Executive Vice President Bordin Unakul said the bank was delighted to retain its status as the Most Admired Bank in the survey, which has been organized by BrandAge magazine for eight consecutive years. The results are based on responses from consumers nationwide with regard to brand popularity, admiration, and trust. The survey results showed that Bangkok Bank’s brand was voted as number one in three categories — banking, credit cards, and debit cards.
Respondents to the survey are consumers nationwide who have used the services, or have participated in choosing the service They were equally balanced between males and females. 10 percent of the respondents were aged less than 20 years, 26 percent were 20-29 years, 30 percent were 30-39 years, 21 percent were 40-49 years and 13 percent were over 50 years. 25 percent of the respondents live in Bangkok and the central region, 21 percent in the east, 18 percent in the south, 19 percent in the northeast, and 17 percent in the north.
BrandAge’s editorial team said the enduring existence of the Bualuang brand in the financial and banking industry has become a symbol of credibility and the stability of Bangkok Bank’s brand. The factors which influenced the customers’ choice included the customer’s familiarity with the bank, its stability, brand, the reputation of the bank and service.
Bangkok Bank’s marketing strategy in the past year focused on stimulating card spending. New products that were introduced included the Blue Wave credit card; the first credit card in Thailand to use contactless technology. The bank also co-operated with partners so that people could use their Be1st cards to top up their BTS Smart Pass on Bualuang ATMs.
As the first to introduce new technology to the market, Bangkok Bank has gained a competitive edge. This has differentiated it from competitors, and reflects its leadership in the market. For retail banking, communications have focused on clear images with the use of color and the brand positioning of puan koo kit mit koo baan (friend and trusted advisor) which remains the bank’s steadfast commitment to its customers.
Respondents were asked to judge the bank’s performance in a number of areas. For the category of ‘banking service’, Bangkok Bank was voted first overall for the first 10 factors influencing a consumer’s decision, namely, the stability of the bank, prompt service, customer familiarity with the bank, the brand or reputation of the bank, high deposit interest rates on offer, a variety of automated services, polite and helpful staff, having an extensive branch network, the use of a queuing system, and low lending interest rates on offer.
In the category of ‘credit cards’, Bangkok Bank was voted first overall for the first 10 factors influencing a consumer’s decision, namely, low interest rates on outstanding loans, the brand or reputation of the credit cards, no entrance fee, customer familiarity with the bank, card issuer stability, high credit lines on offer, ease in approving card issuance or quick turnaround time, availability of channels accepting repayments, no annual fee, and global acceptance for the card.
In the category of ‘debit cards’, Bangkok Bank was voted first overall for the first 10 factors influencing a consumer’s decision, namely, customer familiarity with the bank, reputation of the debit cards, card issuer stability, suitability for customers’ needs, free replacement cards, no annual fee, discounts available at merchants and the variety of card designs.