Quantitative research Citibank

1. Evaluation of MGM Program among Citibank
Customers (Responder, Lapsed Responder
and Non Responder)
- Report -
Prepared for:
February 2010
Singapore
Malaysia
Thailand
Indonesia
Vietnam
Hong Kong
China
Taiwan
Korea
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2. 2
INTRODUCTION

3. 3
Research Background
Citibank has been running MGM program for a while now.
Among the Citibank credit card customers, there are three types of
customers in relation to their response towards the program:
Responders: those who are currently active in joining the program
Lapsed Responders: those who have joined the program in the past, but
have stopped
Non Responders: those who are not joining the program at all
Among the total customers, only around 5% are responders.
Citibank would like to find out customers’ feedback about the MGM
program -- key triggers, barriers and improvements needed for the
program.

4. 4
Research Objectives
To find out the key triggers and barriers of joining MGM program
To evaluate the entire MGM program including delivery of flyers,
reward selection, the overall process as well as the lay out of the Direct
Mail (DM) and e-DM
To find out areas of improvement needed to make the program more
appealing and attractive to the customers

5. 5
Sample Criteria & Methodology
Methodology
Qualitative, using Focus Group Discussions. Each group consists of 7 – 8 respondents
Respondent Criteria & Group Structure
 Responders (1 group, male and female)
 Lapsed Responders (1 group, male and female)
 Non Responders (1 group, male and female)
Note:
 The respondents are recruited from Citibank’s customer list

6. 6
RESEARCH FINDINGS

7. 7
Customers’
Attitude
towards MGM Program

8. 8
‘Responders’ and ‘Lapsed Responders’
 They are similar in terms of their attitude towards the program: they are open and willing to
take the necessary steps to gain the rewards / benefits
 ‘Nothing to lose’, ‘Iseng-iseng berhadiah’
 They are even willing to go the extra mile i.e. filling up the form, get the ID and credit
card photo copied, etc
 Main key trigger: attracted to the rewards being offered
 Barriers for the Lapsed Responders:
 Running out of ‘source for referrals’
 Their friends, their family and their colleagues have already been approached by
them, or they already have a Citibank credit card
 The rewards are not as attractive, or the point requirements are too high
 Subsequently, we also learn that some of them are not aware of the latest program
 To maintain whatever we do for the Responders and improve on things we need to
improve
 As for the Lapsed Responders: to improve on the reward selection and identify why
they are not aware of the latest program.

9. 9
‘Non Responders’
 Among all customers, Non Responders are the toughest segment to deal with
 The barriers are in a lot of aspects:
 “I am not Citibank’s credit card sales person”  a reluctance towards the
perceived status attached with the program
 “Not worth it”  the rewards are not valuable enough
 Don’t want to go through any hassle of:
 Explaining or promoting the card, not to mention that they are not really
aware of the benefits of the cards
 The process – of having to go somewhere i.e. post office to post the
applications
 A lot of people they know are already using Citibank’s credit card
 Character/nature of the person: simply not a talkative person and does not want
to do anything with another person
 We may not be able to make ‘everybody’ join , but we can still do something with the
rest of them in terms of:
 Get their attention and interest by offering attractive rewards/hooks
 Position the program and use approaches such that they don’t feel like they’re
being ‘used’ as a ‘Citibank sales person’
 Make the process simpler and easier for them

10. 10
Evaluation on
MGM Program

11. 11
The Aspects of MGM Program
To evaluate the MGM program, we need to review it in terms of the following:
Awareness The Reward Selection The Physical DM
and e-DM
Working as ‘attention grabber’ and ‘trigger of interest’
 Do they know about the
program?
 Do they actually receive
the DM / e-DM? When?
 Are the rewards
attractive enough?
Worth enough?
 Is the design (i.e. size, shape,
colors, lay out) attractive and
attention grabbing?
The Process and
Information
Keeping The Promise The Product &
Requirements
Working as ‘supporting force’
 Including the info
needed, pick up service,
reminder, benefits for
referrals and alternative
option
 Status update
 The approval
 Do they really get
the reward?
 What are the
advantages/benefits of the
Citibank credit card compared
to others to attract my potential
referrals?
 Do the referrals have to be Non
Users of Citibank credit card?

12. 12
Evaluation on awareness of the program
 Responders:
 The awareness of the program is good  they are
aware of the most current programs and their
rewards, mostly from DM
 They receive the DM quite often
 However, there is a case where the DM is
delivered only one week before the program
expired
 Can’t do anything about it because the
approval process takes around 2 weeks
 Lapsed Responders
 The awareness of the program is quite good, also
mostly from DM, few from e-DM
 However, some of them do not receive the DM as
often as Responders
 Non Responders:
 The level of awareness towards most current
programs and rewards is the poorest among the
three categories
 Although the main source of awareness is DM for
most, they rarely receive the DM
 There appears to be issues in
the delivery of the DM / e-DM
 Need to make sure that the
customers receive it at the
right time e.g. max 1 month
before the program expires

13. 13
Evaluation on Reward Selection
 Reward selection is a very important aspect to trigger interest / intention to join
the program
 For Responders, the current reward selection (i.e. majority gadgets) is already
attractive
 Although, they also want to have a different selection of rewards as a variety
 For Lapsed Responders and especially Non Responders, the reward selection
needs to be very attractive (‘worth it’) to trigger them to join the program
 Something ‘trendy’ and ‘happening’, valuable and usable
 Examples of preferred reward selections:
 Blackberry, notebook, netbook, plasma TV, vacation package to Bali, Lombok or Singapore,
package to Hajj/Umroh, reduction on their credit card billings, free annual fee for certain
amount of years (e.g. 5 or 10 years), shopping voucher, cash, voucher for gasoline, iphone

14. 14
Evaluation on the Reward Selection (Cont’d)
 They also prefer direct rewards (something certain) than the grand prize – as
the chance for the grand prize is smaller
 However, Responders are still attracted to the Grand Prize
 Implication: It is still alright to give and communicate both direct reward and Grand prize
 On the other hand, some respondents across groups (mainly the Lapsed
Responder and Non Responder) think that sometimes the points to get one
reward is too high
 Implication: Citibank may want to consider lowering the points

15. 15
Evaluation on the Physical DM and e-DM
 Across groups, the attention trigger to look at the DM / e-DM is always the rewards
displayed on the front page. If it is not attractive enough, they won’t open the DM
 Implication: we need to make sure that the rewards we display are the ones which are
desired most
 Currently, the overall design is already attractive
 For DM: the size, shape, color, lay out and size of font are already eye catching
 The preferred front design is the
one which has both direct reward
and the grand prize
 The preferred inside layout is the one
which has the same background color,
and a more organised lay out
Grand prize
Grand prize

16. 16
Evaluation on the Physical DM and e-DM
(Cont’d)
 For e-DM:
 The preferred e-DM designs are the ones which have pictures and colors, not too
wordy
 Other issues:
 The term ‘friends’ (as being used currently) is fine  no need to change it

17. 17
Evaluation on the Process and Information
 The information below is preferred to be included in the DM/e-DM:
 The period of the program  should be around 3 months per
program
 The time period to receive the rewards
Information
Needed
Pick-up Service
Reminders
 Currently, very few respondents have this facility
 Respondents from all segments find this very helpful and
convenient
 This will give the Non Responder the ease and convenience to
some extent
 Implication: re-enforce this
 Functions as an awareness enforcer of the MGM program
 However, currently only Responders receive and read it, while
Lapsed and Non Responders do not receive it
 Prefer to receive it through SMS and emails, once or twice per
program period, at any time
 Implication: need to fix this area to ensure all segments are being
reminded

18. 18
Evaluation on the Process and Information (Cont’d)
 Lapsed and Non Responders strongly suggest to offer more benefits
to the referrals (apart from the free 1st year annual fee) this is for
them to be more attracted to the program
 E.g. direct gifts such as dolls, bags, souvenirs, etc
 Higher credit limits also attractive
 Implication: if Citibank want to give this benefit, Citibank need to
get the info on the credit limit of the applicants in the application
form
Benefits for the
Referrals
Alternative
Option:
Give Citibank only
the names and the
contact numbers of
the referrals 
Citibank will follow
up, BUT the
points/rewards will
be lower than the
usual
points/rewards
 The response towards this is mixed across groups:
 Some like it as it provides convenience and ease
 Some are concerned regarding the privacy of the referrals
 Implication:
 Provide this option for those who consider it as helpful
 Ensure Citibank guarantees the privacy of the contacts

19. 19
Evaluation on Keeping the Promise
 Clearly required across groups, as it will give them not only certainty, but also
assurance that Citibank is transparent and not playing ‘tricks’ on them:
 At the initial stage:
 Inform customers that Citibank has received the application and let them
know how long the process will take
 Appreciate by thanking them for joining the program
 For the Non Responders, this would also function as a distinction
between treating them as ‘sales person’ vis-a-vis ‘helpers / partners’
 Inform customers about the status of the applications:
 Which ones are approved and how many points they get
 Which ones are not approved and the reason(s) why
 For the unsuccessful applicants  if possible, inform and
recommend them ways of increasing their success rate
 E.g. may be lacking in terms of the administration, etc
 In some cases, customers refer people whom they think are very eligible and
should have been approved, but they get turned down e.g. their bosses,
etc
 Citibank may need to analyse this aspect as well in the appraisal process
Status
Update on
Referrals
and
Approval
Process

20. 20
Evaluation on Keeping the Promise (Cont’d)
 When it is confirmed that they are approved applicants, Citibank needs
to follow up with the customers to confirm if they have already received
the rewards or not  to avoid disappointment
 As there was a case from a Responder where he was aware that
one of his referrals was approved, but he has not received the
reward yet
Follow up on
Reward Delivery

21. 21
Evaluation on the Product and Requirements
Product
Requirement
 One of the key triggers for referrals to apply is the benefits /
advantages they can get from the card
 Currently, Citibank is strong in terms of image (i.e. prestigious,
aspirational)
 However, it is still perceived as lacking in terms of benefits
compared with other cards e.g. Mandiri with 50% discounts, BCA
with buy 1 get 1 free, HSBC and ANZ with discounts at dining
places, etc
 Implication: Citibank may want to review this area
 One of the requirements is that the referrals should NOT own any
Citibank credit card
 This is found to be a big barrier – especially when customers’
colleagues, friends or families already have a Citibank card
 It may be worth to consider allowing referrals to be existing
Citibank customers – as long as the type of credit card is
different
 E.g. if currently using classic / gold card  may be allowed
to apply for clear card, etc

22. 22
Summary and
Way Forward:

23. 23
Summary and Way Forward
About the Different Segments…
 Need to maintain on what
we are doing to them
 Improve on different
aspects we can improve
such as status update, etc
Responders Lapsed Responders Non Responders
 Improve on the reward
selection
 Make sure they receive
our DM / e-DM
 May need to revisit the
requirement of only non
users of Citibank as the
referrals
 Focusing on attracting
their attention and
interests through attractive
gift selection
 Make sure they receive
our DM / e-DM
 Provide them ease and
convenience
 Approach and positioning
 for them not to feel as
‘salesperson’ and feeling
highly appreciated

24. 24
Summary and Way Forward
Awareness The Reward Selection The Physical DM and e-DM
The Process and Information
Keeping The Promise
The Product &
Requirements
Citibank needs to review and focus on every aspects and take actions accordingly…
 Make sure customers
receive DM / e-DM at the
right time
 Provide other selections than
only gadgets
 Something ‘trendy’ and
‘happening’, valuable and usable
 Make sure the rewards displayed are
the most desired
 Put both direct reward and grand prize
on front of DM
 For s-DM: use design with pictures and
colors, not too wordy
 Give info on period of program as well as
expected time to receive rewards
 Re-enforce on pick-up service
 Make sure we send reminders, 1-2 times
per period, through SMS or emails
 More benefits for referrals: free annual
fee, direct gifts, higher credit limit
 Provide the alternative option of referring
the contacts only
 Confirm that Citibank has receive
the applications, and appreciate
them
 Inform about the status of
applications
 May need to revisit the analysis
system in the appraisal process
 Make sure customers really get
the reward
 Need to revisit on benefits we
offer compare to other cards o
make us more attractive
 May worth to consider to include
Citibank customers in MGM
program

25. 25
Appendix

26. 26
Programs from Other Banks
 Majority of respondents are not really aware of similar programs from
other banks
 Only one respondent recognized a similar program from Bank Permata,
but was not interested to join because he was not interested in the reward
selection
 It tells us that the reason for not joining our program is not because we’re
losing out to the competition in this area, but more because of the
aspects in our current MGM program
 Need to focus on improving / fixing the aspects of our program first,
instead of focusing our attention on programs from other banks

27. 27
DM Designs

28. 28
The Front Designs

29. 29
The Inside Lay Out Designs

30. 30
e-DM Designs

31. 31
E-DM Designs

32. 32
E-DM Designs (Cont’d)

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