Australia's Love for ING Stands to Grow as Royal Commission Continues

29 May 2018

New research has revealed Australia's most recommended bank is none other than ING.

Once again, the branchless brand has proven Australians are not looking for the conventional when they are banking. Awarded as Australia’s most recommended banking brand in the 2018 Banking Consumer Loyalty and Recommendation Study, conducted by Engaged Strategy, ING continue to move to new heights.

ING achieved the highest Net Promoter Score of positive 48 per cent, with the second best score of positive 39 per cent belonging to the amalgamated credit unions group. These two scores stood apart from the industry average of positive 12 per cent, which illustrates just how much brands who have a clear and unique value proposition stand to gain over their traditional competitors. What's more is the Big 4 Banks scored an amalgamated NPS of negative 10 per cent, which is likely indicative of their extremely homogenous value propositions. ING, more than any other financial institution, has been able to articulate a clear point of difference and value proposition. That is, it is tailored to Australians who want a direct, branch-less experience and lower fees,” he said.

Engaged Strategy Managing Director, Christopher Roberts, explained that the research suggested that Australians were becoming increasingly comfortable dealing with a bank largely through phone and online channels

Becoming the most recommended brand of the study required ING to perform highly across a number of attributes and average the highest score amongst the competing brands. The study found that ING managed to top overall value, call centres, online services, fees and charges, and returns from investment and interest rates.

In November 2017, ING announced that it would end ATM fees globally, and drop its fees for international transactions made overseas or online. ING's continuous effort to lower fees in every aspect of banking has resonated with customers. Taking such bold steps to minimise fees for its customers has forced the hands of the Big 4 banks to also follow suit, albeit slowly, as they remove atm fees at a national level.

The coming months may also prove extremely fruitful for the people’s favourite ING, as the ongoing Royal Commission continues to uncover more details instilling distrust in the industry’s major players. The amalgamated NPS for the BIG 4 banks was negative 10 per cent when this study was conducted in early 2018. Customers' distrust and dissatisfaction may have plummeted even further as a by-product of the Royal Commission findings.  This may encourage customers to make the switch to a brand with a more trustworthy reputation.

Engaged Strategy conducted the study where more than 1400 Australians were surveyed using the Net Promoter Score framework, in conjunction with customer experience, loyalty and brand metrics.

Nine of Australia's largest banking brands were assessed in this survey, including ANZ, Bankwest, Bendigo Bank, Commonwealth Bank, ING, National Australia Bank, St George, Suncorp, and Westpac. Credit unions were also included in the survey via an amalgamated analysis. The study aims to clearly illustrate its findings in the most meaningful way so firms can make educated decisions to drive positive change initiatives in their organisations.

The full version of the 2018 Banking Consumer Loyalty & Recommendation Study is available within Engaged Strategy’s Intelligent Industry Analytics package.

Engaged Strategy is a strategic consultancy that focusses on helping businesses grow by developing fresh customer, marketing, digital and organisational strategies. Christopher Roberts is an Industry Fellow at the University of Queensland, Australia.

Net Promoter, NPS and Net Promoter Score are trademarks of NICE Satmetrix Systems Inc., Bain & Company and Fred Reichheld.

ENDS