28 February 2007
A successful campaign which sees new customers being rewarded £100 for switching their current accounts to the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is due to be rolled out across England this week.
Having triumphed in the initial Scotland trials, held between May and August and October and December last year, the 'switcher' campaign is due to head south of the border this week, starting with a TV advertising campaign in the Granada area.
Woolly farm-yard animals are the main focal point of RBS's adverts with the bank keen to give the impression that unlike other high street current account holders, it won't treat its customers like sheep.
"When we tested the switcher campaign in Scotland last year, we saw the number of new accounts increase by anything up to 300%," said Chief Executive of RBS, Gordon Pell. He added that there were a whole host of sheep-themed adverts in the hope that customers would "flock in".
Getting straight to the point, Mr Pell told the Scotsman: "We're in the business of competing brands. If someone isn't happy at NatWest, I'd rather tip them over the edge and encourage them to come to RBS than see them go to Lloyds TSB or Barclays.
"We think the current account market in England and Wales is more fluid than Scotland and people are willing to be mobile."