Sujay Rachh, Chief Marketing Officer, Nuvama Group on how the company is transforming the Wealth Management space.
Nuvama, an integrated wealth management firm, unveiled its latest campaign, “Let’s Do It Right,” a bold and captivating endeavor centered around ethical and engaging work practices using the metaphor of a chameleon, a tortoise, and a parrot.
With unwavering commitment, the campaign passionately conveys the message of prioritizing clients’ interests and ensuring responsible management of their wealth. Furthermore, it introduces the world to Nuvama, formerly known as Edelweiss Wealth Management, while emphasizing its renewed purpose and dedication to meeting customer needs.
ET Edge Insights caught up with Nuvama Group Chief Marketing Officer Sujay Rachh to find how, through this compelling narrative, Nuvama seeks to forge lasting customer connections and foster trust, affirming its steadfast commitment to ethical excellence in the realm of wealth management. Excerpts:
Q. As CMO, how are you listening and responding to the needs of your diverse set of customers, right from affluent to UHNI (Ultra High Net Worth Individual) customers?
We have a diverse set of customers, and we are the only ones in the country catering to the mass affluent segment, who invest INR 25 lakh upwards to up to INR five crore. This segment is also our target audience. Additionally, when it comes to wealth, the immediate association is with the HNI (High Net Worth Individual) and UHNI (Ultra High Net Worth Individual) categories, which represent the top of the pyramid. Furthermore, we have an Asset Management business that works towards our goals. Additionally, we have our legacy business (the Capital Markets business) encompassing various services like equities, etc.
All these customers are diverse. The only way any organization can survive is by making customer-centric decisions, especially considering the ongoing disruptions and the emergence of niche markets.
For instance, who would have imagined that there would be separate credit card companies that are not banks, or non-banking finance companies providing personal loans? Niches are being carved out, and technology is rapidly transforming the entire BFSI segment. If we fail to prioritize customers, it will lead to chaos.
Q. Can you share an example of how you are working to gain customer insights that matter?
We conduct qualitative research with external clients. This research helps us gain insights into industry trends, emerging needs, and the overall pulse of the market. Through this process, we have recognized that many clients, particularly affluent, believe that when meeting with a wealth or relationship manager, the focus is solely on providing solutions that benefit the manager’s interests rather than the interest of customers. While this perception exists, it’s not the norm.
Our transformation has been largely influenced by valuable input from our marketing department. We conduct comprehensive studies to collect insights from both our existing and potential clients. These insights are thoroughly analysed and considered when making decisions. Our goal is to adapt and align our direction with the preferences and requirements of our clients. Marketing plays a vital role in ensuring that our business progresses in a manner that benefits our customers.
Q. What has been the result or outcome of these findings?
As a result of this study, we have completely revamped our approach to serving the affluent segment, shifting away from a product-centric model. Our focus now lies in guiding consumers to analyse their existing portfolios and assess their journey towards financial goals. Instead of solely promoting new products, we prioritize evaluating and monitoring their portfolio and its performance.
This involves remodelling the basis of a portfolio-based strategy. We analyse our customers’ portfolios, assess their performance, and then recommend the appropriate investment products that align with their specific needs. We no longer prioritize pushing new products. Even if a particular product is not generating significant profits for us, but, if it benefits the client and makes sense for their portfolio, we provide advisory services and support their investment decisions. We aim to help clients enhance the performance of their portfolios and achieve their financial objectives.
For example, customers may not realize that only 20% of their portfolio is performing well, while the remaining 80% is underperforming. In such cases, instead of suggesting the purchase of new products, we focus on fixing the underperforming portion of the portfolio to ensure compounding returns.
All these insights emerged from the study, highlighting a significant gap in clients’ understanding of their portfolio performance. Consequently, we remodelled our entire affluent business to address this gap and guide clients towards a more holistic and optimized portfolio approach.
Q. Have you also used these insights to restructure or relook at your internal processes?
Absolutely. We not only focused on our client approach but also reviewed our internal processes. This includes how we monitor and incentivize our relationship managers (RMs). While we keep track of monthly numbers, we have shifted away from solely pressuring RMs to meet those targets. Instead, we have created an environment that eases the pressure on RMs and allows them to focus on providing sound advice to clients rather than pushing for sales to meet their numbers.
Q. Your “Let’s Do It Right” campaign has garnered a lot of interest and praise. What was the idea behind this campaign?
We realized that people either trust you or they don’t. We aimed to position ourselves as a trustworthy organization. Therefore, we took the opportunity to convey our conduct and values through the phrase “Let’s Do It Right.”
This phrase captured our genuine intent to prioritize our clients’ interests and conduct our business with integrity. It resonated with our audience as it demonstrated our focus on trust and the responsible management of their financial assets.
Our marketing efforts were aimed at effectively communicating our purpose and values, ensuring that our audience understood the essence of our brand beyond a simple name change.
Banks are often at the forefront, actively promoting their products and services. Following banks, the focus usually shifts to insurance companies, mutual funds, and industry associations. These entities collectively shape the landscape of the BFSI category.
For us to be heard, valued, and recognized, we had to punch above our weight. We had to speak about something that is different, disruptive, and distinct from what is commonly seen in the market. Many narratives in the market revolve around emotions and promises like “we will always be with you” or “trust us, we won’t let you down.”
However, trust is not something that can be demanded from people. It can only be earned through performance and actions that benefit them. This realization led to the development of our campaign, where we emphasized the importance of purpose and execution. We used the metaphor of a chameleon, a tortoise, and a parrot to convey the industry sentiment and highlight that we will consistently do what is right for the customer. That’s how the “Let’s Do It Right” campaign was born.
We recognized that simply announcing our transition to a new name, Nuvama, without any context or purpose would be a waste of our marketing efforts. We understood the importance of effectively communicating our brand’s identity and values to our target audience. Rather than focusing solely on the name change, we wanted to convey our purpose and what sets us apart in the market.
Therefore, we took the opportunity to convey our conduct and values through the phrase “Let’s Do It Right.” This phrase captured our genuine intent to prioritize our clients’ interests and conduct our business with integrity.
