Like every business around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has presented a huge challenge to HSBC UK.
Its branch network was inaccessible and later had to stick to rigid hygiene protocols. Use of its digital services and contactless payments were rising. And it had a significant communication challenge – how to be there for customers without falling into the “virtue signalling” trap of other brands.
HSBC UK had access to a huge amount of research, data and insight about the pandemic’s impact on consumers in the UK. In an ideal world, the Insight team would have pulled all this data together themselves. But, while the team had the capability, they didn’t have the capacity.
Against a tight deadline, HSBC UK brought us in to synthesise 22 different reports, from primary market research to spend and savings data. Our short, impactful report delivered just the key messages and what they meant for the brand, messaging and content strategies, as well as product and channel. We worked with the Insight team throughout to make our findings as relevant to the business as possible.
We’ve since re-run our synthesis to understand the impact of UK’s second lockdown in November and we hope to do so again in 2021.