Mumbai, June 21: HSBC is cheering the results of the `I Cheer For India' promotion it launched for the 1999 World Cup. ``The result of the promotion has exceeded our expectations by 30 per cent,'' says HSBC senior manager personal banking and cards, Richard JO Cromwell. Going by the response to the promotion, Cromwell said, HSBC has extended the promotion date till June 30.HSBC had projected a double-digit growth in credit card issuance at the end of the World Cup promotion. While Cromwell said that HSBC has received a ``good response'' for the promotion, no figures were revealed to substantiate the statement.
The purpose of the `I Cheer For India' promotion, in addition to raising the awareness level of HSBC cards, was to increase card-spends and the consumer base for the card. The current consumer base for HSBC cards is over two lakh cardholders. The offer has been extended despite the fact that the `I Cheer For India' badges, posters and ads were withdrawn after India lost its chance for the WorldCup. However, this did not hamper the response to the promotion, Cromwell said.
The `I Cheer For India' campaign was kicked off in February 1999 and was to go on till June 15. Besides press ads to promote the contest, HSBC had roped in celebrities like film stars for the television commercial. The main attraction of the `I Cheer For India' promotion was a ticket to the World Cup. The route: either by introducing new cardmembers to HSBC or by spending more on the HSBC credit card.
Other prizes included a BPL refrigerator, a ready-to-use mobile phone, a Sony cordless phone, a vacuum cleaner, among others. Further, the new members referred to HSBC would enjoy special benefits like a complete waiver of the joining fee. While the mega-prize of going to the World Cup does not feature in the extended promotion for the obvious reason that the World Cup has come to an end, the other prizes mentioned in the original promotion remain.
The extended promotion screams `You can still win big with HSBC Credit Cards!'in a direct mailer to existing consumers.
The consumer-offer's draw of winning a number of prizes on spending Rs 5,000 till June 15, has also been extended up to June 30.
HSBC stands fifth in terms of issuing cards, while Citibank is the leader. HSBC plans to touch the five lakh cardholder mark by 2001. The bank has a market share of around 10-12 per cent in the two million credit cardmarket.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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