Brand tracking with purpose

Consorsbank is reviving its brand with quarterly tracking

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A brand of BNP Paribas

Sector

Financial sevices

Facts & Figures

Nuremberg, Germany

Established

1994

Product used

GfK Brand Tracking

We turned to GfK to revitalize our brand tracking, moving to a customized quarterly platform that allows us to add questions each wave. This independent intelligence has given us fresh insight into our brand performance and a new emphasis on strengthening it.”

Marina Hofmann

Senior Expert B2C Performance Management, Consorsbank

Consorsbank is a digital bank based in Germany offering a range of services including current accounts, savings and online trading. Founded as Consors in 1994 and based in Nuremberg, it was rebranded to Cortal Consors and then to Consorsbank in 2014.

Reinvesting in the brand

Historically, the bank had focused on the mainstay of its investment business and the brand had taken a backseat. Known as a specialist in online trading, Consorsbank benefitted from a surge of investment interest and activity during the pandemic lockdowns of 2020 and 2021. The battle for customers had always been highly competitive and with annual tracking showing that brand awareness could be improved, there was a need to revive the brand and monitor its progress. In 2023, the B2C Performance Management team organized a competitive pitch and chose GfK as its research partner.

The team at GfK is respectful, reliable and responsive. They work in close collaboration with us to find the right solutions, regardless of the scale of the challenge. This is an open and pragmatic way of working that we value for our brand and our business.”

Marina Hofmann

Senior Expert B2C Performance Management, Consorsbank

A brand tracker for a new era

The team at GfK developed a customized brand tracking program to help Consorsbank understand its current position and plan for the future. KPIs cover various topics, from communications to competitors and many areas in between. Due to the different customer groups, the sample needed to be large enough to cover the company’s product portfolio in a meaningful way, while remaining within budget. The heaviest users of the tracker include the marketing team which benefits from the ability to add ad hoc questions to the survey which ensures it remains relevant to current campaigns.

Embedding the brand across the business

By sharing independent and objective metrics on brand performance, a new sense of emphasis and purpose has been shared across all departments. Some teams such as marketing, advertising, and communications use the tracker on a weekly and fortnightly basis, others less frequently, but all now appreciate its value and the importance of investing in the brand. The C-Suite uses it to monitor progress on KPIs and plan future strategy.

Working together

Although Consorsbank and GfK have a relatively new working relationship of one year, it has developed into a trusted, honest, and efficient cooperation. The team wanted a research partner who would challenge them and be open when discussing the impact of changes – they have that in GfK.