The passing of rock n’ roll legend David Bowie earlier this year at 69 may seem to have as much in common with the pinstriped, buttoned-down world of bank marketing as a peacock in a flock of pigeons.
But bankers can learn a thing or two from Ziggy Stardust and Bowie’s various other rock incarnations:
Consider:
- Branding: Before the world even knew a David Bowie, or used the term branding, Bowie was ahead of the curve. Born to the world as David Jones, Bowie became a rocker in Britain about the same time another Englishman, Davy Jones, was making a splash in popular culture as part of The Monkees. In order to avoid confusion, Bowie changed his name. He wanted to set himself apart. Don’t panic. This doesn’t mean that your bank has to rush out and invest in new naming and signage. But what it does say is that you should do things technologically and in other ways to set your bank apart from the herd. Bowie did it in the whirlwind of rock’s British Invasion. American community banking is in the teeth of a FinTech storm. It’s time to adapt, and create your own unique identity.
- Embrace the Ch-ch-changes: Bowie’s success blossomed through flexibility – Techno-pop to Glam Rock, from Bowie to Ziggy to The Thin White Duke, Bowie’s stage personae were rocking examples of how to handle and flourish with changing times and tastes. He took it miles further, performing with a range of artists from Brian Eno to Mick Jagger to Bing Crosby, Tina Turner to Iggy Pop. He paid homage to heavy metal and to Motown. He did Broadway. He made movies. He appeared on TV and embraced the MTV generation. Few entertainers – Crosby and Sinatra were but two – have done so much so well across multiple platforms. The lesson here? Be flexible; technology is forcing banks to be that way.
- Assess your team’s creative ability, internally and externally: This may seem a bit redundant, but Bowie, ever the artist, understood the power of assessing and using the talents of those around him, in his bands and from other performers. From a banking perspective, understand the strengths of your team members and see the value of partnerships, even with entities that may seem at first glance to not be a great fit. Remember the Bowie-Crosby performance of “The Little Drummer Boy”? It may have seemed odd at the time, but the two legends made it work with poignancy and warmth. Today, that song is a Christmas pop standard.
- Be fearless: A funny quote attributed to Bowie says something about his fearlessness, his unabashed courage to change his image in his own way, eschewing the cookie-cutter temptation:
“I’ve reinvented my image so many times that I’m in denial that I was originally an overweight Korean woman.” There’s a fearlessness in that. Together with your stakeholders, develop a fearless strategy to communicate with and serve your internal and external customers.
And last, communicate creatively: This was at the heart of Bowie’s work to the very end. Think about the tune “Lazarus,” grounded in the New Testament story of the man Jesus raised from the dead. For many of his fans, the album “Blackstar” and the tune, “Lazarus” were like a going-away present, a portent of his passing. The challenge for bankers is to communicate with creativity. Doing so will ensure that your bank – like Bowie — won’t be forgotten. After all, as he said, “I’m an instant star, just add water.”
