Brilliant Banking PR: Not Just Found in NY

The New York banking industry has not cornered the market when it comes to creative marketing and public relations initiatives.

GOOD magazine ran an interesting story recently about Committed Action to Reduce and End Smoking (CARES), a savings program offered by the Green Bank of Caraga in Mindanao, Philippines. Consumers who want to quit smoking open a deposit account with a minimum of one dollar. For the next six months, they make deposits equivalent to the amount of money they would otherwise spend on cigarettes. At the end of the six months, depositors take a urine test to confirm that they haven’t smoked recently. If they pass the test, they get their money back. If they fail, the account is closed and the money is donated to a charity. Research has shown that opening an account increases a would-be non-smoker’s likelihood of success by 53 percent. Not even a nicotine patch has such a high success rate!

This is banking public relations that does well by doing good. It’s the kind of tactic that should be considered from New York to Los Angeles.