@Mike I definitely see your points, and I agree that most companies (especially those with a marketing staff of 1) have to pick their battles–there’s just too much to do for one person, so they have to be selective. While we probably won’t be able to change that reality, what I hope to do is to change the mentality around this approach to bank marketing. In other words, I would consider it progress if that original question were stated: “I know I should use this holiday promo as a chance to reflect my specific brand, but I’m out of time and resources–can anyone suggest great ideas you’ve found successful?”

In other words, I hope we can together teach them to first think strategically about their brand, even if in the end they have to do something generic. My experience, though, is that they’re not thinking strategically about their brand first–they’re just going directly to copy-cat mode.

:)

Jeff S - I’m absolutely ok with the “question everything” approach. I just think that most marketers could make much more productive use of their time by questioning the more important things. The phrase “pick your battles” comes to mind - when everything else is going so well that you can really worry about holiday decorations and your newsletter then have at it!

Above all, I just advocate for a “question everything” mentality. Even though at the end of the day, you may still choose to do traditional decorations (and that’s OK), I believe the thought process of questioning it is a healthy one that will make a bank or CU stronger.