The cautious fiscal environment globally took a toll on the regional banks, as 2015 closed on a glum note.

That, and the fact that people have grown increasingly skeptical towards banking communication, meant we had our work cut out in terms of achieving our targets in the upcoming year.

People make majority of their financial decisions at the beginning of the year. By starting the year with an idea that created national buzz; we had won half the battle. HSBC had quickly caught people's attention and created a receptive mindset, which lead to steep increase in online leads.

This idea was implemented in the wee hours of the 1st of January, while the city and other brands were still asleep. We set up 16 billboards across parks jogging track and beaches of the city that held a surprise for the first one's who saw them. They stayed there till the first one's came along and claimed their rewards. In the coming days, we posted the video of this initiative online, where it got millions of views and was well received. Thereby, we cemented ourselves firmly in the consideration set for people's financial plans, both short and long term.

1)1.3 millions views in 5 days after video was posted 2) 10k+ shares 3) View rate more than twice the industry standard 4) Facebook fan base up by 30% 5) Most shared HSBC content video ever 6) Online leads for personal loans up by 16% and credits cards by 23% 7) Targets achieved: 86% new customers acquisitions, 112% personal loans, 90% credit cards 8) A wave of positive comments and responses.