During the development stage of my project, I wanted to gain a strong understanding of the key factors that contribute to making a bank's brand identity appealing to a specific group of users, which in this case is the young individuals between the ages of 16 and 25. This research will help me understand how existing banking brands have strategically positioned themselves in the market, focusing on their approach to balancing and integrating both online and traditional banking methods. To enhance my understanding, I decided it would be highly beneficial to conduct analysis of current modern day banking brands and carefully examine how they craft and adapt their branding strategies, marketing approaches, and service offerings to connect with and meet the unique needs and preferences of their younger .

Analysing bank brands:

I researched various banks to better understand today's banking landscape, basing my selection on personal experience as a customer and each bank's market presence. I focused on how these institutions carry out their strategic goals, particularly how they balance digital innovation with traditional banking services. I paid special attention to how banks have adapted their offerings for younger customers and evaluated how effectively they serve this demographic. This research helped me understand both their market position and how their services appeal to young account holders in our fast-changing financial world.

Chase:

Chase is one of the largest consumer banks in the United States, operated primarily by JPMorgan Chase. The bank offers a wide range of financial services, including personal banking, loans, and investments. Their clear goal is to provide convenient and secure banking services while focusing on financial growth. Chase provides both online and traditional banking services, which include:

• Online - A well developed and easy to use mobile banking app which I also currently use and find it to be very simple to navigate and includes necessary features such as mobile check deposits and various budgeting tools, all of which are deemed useful especially to those of a younger generation who may not know how to just yet.
• Traditional - Across the US, Chase have a vast network of bank branches and ATMs for users to interact with ensuring easy and local access to in-person banking. I personally haven’t been to one of these in person however they provide the qualities that a more older audience may prefer especially when it comes to depositing or collecting larger sums of money.

With this in mind, I believe that Chase Bank are very suitable towards a younger audience as upon research, I was also able to find out that they offer student friendly accounts for those wanting to balance their funds more effectively and see what is coming and going. Their mobile app is also very accessible and provides budgeting features as well as credit building options which are great for younger people wanting to be more responsible with their money.

Revolut:

Revolut is a fintech banking institution that has revolutionised the financial services landscape by offering online digital banking options. Their services primarily focus on facilitating global transactions across multiple currencies, providing crypto and and investment opportunities, and delivering beneficial money management tools. As an whole, Revolut has positioned itself at the front of banking innovation, with a clear mission to fundamentally transform the traditional banking experience by providing a completely digital platform for users to bank with.

• online - Revolut is a purely digital banking service that operates entirely online. Its feature-rich mobile app enables users of all ages to connect globally, sending and receiving money across different currencies and accounts. I frequently use Revolut, especially during holidays, as it's highly convenient for managing money whether it involves transferring funds or receiving additional money from family members when needed.
• Traditional - Since Revolut is exclusively an online digital banking service, there are no physical branches for customers to visit. To compensate, they offer 24/7 customer support and financial tools to assist users. However, from my experience, these support services can be slow to respond—something that younger users may find frustrating and inconvenient.

Revolut is particularly user-friendly for younger audiences, especially with its fee-free foreign transactions. This allows users like myself to transfer money while traveling abroad without incurring charges. The app also offers instant transfers and cryptocurrency trading options.

Monzo:

Monzo was established in 2015 and represents a modern evolution in UK digital banking, following a similar operational model to Revolut but with its own unique approach to banking services. As one of the main banking platforms in the United Kingdom, they have developed their services around a mobile-centric strategy that focuses on accessibility and user experience. They aim to change how their users interact with their finances by making the entire banking experience straightforward, completely transparent in all operations, and deeply focused on addressing customer needs and preferences.

• Online - Similar to Revolut, Monzo is classed as a digital only banking service however provides a sleek and intuitive mobile banking app to support this which includes real time spending insights. I don’t personally use Monzo as they are quite similar to other current bank brands and as well as this, I dislike some of the services they provide as most come at a lower rate compared to others.
• Traditional - Like other current digital only banks, Monzo provides no physical bank branches for its users to attend and instead focuses more on a robust online customer support beacon for those requiring system both online and through their mobile app. Similar to Revolut, these online support services can sometimes cause time management and connection issues to users who may be in urgent need of assistance or facing issues they cannot resolve themselves.