The customer relationship marketing (CRM) firm, Merkle (www.merkle.com), which is the nation’s largest privately-held agency, announces continued momentum in the advancement of its retail banking and consumer finance sector. With 2011 revenue growth of 25% over 2010, three large new client wins in the fourth quarter, and further expansion of its industry-focused strategy and analytics teams, Merkle continues to demonstrate its commitment to the financial services industry.
Closing 2011 strong, Merkle earned contracts with three major consumer financial institutions, as database marketing agency for a top ten retail bank; agency of record for a super-regional credit card portfolio; and service provider for another leading super-regional bank’s digital household acquisition program. These relationships span Merkle’s full spectrum of services, including strategic consulting, advanced analytics, program management, data, technology, creative and multimedia deployment.
In support of this significant growth, Merkle’s team of industry-focused strategic and analytical consultants is also expanding. The company has hired Bruce Purple as senior director, retail bank marketing strategy and Aman Sokhi as senior director, quantitative strategy.
Purple joins Merkle from Acxiom, where he was the strategy lead for the company’s retail bank marketing group. Previously during his 30-year career, he held the posts of chief retail banking officer and chief marketing officer for Beneficial National Bank. Sokhi brings more than 14 years of experience in quantitative strategy and advanced analytics for the financial services sector. He joins Merkle from Bank of America, where he was senior vice president in roles that spanned several capacities including risk, product marketing, portfolio strategy, customer retention, finance, credit operations and customer portfolio analysis.
“The banking market continues to be volatile, challenging marketers with shifting product strategies and evolving revenue models,” said Will Bordelon, general manager of Merkle’s retail banking and consumer finance practice. “Our clients are seeking to achieve more with less, to quantify the return on their online and offline media spend, and to align product marketing activities to customer needs and value. We’re excited to work with these innovative new clients and to further expand our dedicated industry strategic and analytical consulting teams with Bruce and Aman.”
