Utilizing Partnerships to Test Emerging Market Strategies: A Case Study of H&R Block Initiatives in Five Cities

This paper describes the partnership between a financial firm, H&R Block, and a variety of public and nonprofit entities around United States to reach the unbanked. It:

• Explains the reasons for Block and its partners working together;
• Provides an overview of goals and negotiation tactics;
• Discusses the business case and marketing strategies.

The paper outlines the following challenges faced by the partners while implementing the program:

• Marketing the product - the messages were either confusing or ineffective for clients;
• Participants needed to work out several process related twists;
• Lack of coordination between franchise model as compared to Block's centralized structure;
• Certain partners faced unique challenges related to political concerns.

The paper offers an evaluation of the program after completion of the first year of partnerships. It sums up the partners' views of the success of the partnerships in the first year and highlights that Block staff found the partnerships moderately successful in:

• Attracting new customers;
• Retaining current customers;
• Creating values for customers.

The paper concludes with the following lessons for parties wishing to enter into a partnership strategy:

• Partners need to build trust and try to speak the same language;
• They require well-designed systems;
• The industry needs market research on the lower-income segment's financial services preferences and behaviors;
• Financial services companies can create market tests for designing programs to reach lower-income customers.