As RBS's senior execs, past and present, drag the brand inexorably and evidently inextricably deeper into the mire of self-destruction, I can't help wondering if anyone over there at Gogarburn HQ (built, incidentally, on the site of an old asylum) is thinking about the future. Probably not..... and understandably so. However, I'm sure like me you've noticed the hugely paradoxical advertising and sponsorship omnipresence, that sees the RBS brand and message seemingly adorning every other surface and screen one happens to glance at. I think 'hollow' is the word that springs to mind. And there's probably no way back for RBS - it's become a watchword for incompetence, and not one you'd choose as a startpoint for your marketing, especially in finance, where consumer confidence in the brand underpins every transaction. So what to do? My suggestion is get the hell out of there, ASAP. They still own good old NatWest - a brand that's established, trusted and - critically - unsullied. (I love them - they even provide left-handed chequebooks.) If I were them, I'd be thinking about changing horses (although apologies if that's a metaphor that conjures up Lloyds). Rearing at the waters of the Rubicon, it's time to take the plunge and swim for the far bank... dare I say the 'west' bank?
