Standard Life Bank picks chief marketer

Standard Life Bank has promoted its head of bank customer proposition Allison Crawford to sales and marketing director. She replaces David MacMillan, who has become UK retail director.

Crawford, who will now have a place on the board, will oversee all marketing and sales strategies for the bank and will report to chief executive Anne Gunther.

She joined the bank two years ago and was previously head of business technology at financial services company Aegon UK. She is also a former head of marketing at Direct Line Life, a joint venture between the general insurer and Scottish Widows.

Standard Life Bank is one of the four business units that make up Standard Life Group, which won its bid for demutualisation after members voted in favour of the move earlier this year.

The Edinburgh-based group also includes Standard Life Assurance Company, Standard Life Investments and Standard Life Healthcare. The bank was launched in 1998 and entered the UK mortgage market a year later.

Its marketing activity has focused on the Standard Life corporate brand since it appointed Saatchi & Saatchi to handle the demutualisation brief (MW August 11, 2005). Edinburgh-based The Leith Agency had held the bank’s consumer advertising account for a decade.