Abstract

Australia was the only developed country to avoid a technical recession during the 2008 global financial crisis, but ten years later, Australian banks now must deal with allegations of misconduct which warrants establishing a royal commission into the financial sector. This conceptual paper offers a theoretical and managerial exploration of the implications of the commission's findings on the Australian banks, their marketing and brand crisis management. This paper reviews the literature on trust repair, brand reputation and financial services marketing management to identify relevant research agenda and managerial implications. A series of propositions are put forward towards academic researchers -- to theoretically explore these emerging issues as presented in the research agenda and offer actionable insights and Managers -- to consider the identified managerial agenda as they deal with consequences of the commission's findings which includes trust repair, brand reputation and marketing management. This study had made an initial effort to chart the course for the scholarly understanding of the consequences of the Royal Commission on Australian banks marketing. By this, the academic research community can assist managers in developing effective marketing strategies. Researchers seeking to work on the agendas put forward in this paper would be able to gain links with and possibly attract funding from, banks to conduct their research. There is a shortage of knowledge around this subject, as it is an evolving situation within the Australian financial sector. These conceptual paper raises an agenda to fill the gap in knowledge and provide empirical insight for academic researchers and practitioners.