As we enter our 26th year, MKP President and CEO Hillary Kelbick talks about plans for the future and the steps MKP is taking to stay ahead of the curve in bank marketing.

As MKP enters our second quarter-century, what’s at the top of your agenda?

First of all, I want to make sure we stay true to what’s made MKP special for the past 25 years! We’ll still be the boutique, tight-knit, strategic organization our clients count on to come through for them, no matter what. That being said, the world of financial services is changing fast, and we’re already positioning ourselves to be at the forefront of a future that will be more and more dominated by digital delivery channels.

How do you see a digital future impacting MKP?

It won’t change what we do, but it will change how we do it.  

Back in the day, we earned our stripes by taking personalized merger communications to a whole new level. Instead of sending out a generic letter and a brochure, we helped pioneer the process of assembling individual direct mail letters out of an interlocking grid of dozens or even hundreds of copy blocks so customers would get just the information they  need. That’s still a  highly effective technique, by the way, and it’s still a core competency of ours!

But we’re on the cusp of something even bigger and more exciting, and that’s the ability to create personalized digital delivery of this information. We’re already seeing how this has the potential to transform the customer experience through the course of a bank merger, an account change, or even a marketing campaign. Digital experiences have the potential to make communications simpler, more intuitive, more immediate—and more highly targeted to each customer’s needs.

How do you plan to make sure MKP will be leading the way?

We’re attacking it on a couple of different fronts. First of all, we’re convening our senior team on a regular basis to brainstorm the future of our company. It is my hope that MKP’s evolution is a collaborative process.

When it comes to the digital side of the equation, we must ensure we have the right technology, skill sets, and perspectives on hand. For that, we’re bringing in the next generation! I’m excited to share that my son, Maxwell Chalkin, has joined MKP as a Senior Project Manager. He will also be acting as chief digital officer for the company, and helping us chart our digital future.

Max already has significant industry experience on the digital side of bank marketing so he’s the ideal person to assemble the resources we’ll be needing in terms of both personnel and vendor relationships. He will be responsible for making sure we can deliver on all the potential these technologies will offer to our clients.  

So it’s full speed ahead into our second 25, is that right?

You got it!  I want everyone to know that we’re focused not just on the capabilities our clients need today, but on the competencies they’ll want from us tomorrow. That’s what will help us thrive for the next 25 years. I can’t wait to see what our future has in store at MKP!

MKP communications inc. is a New York City-based communications company that delivers spot-on strategy, smart, fresh creative, and flawless execution, exclusively for financial services clients.