Although long overdue, now may be the time to buy Citigroup.

Gone are the strategically unsound commercials from Citi where thirty-something mountain bikers without bikes descend down gravel mountain-sides only to land in their face.

Those misguided commercials are now replaced and finally on-target where Citi helps create opportunity and gripping inspiration for small and medium-sized businesses.

The new commercials provide a compass for Citi’s employee base to remind them which customer’s are important, and what Citi’s focus is.

It only took wasting several hundred million dollars in ads and media to get it right (I would have been more demanding the first round), but the commercials which act as a consumer and employee compass, is finally pointing in the right direction.

And as I drove by a Citi location, the sign was new, crisp, inspired confidence and innovation.

With a full-sweep of layoffs and write-downs, Citi is leaner and likely more driven.

CEO Chuck Prince hasn’t done much for the stock in the past several years (flat while Goldman Sachs grew 200%+) but America is the land of second chances, and his might be ripe for the picking.

Six months ago I wouldn’t touch Citi with a ten-foot pole.

But today, it’s worth a look. I’m watching.

Mark Hughes is a professional speaker, consultant, and author of the book Buzzmarketing: Get People to Talk About Your Stuff (Penguin/Portfolio).

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