How to Build a Successful Fintech Marketing Strategy

Traditional banks and financial institutions were quick to adopt digital marketing strategies.  Fintechs operate on tech’s leading-edge and should be ahead in the marketing game, but that is not always the case.

Many new companies miss out on the fundamentals of a solid Fintech marketing strategy.

In this article, we’ll highlight the 5 most prominent trends in Fintech marketing strategies and review 10 focus areas that will help you boost traffic, increase conversion, and help your business grow.

5 Prominent Trends in Fintech marketing strategies

You need access to a lot of data, which should also be granular enough for you to identify and react to the needs of the unique target group. The fundamentals of Fintech marketing are to

●  Optimize your data

●  Evaluate consumers and their buying patterns

●  Predict their interests, and

●  Send them the right message at the right time.

1.   Personalization is the Holy Grail of Fintech Marketing

If you want to grab attention or build relationships, you must be able to create solid and personalized messages that speak to the customer. The message must be delivered at the optimum time – almost seeming to answer a question he’s been meaning to ask. If you need proof of the success of this strategy, look no further than Amazon.

2.   A Multi-channel and Omni-channel approach multiplies your data

The very nature of Fintech is digital and tech-first, which means there are many channels where you can and should be active. Yet, conventional digital marketing wisdom dictates that you should concentrate on just one or two platforms!

That conventional approach dilutes the integral message of Fintech. Fintech is everywhere, is accessible via multiple channels, and can be used in innovative ways to solve annoying everyday problems.

Fintech companies should use multiple interaction channels. Think direct messaging, in-store displays, video, mobile, chat apps, gamification, and social media, to name a few. This broad exposure will add more data points and give more useful results when using sophisticated predictive analytics.

3.   Beware the Cookie Gap

Over 75% of finance marketers still rely on third-party cookie data, and they sometimes spend huge amounts to buy non-optimal data to fill in the gaps. 

DMPs (Data management platforms) collect anonymous consumer data via third-party cookies. It’s an excellent tool for developing campaigns on a broad scale but cannot be used for personalization. Also, the phasing-out of cookies means that marketers who rely on third-party cookies will soon be at a distinct disadvantage.

4.   Continuous Progress in Analytics Platforms and Identity Management tools

No matter how much data you have, you’ll be stumped if you cannot exchange and integrate data between the channels where the data originates from. You need a system to match name-based (PII) data to the data from ID-based sources to build comprehensive customer profiles.

New technologies, data solutions, and analytics platforms are entering the marketing scene quickly. Your system should be flexible enough to incorporate more efficient technology as it becomes available.

●  CRMs (Customer relationship management platforms):

CRMs manually connect and structure customer data from various sources. You can develop comprehensive customer profiles individually, even in real-time. But reacting to customers isn’t enough. CRMs are not infinitely scalable and cannot match the level of personalization provided by CDPs.

●  CDPs (Customer data platforms)

CDPs collect both first- and third-party customer data from multiple channels and different devices and then combine it into a single-view customer profile. The aim is to anticipate and predict consumer journeys from various data signals and indicators.

5.   Marketers are prime targets for hackers

Recent data breaches via marketing companies include:

●  126 million Americans whose data was exposed by B2B marketing company OneMoreLead,

●  100 million records via the German B2B marketing company Leadhunter, and

●  200 million records were exposed via the Chinese digital marketing start-up Socialarks.

A data breach could spell the end of a marketing company. It doesn’t matter if the data did not contain sensitive information such as credit card numbers or contact information. A data breach will damage your reputation and may cost you a fortune in financial claims against you or your company.

Marketers are obvious individuals active on social media and have detailed information on LinkedIn. They purchase a lot of technology, operate in the cloud, and receive hundreds of contact requests and messages every day. They are prime targets for phishing and spear-phishing campaigns.

Marketers should always use privacy-focused software and browsers and tools such as a VPN (https://nordvpn.com/download/) to protect their biggest asset: their database.

10 tools to focus on to bring customers home

The financial sector operates on trust. Empowering your customers with knowledge is a winning approach that will raise brand awareness and provide social proof at the same time.

1.   Mobile-friendly web pages

It bears repeating that Fintech companies are at the forefront of technological advancements. Their websites must reflect that fact. A website optimized for digital interaction is a smart investment.

2.   Educate your users with valuable content

A successful Fintech marketing strategy educates its target audience in a unique, funny, and compelling way. Depending on your niche, you may have to cover topics that have been done to death. Always look for a fresh angle, and create original content to explain why your solution or product is better than the rest.

3.   Omni- or multiple engagement channels multiplies your data

Take the best elements of a traditional marketing strategy and apply them to multiple channels. It will broaden your target demographic without much extra effort or creative energy. Digital advertising, email marketing, and content marketing are the basic building blocks of a Fintech marketing strategy.

4.   Search engine optimization (SEO)

Content marketing is effective, so the competition for ranked content can be brutal. Invest in SEO training, and always abide by the basic SEO principles such as the correct use of keywords and key phrases.

5.   Call to action or a directed purpose

Readers should come away from your contact with the feeling that they’ve gained something. It may be an answer to a question, a solution to a problem, or knowledge about how to take the next step to cope with a personal situation.

6.   Informative content should be available in a variety of formats

Create a core library of high-quality videos, articles, how-to guides, checklists, PDF downloads, interactive questionnaires, games, and podcasts that you can adapt and use across multiple channels.

7.   Automate as much as you can

Humans are the creative driving force in marketing. Don’t squander their energy.  Once you’ve identified your goals, e.g., increasing brand awareness or app downloads, use marketing automation and other CRM tools to track sales or campaign metrics.

8.   Re-examine your data for new angles

Use your data to find new sales opportunities for existing customers. Almost 90% of Americans use mobile payment apps, but only around 19% use them every day.  For example, you could increase the daily use of your app by adding a useful feature or using in-app marketing to cross-sell a different offering.

9.   Incentivize customers

People love freebies. Focus on designing a long-term program that offers cumulative benefits. You could build partnerships with other brands and offer referral bonuses, loyalty points, cash-back offers, etc.

10.             Gamification to improve user experience

An increasingly younger target audience means that some form of entertainment will beat a jargon-heavy website or app at any time. Fortune City is an excellent example. It’s an app that helps people keep track of personal expenses but has gained millions of users by incorporating elements of a virtual town that grows with every use.

A Final Reminder: You Are Dealing With Sensitive Data

A savvy marketer with a good Fintech marketing strategy can change the lives of their customers for the better. The other side of the coin is that Fintech marketers delve deeply into millions of users’ private and sensitive data. Fintech marketers have a duty of care to protect that data.

It’s good to collaborate with your IT department or security specialists. Let them examine prospective platforms, tools, or incoming data for potential security risks.