Are you struggling to identify and predict the direction of marketing trends in FinTech, an industry growing at lightning speed? Just as financial technology disrupts the traditional realm of financial services, old marketing tactics will also become obsolete if they have not already.
Over the past six years, different players in the financial industry have been actively discussing the disruptions that might be brought about by FinTech’s rapid growth. FinTech presents innovative alternatives to traditional financial services that are attracting a vast number of customers around the globe.
Like an elderly person set in their ways, the financial industry leaders were unwilling to change and their participation in the discussion involving FinTech primarily consisted of complaining and propagating scarcity.
However, lately they are realizing that the revolution is inevitable. Their shell began to break as they started to understand the necessity and potential of implementing new technology, not only in terms of customer experience but also regarding cost efficiency and security means as well.
Moreover, they realized that if they didn’t adapt, their survival would be severely threatened. Now big corporations and financial institutions are starting to invest in FinTech. Currently, huge banks like Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, and CitiGroup are the biggest FinTech investors in the world.
The numbers speak for themselves. Around 88% of financial institutions believe that FinTech companies will appropriate parts of their business within the next five years. At the same time, over 46% of people are already using digital channels only to manage their financial needs.
Almost all major fields in the financial service industry are experiencing significant changes. This includes banking, loans, electronic payments, investing and wealth management, insurance, and more.
Banking is one of the most affected sectors. Users are growing accustomed to exclusive digital banking and the time of queuing in branches is rapidly coming to an end.
Modern digital-only banks like Revolut, Monzo, Chime, and Digibank are just a few of the dozens of emerging FinTechs providing banking services. The convenience of using their online services eliminates the need for filling in tons of paperwork, and spending your precious time waiting at a physical location.
You can quickly and easily change your pin, review your balance, do expense management, as well as send and receive payments, all with just a few clicks on your mobile device.
Furthermore, some of these apps provide services that are not offered by traditional banks. Instant interbank rate currency exchange, the swift creation of customized invoices, effortless stock investment, cryptocurrencies, and other trading features are widely adopted by FinTech banking companies.
Since FinTech has already surpassed its initial stages, some changes will begin to occur in its marketing strategies. Innovators and early adopters are not the only FinTech client base any longer. The focus is now shifting from the product of the company to the needs of the customer.
Because of this, it is essential that FinTech companies build various buyer personas and segment their different clients into groups. Successfully achieving this will ensure that they provide superior service quality, allowing them to concentrate their development effort on the correct product.
Above all, building buyer personas will help FinTech startupsalign their marketing content and messaging with the specific behaviors, desires, and concerns of different consumer groups.
This will lay the foundation for the marketing trends that are expected to emerge in 2024 for the entire industry. Undoubtedly, we live in interesting times and the latest pandemic has necessitated the adoption of technology in the financial services sector.
According to recent research, the coronavirus drove a 72% rise in the use of FinTech apps in Europe alone. What this means, is that the necessity to market these types of products and services, is more important now than ever before.
This is not only due to the opportunity for exponential growth in this area, but also because these apps are exceedingly useful. They can substitute face-to-face transactional interactions and alleviate the financial struggles most people are experiencing during a lockdown.
So now that we are aware of the impact of FinTech, let’s examine the 3 Marketing Trends that are expected to make their appearance in the FinTech industry in 2024
Every customer looks for brand authenticity in a company. To better understand what is perceived as brand authenticity, we will use a definition provided by Geoff Beattie, Cohn Global Practice Leader of Corporate Affairs.
“A brand that has values and morals and stands by them no matter what while honestly divulging its practices (flaws and all). In fact, the thing people most wanted was open and honest communication about products and services. And that finding was consistent around the world.”
If you want people to open their wallets, you have to captivate their minds and hearts first. Modern-day consumers demand that brands be honest and consistent with their brand messaging, goals, and mission.
The same applies to the company’s products or services. It doesn’t matter if we are talking about the features and benefits, quality or how the consumer should feel when using the product or service. Another critical requirement is that the brand is able to deliver the conveyed lifestyle to its client.
Whatever promise a brand makes to its customers should be kept at all costs because nobody will tolerate fake promises. Recent studies show that Millenials and Gen Z are far less brand loyal than Gen X and Baby Boomers.
Moreover, in addition to their decreased brand loyalty, their expectations and requirements regarding a company’s product or service are higher than those of previous generations.
They demand that a brand stands for something more meaningful than just profit, and are seldom impressed by mediocrity. If your cause isn’t revolutionary they are not likely to pay much attention.
So, what is the primary factor attracting their minds and hearts? I am not going to keep you waiting; pay close attention.
It is Authenticity.
Remember that. Traditional, pushy marketing will never work with the newer generations. They don’t like impersonal, empty customer value advertising telling them how to feel, which solely discusses the company, service, or product.
Here is what Matthew Tyson a marketing strategist for WideNet Consulting wrote on the subject of advertising for Millenials:
“…they’re not moved by flashy ads, big promises, and “wow” factor. They want authentic messages, authentic brands, and authentic interactions.”
Mentioning “authentic” three times in one sentence makes Matthew’s message clear enough. To convey a higher level of authenticity, do the following:
- Communicate with your audience
- Be transparent in your business processes
- Be relevant
- And care
You should care about their expectations as clients, your business practices, and as the value you add to the world.
The good news is this is an excellent strategy to apply in general and won’t repel the newer generation. Now, more than ever before, authenticity matters to buyers when committing to trusting a brand.
Which brings us to our next marketing trend.
2. Customer-Centricity – The Way to Build Your Brand in 2024
There is one undeniable, ultimate truth for all companies, including FinTech organizations. Your company would cease to exist without its customers.
Moreover, it would have never made it this far without its clients.
Having said that, don’t you think that your customers and their needs deserve to be prioritized? Many brands are still focusing on their own needs and perceptions instead of putting the customer first.
And don’t allow yourself to be blinded by the lights of success. Your focus should always be on the customer. Many companies concentrate on promoting and selling their products and services as much as possible. However, product-centricity is no longer working.
Many argue that sales metrics are important and the sales process should form a key part of a company’s sales strategy. While this is true, many companies tend to ignore their customers’ opinions about their product or service.
Organizations claim they are customer-oriented, but the evidence indicates the opposite, as there are still tons of dissatisfied and angry consumers. The automation of customer service can sometimes severely hurt your satisfaction rates.
I am not advising you to avoid automation at all. Nevertheless, many companies do it for the sake of cutting expenses without acknowledging the fact that they are probably losing customers due to the lack of adequate customer satisfaction management.
The irony is that this move often turns out to be much more expensive. Why?
Because of that:
You should strive to satisfy clients at ALL stages of their buying journey. In the end, not caring about your customers and not prioritizing their opinions and needs can be detrimental to your reputation and turn out much more expensive.
Moreover, you will be missing out on word-of-mouth marketing, which is still the cheapest (free) and one of the most effective marketing tools Be proactive and reach out to your customers to ensure that they are satisfied. Surveys, user testing, or even direct calls can help achieve this.
At first, you may think that this is a waste of time since you don’t see significant results from the get-go. However, think of it like a snowball rolling down a snow-covered hillside. As the snowball continues to roll down the hill it gains mass and grows its surface area.
Then, before you realize it, the snowball is gigantic due to all the snow it collected along the way. The same applies when you build your brand to be customer-centric.
You may not experience immediate results but in the long run, the difference will be substantial when a multitude of new clients start to patronize your business. The same analogy applies to all your online, and even offline marketing efforts.
The FinTech industry should mainly convey trust and security among its customers, making it vital to be customer-centric. When current clients perceive you as trustworthy and reliable, they are highly likely to spread the word about you.
3. Lifecycle Marketing – Attract and Retain More Customers By Engaging at Every Point in Their Journey
It is obvious that customer engagement is mandatory if you want to attract, earn, and retain new clients. If you want to achieve long-term success, you have to focus on the customer journey of your FinTech company.
Lifecycle marketing is about creating and providing the communication and experiences your target audience expects at every touchpoint in their customer journey. This means engaging with them after they have become buyers and not leaving them stranded after sealing the deal.
You should nourish the relationship with your clients during the whole process.
From attracting them as a lead, to them becoming a customer, to satisfied clients becoming brand advocates.
The success of your lifecycle marketing depends on a profound understanding of your target market and all the different people in it. Remember that we mentioned earlier thatbuilding buyer personas is essential? Here is where you implement this it to unlock your full marketing potential.
However, you should try to go beyond merely figuring out how to make the sale. We touched on this topic as well, but we can’t stress enough how important the customer retention stage is.
Just consider this for a second. The chances of making a sale to an existing customer are between 60-70% as opposed to selling to a new prospect, which is between 5-20%
Yet, 44% of companies focus more on customer acquisition. What they probably fail to see is the following:
It is always good to have a killer customer acquisition strategy, but don’t ignore the retention part as it can skyrocket your marketing efforts.
So, Now You Have the Top 3 Trends Regarding Business Growth for Fintech Companies in 2024
It has never been more important to be authentic and customer-centric and to care about your customers long after you make the sale.
Whether you use these strategies to build your FinTech brand from scratch, or redirect the focus of your current marketing efforts towards these 2024 top trends, it will be well worth it, as the modern customer craves this.
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