Building a Financial Brand that Puts the Customer First
The majority of consumers (71%) prefer to buy from brands that align with their values—this includes the financial institutions they choose to trust with their most valuable assets. As a result, FSI organizations need to create a unique brand identity that defines their values and conveys a higher purpose. And, they need to be crisp in articulating that brand identity as part of all brand awareness efforts.
Building a stronger and more trusted brand is also necessary in an environment where younger generations are willing to switch primary banks without concern. According to a survey by Mobiquity, 59% of customers under 55 said they would switch banks for better account terms.
If FSI organizations want to retain current customers and attract new ones, they need to develop a brand that resonates with customers across digital and physical interactions. This will require fresh thinking, adopting cultural changes that empower customers to chart their own financial destiny, and communicating that identity through personalized experiences.
Here is a roadmap for how FSI organizations can achieve these goals.
1. Develop a Comprehensive Brand Identity Strategy
FSI organizations manage a host of branded customer touchpoints that are also subject to federal and state regulations. As FSI organizations seek to redefine their brand identity, they will need a new mindset that addresses both of these priorities.
This new mindset must be embedded in the organization from the C-suite to the marketing team, and it must understand that delivering personalization in a highly regulated environment requires speed, agility, and the right tools to streamline the process.
The brand identity strategy must also align with this more agile mindset. Consequently, the strategy should provide a map from vision to execution that includes upgrading processes, integrating technologies and turning data into actionable insights so personalized engagement is possible.
2. Redefine brand identity through personalized content
FSI organizations need to communicate to customers that they are innovating the digital experience through more self-service offerings and that they are committed to empowering customers to achieve financial health and well-being. Conveying this message requires creating enough content so that there is content that aligns with each customers’ unique needs. It also requires the ability to deliver that content to the right person at the right time on the right channel.
Technology that can stitch together customer data insights, content and experience delivery across multiple audience segments and channels will be necessary to achieve these objectives. The Adobe Experience Platform, which includes Adobe Analytics, Adobe Target and Adobe Experience Manager, offers an integrated and connected solution that allows FSI organizations to deliver powerful, personalized experiences at scale.
3. Ensure brand compliance and consistency at scale
Marketing has a fiduciary responsibility to ensure that there has been a proper review and approval process of every piece of content. This includes ensuring that all content has the right disclosures and that the right individuals with the right licenses have reviewed the content. Marketing also needs to consider its audit trail. Because in financial services, it’s not if an audit will happen, but when.
However, it can be difficult to maintain brand consistency with multiple teams, projects, and stakeholders. Therefore, having the right technology to manage and mitigate these risks across the organization is an essential component of ensuring brand compliance and consistency at scale.
Adobe Workfront can provide appropriate safeguards and ensure that every asset is routed to the right people for review and approval at the right point in the process. This removes unnecessary steps in the process, eliminates duplication, and allows for a documented audit trail. As a result, FSI organizations can increase their operational efficiency and streamline compliance with the ultimate benefit of delivering outstanding customer experiences that are compliant and consistent with the brand.
Build a Brand Customers Identify With
A brand that delivers meaningful experiences increases customer acquisition, loyalty and retention. FSI customers want to feel understood. They also want to identify with their institution’s brand purpose and trust that the brand is looking out for their well-being. And finally, they want to have the tools to control their financial journey.
As FSI organizations redefine their brand, they need to be thinking of personalization strategies that will allow them to build loyalty and trust through content that resonates. But they also need to go further and ensure that the products the organization brings to market also resonate with today’s digital-first customers. By investing in the right technology, people and processes, FSI organizations can create a brand that proves they understand customers’ deepest desires.
About LeapPoint
LeapPoint Consulting is changing the way companies connect work, technology, and talent to solve big business challenges and drive successful outcomes. Established by Big 4 alumni who sought more flexibility and agility in meeting clients’ most critical business needs, Le- apPoint is committed to making life and experiences fundamentally better for employees, customers and those they serve. As the go-to Adobe and Adobe Workfront partner in finan- cial services and across industries, LeapPoint’s break-through Connected WorkTM services are the essential framework for the Future of Work. To learn more about LeapPoint and its Connected Work services, visit www.leappoint.com.
