Why Big Data Matters in Financial Marketing

We’re entering uncharted waters in the banking and greater financial marketing industry. While the blockchain buzz may have abated since the staggering cryptocurrency crash in 2018, the likelihood of a crypto future is still on the table. Pair this with the ever-growing influence of the cloud and artificial intelligence (AI), and it’s safe to say that the financial landscape of the future will look much different than the one we’re currently living in.

Change is happening at a pace quicker than ever before. However, according to the 2019 Banking and Capital Markets Outlook from Deloitte, change for the sake of change often ends in disappointment. Instead, banks should “change how they change.” And for any technology to work in the future, organizations must first learn to make the most of their data.

Data is the glue that binds various technologies together, be it AI, the cloud, or automation. And banks that optimize their data collection strategies—and develop data-driven marketing campaigns around their customers—will stay competitive.

Here are three reasons why big data matters.

1. Data helps financial marketing teams understand their customers.

Banks are in the unique situation where data is already baked into their workflow. When customers sign up for accounts or loans, they do so in exchange for information. From transactional history to channel traffic, much of a customer’s life cycle is driven by data touch points. And banks that understand data can better understand their customers.

Product cross-selling modeling and data segmentation helps banks compare customer behavior against the customer life cycle. And effective modeling helps illustrate if particular customers may have the propensity to purchase a particular product based on demographic, financial, and behavioral data. For example, data segmentation can show banks that consumers with limited or lower credit scores may be interested in lower interest credit cards. Likewise, higher income customers may be enticed by high interest credit cards that feature travel and dining rewards.

Ultimately, data segmentation enables financial marketing teams to see which customers are interacting with specific products. Knowing where customers are in their journey can influence which types of marketing campaigns they’ll resonate with the most—and which products they may be interested in. And personalized marketing messaging can improve engagement.

2. Data helps organizations improve their decision making.

Not only does data help banks answer questions about their customers, it can make an organization more efficient and informed. For example, data can help a financial organization’s product and development teams establish a baseline for product iteration and improvement. And an accurate data collection strategy can help inform product development.

The product life cycle of most banking products often fits into four categories: development, growth, maturity, and decline. Marketing can help refine these stages by providing profile and transactional data. While it’s true that product teams may have different goals than sales and marketing, it’s important that departments are aligned on data collection.

Qualitative customer data such as demographic insights uncovered by digital marketing teams can inform market research and determine the true business value of products. Analyzing how customers interact with different products throughout their life cycle stages can help organizations see which products are successful—and which may need improvements.

3. Data helps financial teams build trust.

We get it. Customer experience is a buzzword in the financial marketing sphere. (And it’s a topic we’ve discussed before.) However, customer experience is a concept that truly matters. And ensuring that your data collection process is confidential, compliant, and secure helps build trust—which (you guessed it!) helps improve the customer experience.

For banks and credit unions, this means explaining how you will be using information and disclosing exact details about your products. Regulations like the Truth in Savings Act require banks to provide clear, concise details about checking, savings, and other accounts. For example, ads cannot contain the word “free” if there are any maintenance or activity fees associated with an account. And if ads use words like “bonus” or “APY,” then banks must provide corresponding details at least one click away from the original source material.

Making the most of data means delivering optimized marketing campaigns, efficient outreach efforts, and relevant ad messaging that’s compliant and builds trust.

Digital marketing helps financial organizations get the most from their data.

Your data is a critical asset of your bank, credit union, or other financial organization. Sure, financial institution can make the most of this data to make better decisions. But they can also leverage information to deliver customers a better customer experience.

Digital marketing helps make the most of your data, so you can deliver better banking products to specific prospects. And partnering with a digital marketing agency can help your financial organization implement an effective strategy—so you can free up time for other initiatives. Interested in staying competitive in the future? Contact Workshop Digital to learn more.