- June 16, 2022
#FinTikTok works … so joined-up, compliant Digital Promotions is the ‘new’ Digitalisation
For ‘greenfield’ digital-first MGAs, superior Digital capabilities routinely drive growth strategy narratives, energetically deployed as attractors for investors, capacity, distribution and other partners. And of course, to be acquired as part of the Exit Plan. Meanwhile, established firms are building on their strengths in brand awareness and customers to up their own digital game internally, to partner with and/or to buy these ‘new digital-savvy kids on the block’.
Social Media has revolutionised the economics of retail customer engagement and acquisition.
Not that long ago, say late-2010s, your choices as a new proposition were rather limited: I’ve seen both spin-outs from established firms and standalone start-ups bring propositions to market that were deemed to have taken too long to meet Quote & Bind targets despite competent (sometimes brilliant) Digital Marketing and big spend on big name agencies busy positioning themselves as digital retail markets experts. There are plenty of examples of ideas that ‘failed’ THEN that in present-day incarnations are winning: different in every other way except the same core proposition.
Social Media as a viable, at-scale Channel for Financial Services that can reach effectively into those golden GenZ and Generation Rent segments is really only 18 months’ old. #FinTikTok now is a measurable phenomenon with eyeballing traction, the search term #personalfinance alone racking up 4.4 BILLION views (ref). While retail investing giants like Fidelity and BlackRock are ‘doing and learning’ on the platform, insurance firms too are getting involved, including Aon (majoring on Graduate Scheme opportunities), Marmalade (specialising in car insurance for young drivers) and Arma Karma (specialising in subscription insurance for contents for students and young professionals).
Connected into increasingly more sophisticated tools, omnichannel structures and augmented data-flows, digital-savvy firms have almost limitless customer acquisition power within reach. It’s working: but is it really working for customer?
New Risks for Digital-first Solutions & Products
GreenKite has identified areas of concern where firms need to do better, not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because regulatory concern is becoming evident and defined— just like Society-at-large is now actively defining the negative impacts of Social Media, and requiring governance structures to catch up, too. Real-World, here-and-now examples of promises made in Digital marketing that don’t match the reality of product and experience include:
- Hassle-free claims that is anything but
- Claims of premia 40% cheaper than others … not true
- Assertions that the policy covers you for any eventuality … it does not
- Social Media Influencers saying pretty much anything they like that simply is not matched by the reality of the product-in-use
GreenKite has developed the Digital Promotions HealthCheck to enable firms to take stock and take charge: take a look at the information here, and for a bigger conversation on the likely impacts and opportunities of Consumer Duty, including the insights of Digital Promotions HealthCheck Technical Lead, Claire Carpenter, go here.
I still believe that Digitalisation in Insurance and Financial Services could be a great leveller of the playing field for greenfield firms, especially those with an embedded Financial Inclusion purpose, and/or those wanting to minimise dependence on Impatient Capital (from wherever) for funding. #FinTikTok (and others) shows there is a demand for Insurance, protection, banking products, services and education amongst key groups in Society who not only need this to achieve Financial Resilience, but who also happen to be key target segments. As ever, the devil is in the detail as it is applied by the firm through the lenses of People, Process, Technology, Culture.
Ref: The Guardian 21 July 2021
Shân Millie
Shân is GK’s expert in FinTech; Digitalisation, AI/ML & Digital Governance; & ESG, especially as it impacts firms, leaders & their Customer. Specialisms: strategic advisory; business & market development; applied customer insights e.g. value proposition development; Corporate StoryTelling.
Click here for information on the GreenKite Digital Promotions HealthCheck
