Trends Surrounding Use of Marketing Channels

Mobile Marketing

• According to a report in 2018, 51% of the world's population had access to the internet, and this represented a 6% year-over-year growth.

• Therefore, financial services are shifting their marketing to channels that are accessible through mobile devices to reach many people, and this is a trend as consumers tend to spend a lot of time online.
• Mobile marketing is one of the best ways for financial services providers to reach their audiences.

•  Marketing campaigns, updates, and ongoing communications for financial services providers are shifting to social media platforms, which are accessible through mobile devices.

• An example of a company that embraces this trend is Bank of America.

Internet Advertising

• There has been an increase in internet ad spending by financial services digital marketers, and Google and Facebook are their primary partners.

• There was a 22% overall growth in ad spending for digital marketing of financial services, and Amazon, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest are among the platforms used for internet advertising.

• Internet advertising is a trend as financial services continue to increase the use of internet marketing to achieve their goals as traditional advertising methods are growing less popular.

• Internet advertising includes the use of visuals on social media, and this increases the number of followers for financial services companies.

• An example of a company that embraces internet advertising is Bank of America.

Current Trends Surrounding The Use of Data Integration and Analytics

Use of Data Explosion and Analytics

• There is an increase of accessibility to digital tools that include machine learning and data analytics to financial services, and businesses have access to a lot of data.
• The fact that many companies offering financial services have embraced data explosion makes it a current trend in the industry.

• According to Frank Bien, the CEO of Looker, "Data is the new application."

• Also, Meeker believes that data is becoming more valuable as it is important for consumers and industry regulators as it is collected and stored in the cloud for analysis by artificial intelligence tools.

• Data analytics helps in the streamlining of financial services by service providers and improves customer experiences.

• Some companies that offer financial services have established the need to set up social media accounts for the provision of customer support as a result of their data analysis, for example, the PNC Bank.

• The company resolves customers' issues through twitter threads and direct messages in the cases of sensitive data.

Improved Data Security and Privacy

• With the increased availability of consumers' data on the internet, customers are becoming increasingly concerned about the security and privacy of their data and companies are embracing new ways of ensuring data security and privacy, which makes it a trend in the industry.

• Thus, financial services strive to make digital communications safe for their consumers, and by 2018, 87% of the global web traffic was encrypted.

• Ensuring data security and privacy is a trend as it is being used as a selling feature by financial services to customers amidst the discussions of data security and privacy protection rules.

• Also, the increased use of mobile apps necessitates the need for data security and privacy to ensure that consumers can access secure financial services seamlessly without compromising the accessibility of mobile apps.

• For instance, banks use two-factor verification for customer authentication and identification to offer access to any services that clients may need.

• An example of a company that ensures data privacy is Capital One, which was compromised by a hacker before they decided to invest in customer data security systems.

Current Trends Surrounding The Role Played By Audience Segmentation

Account-Based Marketing

•  Account-Based Marketing (ABM) is a trend because financial services are increasingly adopting this marketing method to reach out to more target consumers.

• This marketing approach requires that financial marketers target a company rather than individuals and then figure out the roles of the individuals and how the information acquired increases lead through the financial services' marketing and sales.

• ABM was among the top three efforts that help in marketing according to a survey by Demand Gen on some B2B marketers.

• Some companies educate their consumers on financial issues, and an example is Morgan Stanley.

Consumers' Digital Empowerment

• There is an increase in the number of financial services consumers who are digitally empowered, and this is due to the large segment of Generation Z customers who access the internet the electronic devices.
• The increased online presence of financial services consumers makes it a trend in the digital marketing of the services.

• Thus, financial services strive to increase their presence online to reach out to these clients and offer updates on their services.

• An example of a company that uses online presence especially in engaging Millenials in their marketing is Wells Fargo.

Research Strategy

Trends Surrounding Use of Emerging Media and Technology

Voice Assistants

• Presently, approximately 75% of iPhone users have used Siri, and an estimated 63% of Android users have also communicated via a virtual assistant on their smartphone. Likewise, many banks and financial firms are offering conversation banking solutions to their customers.

• Voice payments, according to several fintech reports, remains among the top trends for voice solutions in 2019 and is expected to continue. Intellias forecasts that in the future, voice solutions will provide bank users with more services like requesting loans, paying taxes, renewing insurances, issuing invoices, etc.
• Voice assistants have been adopted by many financial institutions, including Ally Bank, which has been using Ally AssistSM, a customer voice interaction solution since 2015, and has made significant improvements in its functionality. Other examples of banks that have rolled conversation solutions include "Bank of America, Capital One, and USAA."

Voice Payments

• Voice payments is also one of the major trends in voice-enabled solutions in 2019. This is a trend in the financial services sector, as an estimated 18 million American consumers have tried paying using voice solutions.
• BI expects the adoption of voice payments in the U.S. to climb from 18.4 million users in 2017 to approximately 77.9 million users by 2022. It is also forecasted that smartphones will make up 80% of those transactions, while 20% will be made voice-powered devices, such as in-vehicle payments and smart speakers.
• Some banks offering voice-powered payment solutions include Barclays bank, Santander Bank, and the Royal Bank of Canada.

Trends Surrounding the Role Played by Content Marketing

Educating About Products and Services Using Video

• The majority of financial institutions are using content to educate their users regarding their products and services. A recent survey found out that 72% of customers would prefer to learn more about a company's products and services through video.
• Another report found out that approximately 67% (two-thirds) of financial services institutions have increased the use of audio+visual content such as YouTube videos because of their effectiveness.
• Content marketing through video marketing helps financial institutions to introduce a more human touch to their brands, simplify complex concepts for the customers, and build credibility and trust .
• An example of a bank utilizing this strategy is Bank of America. On its Instagram page, the bank relies on customer testimonials to market its business loans and showcase its work with the Tory Burch Foundation.

Use Personas To Tell Stories

• Storytelling that captures the imagination of customers is among the top roles content marketing plays in today's financial institutions. For instance, according to The Financial Brand, personas help marketers to create the right content.
• Different types of marketing content play different roles in the organization's marketing strategies. For instance, blog posts/articles increase awareness, white papers build consideration, and case studies are helpful in evaluation that leads to purchase.
•  CitiBank is an example of a banking institution that has capitalized on holographic workstations for financial trading with ‘mixed reality’ to assist traders in understanding and analyzing data using both 2D and 3D data presentations.

Trends Surrounding the Impact of Industry Regulations

Open banking Regulations

•  Open banking regulations are gaining momentum in many regions of the world, including Australia, Europe, Canada, Singapore, etc. These regulations are fragmenting most of the traditional banks in these regions, which are now moving to open banking.
• Open banking refers to the common interfaces linking banks and other third parties to encourage more competition and create new business opportunities. While little progress is being made regarding open banking, the trend likely will persist into the future due to many factors, including the law which mandates it.
• Examples of banks leaning into this trend include Spain's BBVA, which has APIs going beyond payment to cover functions like saving accounts. In the Netherlands, ABN AMRO developed a solution with Dutch corporate to examine customer identity features.

Dodd–Frank Regulations

• The aftermath of the Dodd-Frank repeal by President Donald Trump rolled back significant parts of it. The regulation which sought to change how foreign banking organizations (FBOs) in the U.S. are regulated brought many changes that are affecting many major financial institutions in the U.S.
• The Dodd-Frank Act is a trend as it affects all financial institutions in the U.S. Some critics argue that the regulatory compliance requirements affect community banks and smaller financial institutions, which did not play a role in the 2008 financial crisis.
• The act made most financial institutions safer by effecting capital constraints that, in return, created a more illiquid market overall—however, some major financial institutions like the Blackstone Group and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Research Methodology