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MARKETING OF FINTECH PRODUCTS AND COMPANIES


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Having a professional conversation about marketing in the fintech industry is extremely challenging due to the complexity and wide variety of activities among its participants. Different life cycle stages of products and entire fintech areas, intense competition both nationally and internationally, rapid technological changes, and regulatory aspects contribute to the difficulty. Indeed, marketing of established fintech products and companies significantly differs from the strategies, approaches, and tools needed for emerging areas. Nevertheless, we will attempt to streamline the information, highlight common features for the industry as a whole, and focus on fintech marketing. Firstly, a general understanding of the industry's specifics is necessary as the foundation for creating an effective marketing mix. Here are the main points:

• General Definition of the Industry. FinTech (Financial Technology) is an industry that utilizes information technologies to develop, automate, and enhance financial and related services. It merges finance and technology to optimize processes, provide fast access, and improve interaction with consumers of financial products. The complexity of the industry involves numerous participants working on the development, implementation, and distribution of cutting-edge technologies in the financial sector. For a better understanding, segmenting fintech companies by the type of consumer of the product is beneficial.

• Primary B2C and B2B Segmentation. Participants in the market are divided into two main groups based on the type of consumer of the product. Companies may create both the technical tool or technology and the financial service itself for end consumers, individuals or businesses. Another segment includes companies creating only technological solutions for financial service providers, enhancing internal processes. This segmentation, though somewhat conditional, aids in understanding the industry.

• Segmentation by the Product. The fintech industry comprises various areas, such as technology and infrastructure, payments and money transfers, lending, specialized business solutions (e.g., InsurTech, LegalTech), capital management, consulting, analytics, security, blockchain, and more. Each area specializes in solving specific tasks in the financial sector, creating diverse products and services to meet the needs of mass-market and business clients.

• Government Regulation. Government regulation in the financial sector is a key aspect to ensure stability, safety, and trust in the country's economy. Fintech operates within the framework of general legal regulations, with regulators implementing norms aimed at consumer protection, risk avoidance, crime prevention, and compliance with standards. The dynamic legislative environment and regulator actions can impact both the development of the fintech industry and pose risks for individual companies and projects.

• Underdevelopment of Venture Capital Market. The underdevelopment of the venture capital market in some countries negatively affects the fintech industry by limiting access to necessary funding for startups and innovative enterprises. Difficulty in attracting investments for researching and implementing innovative technologies hinders scalability, competitiveness, and the introduction of new financial services.

• Competition and Bank Activity. Competition from providers of traditional financial services, particularly banks, shapes the dynamics of the fintech industry. Banks actively respond to innovative solutions, improving their services and implementing technologies. Fintech companies compete for market share by offering innovative financial solutions that may be more adaptable to the needs of modern consumers. This competitive landscape stimulates innovation and improvements in both sectors, fostering the development of the fintech industry and enhancing the quality of financial services.

• Focus on the Domestic Market. Many fintech companies primarily focus on the domestic market due to differences in legal frameworks, state regulations, limited access to capital for scaling, specific needs of local consumers, and peculiarities of the competitive environment.
  
  

This list of fintech industry characteristics can be extended by examining segments based on the type of consumer or the purpose of the end product. However, mentioned features serve as fundamental aspects for understanding fintech marketing. Thus, how can one compete and build an effective marketing mix in the fintech business under such conditions? How can one avoid marketing mistakes that even large companies with in-house marketers make? How can the development of a company and its success in the market be ensured through well-thought-out marketing decisions?


SOME GENERAL STRATEGIES AND APPROACHES

The overall complexity and multifaceted nature of the fintech industry suggest that each company in the sector is almost unique and operates in a specific competitive environment. Nevertheless, certain parallels can be drawn, and key marketing strategies, approaches, and tools that are most commonly encountered can be identified. Here are the main ones:

• B2B and B2C Marketing. Fundamental to building a marketing mix is understanding the difference and approaches to promoting products for the mass market or for a limited number of companies for their internal use. In fintech, B2B marketing focuses on selective promotion of products and services among enterprises, using strategies aimed at solving business problems and effective interaction with key company representatives. B2C marketing, on the other hand, targets a broad audience of consumers, using strategies focused on satisfying general needs and aimed at increasing product awareness and brand perception among a wide range of potential customers.

• Alignment of Strategy with Life Cycle Stages. The dynamic nature of the fintech industry is characterized by rapid innovation and changes in the technological environment, requiring companies to use different marketing strategies at different stages of the product life cycle. In the initial stages, the focus may be on intensive marketing to attract the attention of investors and potential users. During the growth stage, companies should focus on scaling and expanding their audience, using other marketing strategies. In the maturity stage, when competition may increase, it is important to focus on retaining existing customers, optimizing processes, and improving the quality of services, which also requires a somewhat different marketing approach.

• Digital Marketing Ecosystem. The arsenal of elements in the digital marketing ecosystem in fintech does not differ much from most economic sectors – the company's website, landing pages for products, mobile applications, product demos or platforms, pages and communities on social networks and messengers, etc. However, special attention should be given to the pattern of using these elements in the context of B2B and B2C products.

• Content Marketing. According to the previous point, the task of marketers is to create relevant content in the context of B2B and B2C products. B2B content marketing should focus on providing expert information that helps solve specific business problems. This includes demonstration of business cases, expert publications, and training for professionals that thoroughly examine the functionality of fintech solutions and their impact on business processes. On the other hand, B2C content marketing in the fintech sector should be aimed at creating easily understandable and motivating content. It should be oriented towards a wide consumer market, using light, interesting videos, engaging blogs, and game elements to attract and retain the attention of potential clients.

• Online Promotion and Advertising. Online promotion and advertising for B2B in the fintech industry require strategies aimed at a highly specialized and professional audience. Effective campaigns should include targeted advertising on business platforms such as LinkedIn and participation in professional industry events and conferences. The key goal is to provide information about the strategic advantages of fintech solutions for companies and demonstrate their effectiveness in real business scenarios. In B2C advertising, especially through social networks and mobile platforms, it is important to create attractive and accessible content that captures the attention of a broad audience.

• Traditional Advertising. For certain areas, particularly in lending and loans, traditional advertising plays a crucial role in promotion through outdoor media (public transport, billboards, lightboxes, etc.). The personal microloan sector focuses on the most vulnerable and low-income segments of the population, for whom traditional advertising is the fastest way to obtain information about microloans. For other areas in the fintech industry, traditional advertising may have less effectiveness and depends on the specific product.

• Partnerships with Related Industries. Partnerships with related industries are a strategic mechanism for expanding opportunities and increasing the competitiveness of fintech companies. In B2B, collaboration with other technology companies or financial institutions to create integrated solutions is common. In B2C, attention is drawn to partnerships with retail businesses, such as online stores or delivery services, to increase convenience and expand the range of financial opportunities for end-users. Such partnerships create advantages for both companies and customers, reinforcing innovation and improving interaction in the financial ecosystem.

Also, it is necessary to note that within the scope of one article, we cannot show all the pitfalls or demonstrate all the marketing methodologies and tools specific to the fintech industry. These are just a few examples of quite general marketing approaches that can be applied to fintech products. From a practical point of view, everything is much more complex - the choice of a specific marketing strategy and tools depends on the target audience, competitive environment, and unique advantages of the fintech company, etc. At the same time, it is desirable to understand that marketing of fintech products and companies may face a number of specific problems that are unique to each individual case and require an individual approach to their solution.

Achieving the commercial objectives of a company through effective marketing requires a deep understanding of the market situation, consumer needs, the ability to analyze and explore alternatives, and a creative approach to problem-solving. Our company has extensive experience in defining optimal marketing strategies for our clients' businesses, creating a strong brand and market positioning, as well as developing a marketing mix and implementing the chosen strategy. You can familiarize yourself with the services and solutions our company offers on the "Services" and "Solutions" pages, respectively.