Are fintech products inherently difficult to explain?
It’s something you hear a lot in the world of fintech marketing. These solutions are intangible. Complex. Highly technical.
Not to mention extensively regulated, which extends to the marketing as well as to the products themselves.
And this makes conveying what they do, and their benefits, a challenge.
But why is this actually a challenge?
At the end of the day, isn’t the goal really just to outline a problem and how the solution fixes that problem?
Really, it’s about telling a story.
When Helen Owen and I jumped on a call last month to catch up, telling the story was a key topic. As the VP of Marketing at payments orchestrator BR-DGE, Helen spends all her time working out the best way to tell that story. And surprise surprise, it includes video!
The following 6 min read covers topics including:
- How BR-DGE approach demand generation and long-cycle marketing
- The role of video in building clarity and cut-through
- When to prioritise creativity over clarity (and vice versa)
- How to get internal buy-in for video when budgets are tight
- Tips for aligning internal and external brand perception
If you’re interested in learning from one of the pros, then read on!
Building a Marketing Strategy for the Long Game
When it comes to telling the story at BR-DGE, Helen has a clear methodology.
For her, it’s all about approaching things holistically, combining channels in campaigns to make sure you’re maximising results.
This doesn’t mean trying to do everything all at once though. Rather, picking a few things and doing them really well is the key.
As with any good methodology though, it needs to be adapted to the company:
“A mix between tried and tested methods and experimentation is really important because the industry doesn't stay still, the company doesn't stay still, and marketing certainly doesn't either”
As BR-DGE transition out of the startup phase and mature as a fintech, this means adapting away from more traditional lead generation tactics, and towards a demand creation approach, coupled with more sales enablement and product marketing.
With their long sales cycle, the key is playing the long game, building mutually beneficial relationships of all types: customer, prospects, partners, industry stakeholders, and investors.
Ultimately it’s about building internal alignment.
Helen has a great exercise for this.
Start by asking key stakeholders internally what you are known for as a business. And then ask your clients the same question. And then the partners too, and anyone else in the wider industry.
Then by bringing that all together, you find out where the gaps in perception are, and can then work out how best to bridge them (no pun intended).
Taking this approach ensures your decisions are always driven by what motivates your buyers. Much better to lead with benefits and value, rather than just functionality for its own sake.
Why Video is the Shortcut to Clarity
So how does Helen approach video strategy?
As with lots of fintechs, the value of video lies in its ability to communicate complicated information in a concise and engaging way.
“It's a complex offer that we have. It's nuanced. It's in a crowded market. You need to stand out. You need to be clear about what you have to offer and why it's different. That's really hard to get across in static visuals”
Video is a great solution to this problem.
But should it act as a supplement, or an anchor asset for a whole campaign?
As ever, it depends on the results you’re looking to achieve.
For a recent video that we collaborated on with Helen, those objectives were part positioning, part product explanation.
The resulting content was then used as part of a mix to make sure the message really hit home.
“Because we're tying it with other pieces of messaging through our website, through our content, through our PR, it becomes part of a consistent underlying current of reinforcement and explanation of who we are and what we do”
The video doesn’t act alone. Instead, by providing a short asset that summarises BR-DGE in a nutshell, it works as a lead into the rest of the marketing.
As before, it’s a video’s ability to communicate in a visual way that resonates with the majority of your audience.
“I don't see any other way that we could get somebody's attention, hold it for two minutes, and then go away with a pretty decent idea of what it is we do. That's the power of video”
Clarity vs Creativity: Knowing What the Moment Demands
If video is the best way to reach your audience, what’s the best way to keep that audience watching?
Should a video be aimed at pulling them in with flashy visuals and bold mission statements?
Or should it look to speak more plainly, and communicate clear product features and benefits?
For Helen, it depends where you’re meeting the customer, and what you’re trying to achieve.
If they’re a live customer or a late stage prospect, you’re going to speak to them very differently compared to someone who isn’t in the market yet.
For the former audience, who aren't clear on a piece of functionality or how something works, Helen would follow a direct approach:
“We would absolutely be literal because that's what the customer needs from that. Then have it solidify in their mind as to what is the answer to their question”
Whereas, if the aim is more to make a point around positioning, then you want to make sure the message sticks with people.
And that means getting inventive:
“I think creativity wins out on that because that's going to make it memorable. If you go too literal, it can be a bit too restrictive.”
There are of course plenty of shades between these two poles, and it may well be that your video needs to do both.
Getting Buy-In When Budgets Are Tight
It’s not always the strategy that’s the difficult part of video. Sometimes what’s trickier is getting internal buy-in in the first place.
For every marketer, the challenge is making sure you can deliver against your objectives using the right tools and resources.
But your budget isn’t endless.
Circling back to strategy, for Helen this is again about being clear on your objectives, and what tools you think will best help achieve them.
For example, it may not always be the best use of resources to outsource all video.
At BR-DGE, they produce their own demo content internally, making mini explainer videos that speak directly to a prospect about a feature.
An efficient approach that has the right amount of personal touch.
But to produce a more full scope explainer with lots of branded motion, then there’s a call to do that externally.
“If money was no object, I'd be putting our story in some form of video constantly I think.”
Video as a Bridge Between Product and People
Fintechs don’t just need to explain what they do, they need to make people care.
That’s where video comes into it’s own.
As Helen makes clear, success comes from aligning storytelling with strategy.
Pick the right moments. Combine channels. Let video do what static content can’t: grab attention, simplify the complex, and create a lasting impression.
Whether you’re launching a campaign, explaining a feature, or shifting brand perceptions, video is more than a medium. It’s your narrative engine.
