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In today’s connected world, we are constantly bombarded with marketing messages. Whether it be social media posts, online blogs or direct mail, important customer communications are in danger of becoming lost among the digital noise. So how do financial institutions ensure that communications are impactful and capable of enhancing the customer experience? The answer, says Stephen Lester, of Paragon Customer Communications, lies in personalisation.

Make it personal

In our technologically advanced world, a global desire still exists for a personalised, ‘human’ approach to customer communications. This can be as simple as the barista who makes your morning coffee remembering that you always take a skinny latte, right through to adopting technological innovations to analyse customer behaviour in order to predict the outcome of a new communications campaign.

However, financial organisations without a digital communication strategy are in danger of being left behind – a recent study[1] predicts that by 2020, 85% of relationships between brands and customers will be conducted without human interactions.

One key strategy is to utilise innovation to personalise consumer messaging. At various stages of any customer journey there will be defining moments. If businesses can identify these and provide relevant, personalised, engaging content, this creates a positive emotional response from the customer, who is more likely to form a connection and consequently take action.

In fact, today’s tech-savvy consumers know that companies who provide financial services will inevitably hold a large amount of data on their behaviour and habits, and the expectation is that not only will it be stored securely, but will be used to build trust and make messages more relevant.

Adopting the latest technology can allow organisations to pinpoint how best to achieve this, identifying not only purchasing habits but also the best time to contact consumers and the most relevant format to use. The aim is to provide a seamless experience for individuals which shows that the provider understands them and knows what matters most.

Technology helps to join the dots

In the financial sector in particular, numerous opportunities exist to deliver relevant personalised communications through various channels and apps, providing a smarter, ‘joined up’ approach.

There is a growing choice of technology available to enable financial institutions to make the most of their customer interactions. Natural language processing, low disruption plug-and-play options, online and offline tracking and machine learning are among the innovations that can be adopted to achieve seamless customer interaction, from email coding to computer-assisted personal interviewing.

Communication programmes can be automated, with triggered responses built in to improve customer conversation, while data can be harvested from every interaction to profile best customers and optimise message delivery.

The challenge for many companies, though, is not if but how they will use the data they hold, and subsequently, which system will deliver the best results.

Data mining – the new gold

Utilising data and analytics to drive a communications strategy shows that organisations understand customers their needs, which in turn increases the chances of meaningful interaction.

Data can reveal a wealth of insights into customer preferences. It shows not only which products or services have been purchased by specific customers, but can be used to predict what may be of interest in the future, enabling better campaign targeting and more accurate predictions of outcomes.

However, the challenge for many lies in making sense of the wealth of data held; this can become even more daunting for those faced with a shortage of in-house digital skills. Understanding what is held and how best to use it can be central to creating a structured, single view of each customer, in order to facilitate the creation of a dynamic, personalised communications strategy.

Experts in data analysis can provide the most pertinent insight into data held, and then use it to create the most effective customer journeys.

The information retained must also have been collected and stored in full compliance of increasingly stringent data protection laws.

Recent high-profile data breaches and cyber-attacks have seen customer details such as names, addresses and even bank card numbers stolen or revealed. The companies involved now face significant financial penalties.

Turn to a trusted partner

Although knowing where to start with the latest technology can at first appear to be an overwhelming challenge, help is at hand. Despite a general perception that enlisting the services of a communications expert will be expensive, working with a trusted partner can actually save money, remove risks and provide a logical, agile approach that helps organisations stay abreast of ever-advancing technology.

Companies such as Paragon Customer Communications have invested millions of pounds in the very latest technology to maximise data capture, analyse customer behaviour and consequently deliver the most relevant, engaging messages.

In addition, businesses that need to distribute regulatory documents can partner with communications experts to meet all legislative requirements, optimise output and integrate printed documents with digital delivery.

Legal compliance is also assured – it is vital since the introduction of recent new legislation surrounding data collection and handling.

Case study

Paragon Customer Communications worked with one of the UK’s leading independent financial advisory and asset management specialists to distribute many thousands of FCA regulated documents.

Historically, the company – which has more than one million clients – issued the documents annually. Information contained within them included valuation statements, contract notes, tax vouchers and P60s. All print and mail was being produced in-house or using a variety of vendors; however, as the business expanded, the decision was made to investigate the benefits of outsourcing the work to a professional supplier specialising in transactional communications.

Paragon Customer Communications provided a reliable, safe and secure production platform. The company’s Secure Reliable Mailing technology (SRM) provided the peace of mind that all documents would be produced 100% correctly, with no duplications.

The solution deployed included:

As a result, the company made a six-figure saving on annual postage costs, with a further £75,000 cost reduction through improved efficiencies in data processing.

Client reporting was redesigned to present statements and asset information in full digital colour.

 

Paragon Customer Communications is one of the UK’s leading providers of digital communications, supporting customers’ transformations to digital formats. These range from developing relevant email campaigns to analysing customer data and weekly campaign reporting, allowing organisations to gain total control of their communication processes. The company helps more than half of the UK’s top wealth and asset managers connect with their customers.

[1] Gartner, https://www.gartner.com/imagesrv/summits/docs/na/customer-360/C360_2011_brochure_FINAL.pdf

 

Marketing is of great importance to any sector, but each industry has its own pitfalls and problems it needs to avoid when it comes to developing its marketing campaign. If you’re already running a FinTech business, or are planning on starting one, there’s a few obstacles you need to be aware of in order to market your brand effectively.

Below Where the Trade Buys provides the following guide to help you navigate effectively through the world of marketing.

Social media avoidance

Social media can seem like a difficult arena to step into — it’s huge, the competition is astounding, and your customers can speak to you directly, in front of a massive audience. In fact, many sectors have fallen foul to ignoring and avoiding social media. According to Incisive Edge, banks were a prime example of this, citing a report from Carlisle and Gallagher Consulting Group that revealed 87% of consumers perceived social media usage by banks as being dull, irritating, or unhelpful.

But social media is where your audience is, and it’s where many spend a large amount of time. Securion Pay noted that an effective marketing campaign needs to consider Millennials, of who 84% have smartphones and 78% are on them for more than two hours every day. Embrace this and establish a strong presence on social media! Just make sure you have an effective plan for each channel — content for Twitter might not work as well on say, LinkedIn.

Also, social media is a great way to build a rapport with your customer base. Even in the event you get negative feedback, the way you deal with it will be seen just as much as the original comment. You can turn a negative into a positive: show ownership of the feedback and resolve it quickly. If you ignore it, the chances are the unhappy consumer will feel stung that you have ignored their attempt to reach out to your directly and give you a chance to respond. They will turn to other websites to tell other people of this experience. As social media and customer services expert, Jay Baers says: “A lack of response is a response. It’s a response that says, ‘We don’t care about you very much’.”

Saying too much, too soon

Do you have big news? Great! But before you rush off to tell the world, take a moment to pause. Would the news be better used slowly? Incisive Edge advises FinTech companies to consider an embargo if you’re heading to a trade show soon.

Basically, you can still create a press release about your exciting news or innovation plans, but don’t release it immediately. Place an embargo on it, so that your press sources can’t publish the news until a certain date, such as the trade show or another effective date for your company. This not only stirs up a sense of excitement, but it also lets the journalists and content writers have more time to write an engaging and detailed piece.

Ignoring offline

You may feel that as a primarily online company, your marketing strategy needs to have an online focus too. But the world of offline marketing is still going strong, and it’s a great way to build your brand and get it noticed.

For example, Delineo reported on some highly effective FinTech marketing campaigns, including offline print marketing. In the report, a robo-advisory firm was shown to have created a brilliant offline campaign that saw printed adverts placed through the underground tube network. People don’t have great signal on their phones at underground stations, so tend to notice and read printed adverts more!

As a start up, you might not have enough in your marketing budget to pull off such a wide-spread campaign but consider the use of printed media elsewhere. Are you headed to a trade show or exhibition soon? Seek out a provider of PVC banners and get your brand and goals printed up for your stand! Banners are a great tool at exhibitions and tend to be more effective than digital ads at these events, with customers recalling the brand from a banner long after the show has ended.

Ads with poor language use

You should be making use of both online and offline media in your marketing strategy, but you’ll need to make it as powerful as possible. There’s no use having a well-placed digital advert or a beautifully designed banner if the language used is dull and uninspiring.

Often overlooked, the use of language is a complex skill that can make or break your intended message. There’s a reason why so many people study language at high academic levels!

Consider the intended outcome of your marketing. What are you trying to tell the customer? At a basic level, new technology is designed to solve a problem, so tell your audience this. Words like “innovative”, “cutting-edge”, “rapid”, and “simple” can help address technology woes such as slow loading apps or complicated processes. After all, FinTech is a disruptive innovation — tell the world how it’s shaking up the banking and financial sector.

It’s important for your business to stand out for the right reasons. FinTech is a fast-growing sector, so it’s vital that you keep ahead of the game. Keep your marketing strategy strong and wide-reaching with these campaign tips.

Sources: 

https://www.callboxinc.com/b2b-marketing-and-strategy/fintech-marketing-strategy-tips/

https://blog.incisive-edge.com/blog/6-fintech-marketing-strategy-tips

https://www.delineo.com/culture/4-fantastic-fintech-marketing-campaigns/

https://securionpay.com/blog/6-marketing-trends-fintech-industry/

http://www.brightnorth.co.uk/whitepapers/Image_Quality_and_eCommerce.pdf

https://skift.com/2016/05/13/why-the-tourist-brochure-is-still-surviving-in-the-hotel-lobby/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/rogerdooley/2015/09/16/paper-vs-digital/#7de095dc33c3

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/307300374549933402/

https://www.ama.org/partners/content/Pages/6-dos-and-donts-of-promotional-product-marketing.aspx

https://expandedramblings.com/index.php/tripadvisor-statistics/

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/print-ads-in-newspapers-and-magazines-are-the-most-trusted-advertising-channel-when-consumers-are-making-a-purchase-decision-300424912.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/matthunckler/2017/02/01/jay-baers-top-3-tips-for-acing-customer-service-in-the-age-of-social-media/#1cbbd1764a08

https://www.forbes.com/sites/rogerdooley/2015/09/16/paper-vs-digital/#31d49c533c34

https://blog.techdept.co.uk/2014/12/marketing-technology-words-marketers-need-to-know/

From refrigerators and lamps to door locks and heating, the Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionised the way we live and work, making a truly robust ecosystem of smart devices a reality. Here Leigh Moody, UK Managing Director at SOTI, walks Finance Monthly through the developments of a ‘connected home’ and how these present opportunities for other sectors.

Indeed, IoT has quickly become one of the hottest technology topics around, expanding into all manner of industries as the rate of innovation shows no signs of slowing down.

Within the home, IoT has turned everyday objects into connected products designed to make our lives easier, more convenient, and more comfortable. The likes of connected electricity meters and doorbells have already been around for some time, giving consumers a taste of the possibilities on offer.

And momentum in the industry is continuing to intensify, with the worldwide connected home market predicted to grow from its $24 billion valuation in 2016, to $53 billion by the year 2022.

Smart devices have certainly made their mark among consumers, but this isn’t the only place where IoT is having a significant impact. Connected devices are also quickly becoming more commonplace in industrial settings such as factories and hospitals, as well as in traditional office environments.

It’s an area that more and more device manufacturers are trying to exploit and one that has endless possibilities – especially for those businesses that can learn from what has already happened within the connected home.

IoT in business

As the Internet of Things has become more mainstream, vendors and businesses alike have taken inspiration from the smart home model and quickly realised that connected devices have plenty to offer a B2B environment.

From increased productivity and more accurate decision-making, to reduced production costs and a better understanding of customer needs, there are countless examples of how IoT is bringing value to enterprises around the world.

For example, manufacturing firms have started to deploy smart sensors in their factories for predictive equipment maintenance. This enables them to save valuable money in labour costs and lost revenue by proactively identifying issues before they become a major problem, rather than waiting for something to break down.

Similar ‘smart’ technology is also transforming vehicle management in logistics companies, with the data collected enabling businesses to become much more cost-efficient by reducing fuel spend and vehicle downtime.

Then there is retail, where IoT is being used at virtually all stages of the product journey. This starts with optimising the supply chain and using analytics to ensure the right products are in the right place at the right time, while also enabling brands to transform the in-store experience and connect with shoppers in a more personal way.

These are all hugely compelling use cases, but just the tip of the iceberg with regards to what the Internet of Things will make possible in the future.

So, it’s clear that IoT is set to gain substantial value within the enterprise over the coming years. But, in order for its potential to be realised, there is one key challenge that will first have to be overcome.

Solving the data dilemma

The main driver for enterprise IoT is that the large volumes of data created by connected devices present a huge opportunity. By leveraging the power of analytics – either on a small scale or across large deployments – businesses can gain additional layers of insight into their operations and make improvements.

This is exactly what the smart home enables. By using connected products to track energy usage, for example, consumers can learn where they are spending the most money and become more cost-efficient.

However, from an enterprise perspective, the challenge comes in being able to efficiently manage and control hundreds or potentially thousands of smart devices. Simply keeping track of the vast swathes of data being generated from devices in a range of different locations and from an assortment of vendors, is already a serious issue and is likely to be the biggest IoT challenge IT departments will face in the future.

What they don’t want is to have several platforms pulling in different data streams. Not only would this be hugely confusing to manage, the lack of coordination would create a fragmented picture of what is going on across the business.

Instead, enterprises need to have one integrated view of everything, through one pane of glass, to manage their IoT ecosystem as simply as possible.

Incorporating an effective device management strategy such as this would go a long way towards helping enterprises enable all that the connected future has to offer. IT teams would have full visibility into what is going on across every single endpoint, enabling them to maximise the value of the data being collected.

There may be challenges along the way, but developments in the consumer world have already shown the impact IoT can have on our everyday lives. By taking the concept of the smart home to the next level and putting systems in place to efficiently manage the data that is collected from a growing number of devices, enterprises will be able to innovate and take advantage of the tremendous potential the Internet of Things has to offer.

Digital transformation in finance has been the word on many people’s lips for some time now with new FinTechs being created on a daily basis. But it’s not just the FinTechs that have made a shift in this sector, it is also the big global tech firms such as Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft (GAFAM) that are now giving many organisations a run for their money, finance included, particularly with the Payment Services Directive 2 (PSD2) coming into force.

Flexible and nimble challenger banks are also looking at how they can inject the market with customer-led, creative and digital solutions. Whilst there have been casualties and many failed attempts to claim a share of the market, this injection of competition has certainly stirred things up and made everyone review their brand, how they operate and engage customers more effectively.

Given the challenges over the last ten years, and the marketing-led approach that has been taken by many of these new entrants in financial services, it’s not surprising that the spotlight has returned to marketing and communications as a central component to developing a robust growth strategy.

Monzo, for example, is one such organisation that has ripped up the rule books and taken a fresh new approach to engaging a younger, digital first end customer. Having started as a digital only banking service it was granted a full banking license earlier this year.

Never has it been more relevant and important to have a robust marketing and communications process to support reputation and the development of more credible and trusted relationship with customers.

Central to this is being clear as to what your story is, and what you want to be known for. In an industry where there are many new and older organisations, having a clear point of view that is different and positions you as a credible leader is key to success.

Integral to this communication’s led approach is having a CEO and leadership team that will take the plunge and lead the discussion along this journey. As the head of an organisation, the CEO will directly influence the personality of the business. He or she will set the tone for business behaviours and be fundamental in the creation of its identity (with a little help along the way). In many ways, the CEO is an essential member of the marketing team and leading voice piece for the business, or arguably should be.

Whilst CEOs are rightly focused on growth and financial return, they also recognise the value of building the ‘good’ reputation of their business, with many seeing themselves as the reputational stewards. The KPMG 2017 Global CEO outlook report outlines how reputation and risk, alongside trust in a time of disruption, has risen on the CEO agenda to become one of the top most important issues they face today.

We recently surveyed over 500 CEOs and CMOs, and our research showed us that whilst 95% of CEOs claim to regularly engage with marketing, over 70% then go on to provide a range of reasons why this does not happen in reality. When the CMOs were asked about the levels of contact that they had with their CEO, 42% said they still struggled to engage their CEO. This was particularly interesting given the fact that 84% of CEOs believe that a robust communications strategy is critical to business growth.

It appears that whilst many leaders believe they are involved and engaged, there is a perception gap between the CEO and CMO on what this really means, and what is required of the CEO.

So, despite its growing importance in driving growth and supporting new entrants in the financial services industry and further, there is still a real challenge that needs to be overcome in educating the CEO and leadership teams around marketing and communications in practise and their need to engage actively in this. They may understand its importance, but it appears many CEOs are still unclear about the role they should play, and the value this will have.

 

For more information on this topic and advice about how we can help you approach this please go to: https://speedcommunications.com/xchange/leadership-marketing-gap/

Finance Monthly connected with Colin McDonough, Director of 50 Words LLC to hear about his company and the crisis communications challenges that they help their clients with.

 

Can you tell us a bit about the work that you do with your firm 50 Words? What are the clients that you work with and what’s your overall goal for the company?

We are a full-service marketing, public relations and crisis communications firm. Although we have customers across many industries, we focus on financial services and professional services firms. This includes bank-owned and independent financial services providers such as asset-based lenders and factors, investment banking firms, financial advisory and turnaround firms and other professional services firms such as accounting and legal service providers. Our clients vary from start-ups through to Fortune 500 companies.

Our goal is to act as an extension of our clients’ marketing and communications departments if they have them. If not, we step into that role as their dedicated team. So, our services vary greatly from client to client. For some, we guide them through strategic planning and for others, it’s all about execution of an existing plan. On any given day, the professionals in our firm could be hard at work designing or updating websites, developing and posting content for social media or digital marketing campaigns, crafting communications such as press releases or helping guide a client through a crisis communications situation such as a criminal matter, downsizing of a labour force or other unforeseen situation.

 

What are the typical crisis communications challenges that you assist with? What’s the best way of handling one?  

Some examples of crisis communications situations we have worked through with clients include criminal matters, bankruptcy and downsizing of a labour forces, labour issues including strike, closing of business unit, sale of business unit, failed merger/joint venture and failed product launch.

The practice of crisis communications management is much different today due to a 24/7 news cycle along with a plethora of individuals on social media platforms reporting news. Brand value can be destroyed in minutes when a crisis hits.

The best approach for any company is to have a tested crisis communications team and process in place before a crisis happens. But sadly, this is not the case for most firms, especially middle market or smaller businesses who don’t want to spend the time or money for this to happen.

Firms need to have a plan and process in place, identify members and roles, select and train key spokesperson(s), control access to all communication points including the website and social media platforms, and build a relationship with a PR expert so he/she is knowledgeable about your firm before a crisis happens. Firms don’t have 24 hours to react when a crisis hits, they have minutes. If I could give one piece of advice to management teams, it would be to invest in media monitoring software.

 

What differentiates 50 Words from its competitors?

Two things. Firstly, our focus on financial services firms and professional services firms, many in the turnaround and restructuring space. A common complaint in any organization about the agencies they deal with is that they don’t understand the nuances of their sector. Our principals have over 25 years’ experience in the sector, so there isn’t a learning curve when they hire our firm. We network in the same industries as our clients so we understand the industry and market dynamics they face. Secondly, we offer a complete solution for our clients. Companies today are juggling multiple agencies to meet all their marketing and PR needs. That doesn’t work for small and middle market businesses who don’t have supply chain or internal resources to manage multiple vendors. We are that single source that our clients need. If we don’t have what they need, which is rare, we bring in a partner to meet their needs.

Rapid technological change is changing the business landscape and businesses have to adapt or will be left behind. While this change impacts all business functions, marketing and communications are particularly affected. The capabilities and competencies required for marketing and PR professionals are evolving and firms often can’t afford to have large teams in house to meet their growing needs. They should build a network of go-to technological savvy marketing and PR professionals to supplement their existing staff.

 

Website: http://www.50words.com/

Overwhelmed by demanding new regulations, leading financial institutions are relying on video to manage the flow of critical information to employees. Below Paul Herdman, Vice President of Qumu EMEA, explains how finance teams and compliance officers can make the most of enterprise videos.

With worldwide financial institutions finally beginning to recover from Brexit, and derivatives markets still adjusting to the rollout of MiFID I, the next communication crisis for this turbulent industry is already looming. As political and regulatory regimes continue to extend their influence, firms doing business across the EU must now preparing for implementation of the revised Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II)—which reaches beyond banking to impact trading as well—while US-based financial institutions are busy figuring out how to comply with GDPR (the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation).

With both regulations including organisations and their global subsidiaries, greater market transparency in the financial industry is becoming a worldwide mandate. These new directives will have a huge impact on regulated firms in 2018 and beyond and will require financial institutions to upgrade their processes, their compliance operations and most importantly their communication technologies.

A 2017 Thomson Reuters survey revealed the average annual cost of compliance for global financial organisations is $119M per organisation. Additionally, 73% of communication professionals reported that communicating company news to employees is a serious challenge and 37% reported internal silos as the number one challenge for internal communications.

As these companies respond to increasing demands of regulators to meet new directives, many are proactively focusing on developing robust communication programmes. And the centrepiece of these new programmes is, in many cases, an enterprise video platform. Live or on demand, IT executives know that video communication can be fully automated, easily searchable and consumed on any device—making it the perfect communication solution in highly regulated environments. In fact, if managed well, video communication can translate into shorter time-to-compliance, and save financial services firms hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars per year per employee.

But how?

Enterprise video to the rescue

There are many ways using an enterprise video platform can help financial institutions meet compliance directives:

Timely communication: when workforces are dispersed, video messages can be easily created and instantly distributed to employees as regulations change.

Opportunities for feedback: key stakeholders can submit feedback and questions to the executive team, which can be captured and tracked for future resolution, or to identify gaps in the current process.

Timely collaboration: financial institutions can create private communication channels where key team members can share knowledge, insights and outcomes related to their discipline or functional responsibility.

Strategy alignment: video is a great way to present a consistent story across the organisation—before the message is taken externally and any room for misalignment is eliminated.

Increased readiness: video polls can be used to gauge readiness on a specific topic or portion of a new regulation, reinforcing mission-critical compliance procedures.

Documented audit trail: with marketing teams playing a key role in the new directives, automated workflows for approvals and audit trails are key for financial promotions and marketing collateral compliance.

Configurable security: executives can share knowledge quickly across the organisation, privately to specific groups of key stakeholders or to larger audiences with no content restrictions.

Reporting and analytics: a video content management system can provide advanced analytics on content review, meeting attendance and overall engagement with the company message.

In conclusion – broaden your reach

Technology investments in enterprise video are key to mitigating regulatory risk. Not only do they provide a platform to communicate how regulatory changes will impact activity, but they allow financial institutions to quickly adapt to evolving rollouts, and ensure that all financial activities, including trades, remain in compliance. With the right enterprise video platform in place, many global financial institutions have been prepared well in advance for MiFID II and GDPR to happen. Is your company ready?

If you are interested in any small scale company video production in the UK, businesses can reach out to Tell Your Story UK here.

With MiFID II looming, finance businesses across the UK will be reviewing their practices to ensure the way they work complies with the new regulations. Here, Alex Tebbs, Founder at VIA, explains what the regulations mean for the way we communicate as businesses, and how your business can comply come January 2018.

MiFID II is a targeted regulation update that aims to improve transparency and better protect both providers and customers of the finance sector.

In that sense, it exists to make things better for everyone; but with the January deadline looming and uncertainty still rife around the impact of Brexit on the update, many in the finance industry are still considering the best way to achieve compliance in their business.

It’s a regulation update made up of many facets, one being the requirement for businesses to record their communications in any instance where that conversation results in, or intended to result in, a transaction. Those communications must be retained - and be accessible when called upon - for five years after the event.

Creating a post-MiFID communications plan

In many ways, the communication requirements of MiFID II make a lot of sense. By recording our conversations, we can be sure that we are serving our customers in the best way, and that they are protected from any potential misunderstandings or misdemeanors.

But in today’s multi-device, multi-location business landscape, compliance isn’t so simple. While once we would have communicated on one device (likely a landline) and from one office, the reality of business today is that we often use multiple devices (and even encourage colleagues to bring their own devices) and operate across multiple locations, including remote working from home, offices in different countries and communications on the move.

This presents a challenge for finance professionals. How do we achieve compliance in this complex communications landscape?

The best place to start is with a review of your existing communications plan as a business. You’ll need to work out what platforms and devices are used to communicate, and make a record of all of those, as they will need to be included in your recording strategy. Be aware that this mightn’t be as straightforward as it sounds, and it’s likely to take time to uncover all the comms platforms in use.

The next step is then to work out how best to record those communications. On a landline, this would require hardware such as a microphone plugged into the handset. There are various apps that make it possible to record calls on a smartphone or via clients like Skype.

An alternative to this somewhat clunky process is to invest in a unified communications platform. This brings all your communication tools - smartphones, landlines, Skype, instant messaging, text - onto one platform which can be easily controlled from one portal, making recording and keeping those conversations a much easier, quicker process.

However you choose to manage your communications, one thing is clear; you will need to be able to both record, and keep, those conversations from January when MiFID II comes into play.

Security considerations in communications

It certainly won’t have passed by your attention that another sizeable regulation update is taking place in 2018; namely, GDPR, an update to data protection rules.

With GDPR putting renewed emphasis on security - and with MiFID’s requirements for comms recording - security should be placed firmly atop the agenda of financial firms.

There are various options on how we achieve security in communications. The most universally relevant and powerful is that of end-to-end encryption; with the main risk of unsecured comms being that communications could be intercepted en route, end-to-end encryption removes this risk by making the information, even when intercepted, entirely useless.

For those businesses using a unified communications platform, encryption and many other security considerations are included as standard, with large investments being made by those companies into stress testing their platforms and removing any vulnerabilities as soon as they are considered as a potential risk factor. For those using separate communications channels, a strict security testing strategy will need to be in place to ensure all communications are safe and private.

In terms of retaining those recorded conversations, security is a concern once again. Secure servers and storage areas are a must; consider also who has access to these recordings, and ensure they have a signed agreement in place that complies with data protection rules, and that your business’ data protection processes are up to date - especially as GDPR hits in May 2018.

MiFID II and the communications landscape

There is much left unknown about how MiFID II will affect finance businesses in the long run, and it’s likely that the implementation of its regulations will uncover complexities that need to be clarified as we move into the new year.

With that said, the communications element is prescriptive; finance professionals must record and maintain a record of all communications, regardless of device, platform or location. Is your business ready?

Paul Puxty originally trained as a Chartered Accountant with PriceWaterhouseCoopers, working in their audit function. After 12 years with PwC, gaining varied work experiences, including a two-year spell in Melbourne, Australia, he was looking for his first role in “industry”, which resulted in joining Neopost as Financial Controller in 2001. After 5 years in that role, in 2006 he was promoted to the role of Finance Director for Neopost UK. Here Paul tells us more about the ins and outs of his role, his day-to-day responsibilities and Neopost.

 

How would you describe your role at Neopost, especially in relation to ensuring business growth?

 Within Neopost, as well as my responsibilities for the traditional finance function, I am also responsible for a large credit control team (at any one time we can have upwards of 40,000 live customers), our UK leasing operations and IT. In addition, I am also responsible for the cash collection of around £0.5 billion in respect of postage collected from customers and paid over to Royal Mail.

My specific responsibilities in relation to ensuring business growth are (i) ensuring that we have the appropriate systems and processes in place to cope with a growing customer base and increasingly new and varied revenue streams, for example Software as a Service (SAAS) revenues, (ii) ensuring that the UK leasing operation continues to provide appropriate finance solutions to allow our customers to finance the purchase of Neopost products, and (iii) to support the business in identifying new revenue opportunities, whether through acquisition, partnership or new products.

 

How is Neopost adapting its products to the changing landscape of mail and communications?

The methods used by businesses to communicate with employees, customers and partners have evolved rapidly in the last few decades. Where once physical mail and fax reigned supreme, digital channels are now often chosen for their cost effectiveness and speed. Companies must utilise multiple channels in order to send and receive correspondence via the method that best suits the message being sent and the preferences of the recipient. Accurately managing personalised communications such as invoices, payments and marketing promotions are critical interactions with customers that will impact cost, efficiency and customer satisfaction.

As such, Neopost’s software portfolio complements our expertise in mail, which remains an important channel for many companies and customers. Our Output Management Software (OMS) solutions empower organisations to simply manage and enrich communications across every customer touchpoint – mail, email, SDS and website. Our electronic document management software digitally captures data from all types of physical and electronic documents to allow easy distribution, online processing and archiving.

 

Does your role include cost saving throughout the business?

One of the main responsibilities of any Finance Director is controlling costs. Businesses want to keep innovating and providing a better service for customers, but achieving that involves ensuring resources are being invested in the most effective ways. You have to analyse your outgoings, making sure capital isn’t being spent on redundant overheads that will create value if used elsewhere. Neopost has around 1.8m outbound communications with our customers each year (excluding our website), so I have a keen interest in all the communications that the company distributes.

 

How are you adapting to the challenge of digitisation in the finance department and Neopost generally?

Digital technology has had a massive impact on our finance department and wider business too. We have transitioned to e-invoicing to reduce the costs and time involved in billing our customers. After only 6 months 70% of customers had transitioned to email, so the savings on postage were substantial. In addition, processing time from invoice creation to delivery to recipient has been reduced by up to 5 days. Hardcopies of critical documents, such as invoices, quotes and contracts, have almost become redundant, with electronic versions providing instant retrieval and accessibility, savings on storage space, as well as a more comprehensive audit trail.

Our e-invoicing solutions empower accounts receivable teams to automate the preparation, creation and sending of digital invoices, drastically shortening payment times. It’s a similar story when it comes to payment processing where electronic document management (EDM) solutions manage document workflow, ensuring digital items are reaching their intended targets and not sitting unread in inboxes. The man hours spent on cheque validation have been reduced by 20% and the processing time per cheque from opening to validation was cut by 50%.

 

How much of your time is taken up with Compliance issues? How do you manage these problems?

Compliance is often viewed as a burden, and accounting is arguably more stringently regulated than any of the other functions. We need to ensure that our processes comply with HMRC requirements, regarding auditability and archiving, and that the right document goes to the right person. As such, ensuring that all of the necessary requirements are being met from the start is vital, which means rigorous and reliable processes are essential to ensure that tasks are completed in a compliant way.

The word ‘audit’ will always generate a certain element of dread, but companies that include compliance from the beginning and imbed it into their everyday accounting activities will decrease the need for the mad rush to get everything in order.

 

 

To find out how your business can benefit from e-invoicing, download Neopost’s white paper by visiting www.neopost.co.uk/einvoicingwp.

 

The Ethos Group, a leading provider of Unified Communications in the UK and Europe, is launching a brand new mobile phone service. Matt Hill, Managing Director of the Voice and Data division at Ethos, speaks to Finance Monthly about this brand new product, how it fits in with Ethos’ current product and solution portfolio and why your business should invest in it.

 We’ve all been there, on the phone to a customer whilst driving on the open road or sat speeding past the English countryside on a train when suddenly you lose signal, and your connection to the customer.

Mobile phone network coverage in the UK is a patchwork of different operators, running their networks on different masts. The result is that in often less populated areas one mobile running on one network may have a good signal, while another mobile on a different network may have none.

Over a fifth of the UK has partial or non-existent mobile coverage, where one or more of the carrier networks can’t deliver adequate connectivity. These areas are called “not-spots” and they cost the UK economy dearly.

But what does poor and patchy coverage mean for financial organisations? In 2015, the FCA set rules and regulations obliging financial firms to retain records of specific telephone conversations for at least six months. When you consider that two-thirds of businesses now use remote workers, losing signal whilst travelling through these “not-spots” make it increasingly difficult for these financial firms to comply with these regulations on their mobile devices whilst remotely working. The loss to UK plc is in the tens of millions and as businesses become ever more dependent on mobile data and communications, the loss escalates.

 Thankfully, there is a solution. Multi-Net offers businesses the ability to unlock their mobile fleet by allowing a business mobile to roam carrier networks by switching the device between each network as the signal strength varies. This gives businesses the best possible network coverage across the UK and helps them to avoid the financial, and compliance, liability that not-spots represent.

 In addition, Multi-Net will converge with fixed-line telephony systems and in the converged future of telephony, all the feature functionality of a fixed-line handset will be on a mobile device – and vice versa.  This means that features that are traditionally aligned with fixed-line systems, such as call recording, will be available to mobile devices giving businesses greater control of their entire telephony network, regardless of the device.

With this, you will be able to record inbound or outbound calls for compliance, customer service or audit purposes. This feature allows secure online access to file storage and retrieval of call details. This means that financial organisations can comply with FCA’s regulations, no matter where your employees are.

It is hugely important that businesses partner with providers, like Ethos, to get ahead of the competition. Indeed, there are powerful developments in mobile already coming to the market that can deliver huge benefits to financial organisations. Multi-Net and Converged mobile telephony will build on these capabilities and drive businesses into the future. Companies that engage with the providers, like Ethos, looking to offer these solutions will be best placed to reap the rewards of game-changing technological advancement.

 

Want to find out more? Join Ethos at St. George’s Park, Burton-upon-Trent on Thursday 11th May, 10am-4pm.

Email marketing@ethos.co.uk to register.

Here Jamie Diaferia and Benjamin Thiele-Long of Infinite Global provide Finance Monthly with expert insight on the growing needs of branding and why the right balance of considerations will allow your business’ brand to thrive among the competition.

Last month, Brand Finance published its Global 500 report which saw Lego regain its position as the world’s most powerful brand. But while it’s hard to refute that the ultimate and overriding purpose of building a powerful brand is to make money -- after all the business of business is business -- it raises the question: Why do some brands fare better than others in establishing their brand strength in the market?

Whatever sector a company works in it needs a unique reason to exist, something to set itself apart from competitors. The skill is in how it communicates this reason, and history has given us examples of brands that have failed and those that have succeeded against the odds. When we talk about ‘brand’, we must go beyond the look and feel of the product or offering that a company provides. Instead, brand sits more with the idea of reputation and how this is leveraged to make a company successful.

Firstly, there’s a question to be asked: What is the purpose of a strong brand? For a commercial brand the starting point must always be ‘to make money’. However, when you look at companies like Google, Apple and Walmart, these are companies that are regarded as doing more than simply generating a profit -- they also attract customers, build loyalty and motivate staff.

The enduring strength of Lego’s brand is without doubt linked to both its simplicity and the breadth of its appeal which spans generations and genders, treasured by households for its ability to inspire creativity and nostalgia. What is most interesting about Brand Finance’s research, however, is that Lego scores highly on a wide variety of Brand Strength Index (BSI) measurements including; familiarity, loyalty, promotion, marketing investment, staff satisfaction, price premium and corporate reputation.

The matrix of factors that contribute to the BSI are worth exploring further, as they demonstrate that brand power is not dictated by the size of the organisation but factors such as loyalty and staff satisfaction, which are far more difficult to control and measure.

It’s also interesting to see that brand power is not unique to any particular sector. The top 10 most powerful brands according to Brand Finance’s research, all of which achieve a AAA+ rating on the BSI, spread across a range of sectors including banking, tech, media and professional services. So, it appears that brand strength relies on much more than just generating a large customer following.

Building brand power relies on leadership placing equal importance and resource on internal and external factors and audiences. Lego’s bounce back from near bankruptcy in the early 2000’s is largely attributed to the appointment of Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, a former McKinsey consultant and the first person outside the founding family to run the company when he was appointed CEO in 2004.

Knudstorp was able to stem the bleeding by selling off peripheral businesses such as theme parks and video games, and discontinuing unpopular ranges in turn ensuring that all products were compatible with the core offering both in their look and mechanical compatibility.

Rather than accrediting his revised strategy for Lego’s return to form, Knudstorp attributes the company’s ongoing success to its employees and customers. When asked about turning Lego around, he points out that employee engagement serves as the foundation of the company’s reward system, while customer loyalty gives Lego the chance to serve multiple generations of family members. Prior to the turnaround, Knudstorp noted that Lego had taken this loyalty for granted by stretching the brand too thin. Instead, he wanted Lego to be an irreplaceable but also irresistible brand for children.

The balance, achieved perfectly within Lego, was in rewarding financial value creation with having creative and engaged employees. In Knudstorp’s words, creating a culture where at the end of each year he could stand in front of everyone and say, “thank you for doing all of the things I never asked you to do”.

How is this done? It’s not about control where people are simply doing what they are told, because that simply creates bureaucracy. Instead, it’s about communicating to stakeholders, both internal and external, the reason for doing things, the context. Creating clarity of culture and strategic choice in turn gives clarity of purpose, i.e. Why do I want to do a good job?

Brands can spend a fortune on communicating their message and values to customers, in the hope it brings them to their doors. The value of selling a brand promise, rather than simply the product, to consumers has long been understood. Increasingly, there is equal importance in the approach of ‘internal marketing’ – communicating brand values to employees.

It’s a very simple premise: Employees, whether working for a consumer brand or a professional services company, are more likely to get fired up and remain engaged if they feel they are doing something that’s actually worthwhile. Steve Jobs, for example, was renowned for being less concerned about making a profit than ‘thinking differently’, yet Apple became the most profitable company in history.

In a recent TED talk, Simon Sinek argues that the most successful companies have products, cultures, and marketing strategies that all stem from their raison d'être. This is why companies like Apple and Tesla have grown into such powerhouse names – consumers and employees alike know exactly why the company does what it does (and in the way it does), because it helps both audiences meet the human craving for authenticity, purpose and meaning. In this same way Lego’s focus on core values and its alignment of commerce and culture enabled the toy manufacturer to put all the pieces together again.

There are three key challenges currently facing the financial services sector: building trust with customers; embracing new technology; and challenging the challengers as more businesses look to diversify and offer new innovative products and online services. It’s an interesting time, and one where communications are critical.

To combat these challenges, all businesses have to think about the way they engage with audiences and tell their story. Financial services firms in particular need to be seen as human-facing businesses, which is why creating an emotional connection has become as central to a successful communications programme as the value-led product information you provide. In the past this has been far more common in the consumer marketplace.

From smaller start-ups to larger, more established corporate machines, both ends of the scale need help to do this in different ways. The latter often benefit from a focus on refreshing their communications approach and revisiting their market position, such as identifying more engaging and digitally-focused channels (vital given the current landscape of disruptive and challenger SMEs). The former, such as FinTech brands challenging the status quo, need help to build their brand and instil confidence in customers where the brand has a less supporting heritage to build a credible market position.

At Speed, we build a partnership and consultancy position with all our clients from the start to help them on their journey. Working with a wide range of finance and professional services clients, we are particularly adept at supporting organisations with a brave attitude to their communications who are looking to disrupt the market.

Our approach to communications is based on combining business brains with creative muscle. This means utilising intelligence and insight, alongside imagination and creativity. By combining these with the influence and connections we have with media and stakeholders, we create real impact for our clients.

The word impact is key for us. When approaching our work, we always consider the impact and how we can offer a return on investment. The bottom line is in fact a hugely important factor when it comes to external communications – how will our efforts support business development?

Thought leadership positioning to create brand awareness and reputational growth is central to this. From the start of a relationship, we believe it is important that we work closely with leadership teams to understand their challenges, and help to identify their vision, mission and leadership offer. Communications and marketing has an important role to play and should be driven from the top down, so we spend time with our clients to understand their business. We also take a deep dive into their marketplace to understand market trends, core competitors and key stakeholders so we have a clear view on market positioning plus barriers and opportunities.

Telling your business story in an engaging and emotional way allows you to connect with an end audience and demonstrate what you have to offer. Understanding audience groups by segmenting key decision makers and influencers to discover what they need and the challenges they face is key to this. This insight then informs the central narrative we create and the journey we aim to take a business’s various audiences on.

The truth is, it is becoming harder to stand out from the crowd. Businesses therefore need to be brave in their approach and willing to say something different, to have a point of view. This is particularly relevant in the world of financial services where everyone is vying for the same commentary space, to be seen as an expert commentator on growth, the economy, and of course – for the moment – Brexit.

Over the last ten years in the communications industry, we have seen colossal changes in the way we work and communicate; technology has been hugely beneficial but has also brought with it new challenges. We are no longer in a world where we simply push out content. We are now in a two-way discussion with audiences.

The use of social media channels and online content hubs have helped us to communicate news for our clients and provide commentary faster and more efficiently. These channels allow us to engage, have conversations and build emotional connections with audiences. And the speed at which this content is consumed is only expected to increase.

For me, remaining curious and relevant for our clients is key to helping them stand out from the crowd – with our business insight and intelligence we demonstrate this daily. When this is combined with creative thinking and channel knowledge, we are able to identify even more opportunities to deliver our clients’ stories to their target audiences in new and engaging ways. Together we are on an exciting journey and a strong partnership from the start is key to our joint success.

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Finance Monthly is a comprehensive website tailored for individuals seeking insights into the world of consumer finance and money management. It offers news, commentary, and in-depth analysis on topics crucial to personal financial management and decision-making. Whether you're interested in budgeting, investing, or understanding market trends, Finance Monthly provides valuable information to help you navigate the financial aspects of everyday life.
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