The Power Of Financial Media Networks

Summary

MarTech Podcast ™ // Marketing + Technology = Business Growth
Episode: The Power Of Financial Media Networks
Release Date: December 31, 2024
Host: Benjamin Shapiro
Guest: Tom Burgess, President of Snip Media

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Overview

In this insightful episode of the MarTech Podcast ™, host Benjamin Shapiro engages in a profound discussion with Tom Burgess, the President of Snip Media, about the burgeoning influence of financial media networks in the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) sector. They delve into how these networks, primarily operated by major banks, are revolutionizing marketing strategies by leveraging trust, data, and innovative media assets to drive business growth.

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1. Introduction to Financial Media Networks

[01:15 - 02:10]
Benjamin Shapiro introduces the topic by highlighting the emergence of financial media networks as a pivotal development in the CPG landscape over the past decade. Tom Burgess elaborates on the concept, emphasizing how brands seek new audiences through trusted financial institutions.

Tom Burgess [02:10]:
"Imagine if you're a brand and you want to find a new audience. Like you just said, that's a hard thing to do."

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2. Explaining Financial Media Networks

Segment: Expl Me
To simplify the concept, they use an analogy suitable for explaining financial media networks to a younger audience. Tom explains that banks are leveraging their trusted platforms to offer brands a unique channel to reach consumers.

Tom Burgess [02:36]:
"We have a opportunity as brands and Media executives and media people to monetize that channel. It's a brand new channel and the by far and away the most important piece of that channel is it's incredibly trusted and reliable."

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3. Media Assets and Delivery Mechanisms

[04:53 - 07:09]
Benjamin probes deeper into the specific media assets that financial institutions possess. Tom outlines how banks utilize their digital assets—such as websites, mobile applications, and email communications—to promote CPG products effectively.

Tom Burgess [06:38]:
"The banks are primarily leveraging their digital assets. All right, it's web page, it's their mobile application. It is introduced while the consumers landing on like just logging into the page, they're promoting it there."

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4. The Pillar of Trust

Segment: What's the Word?
When asked to encapsulate why financial media networks are effective, both agree that trust is the cornerstone of their success. The inherent trust consumers place in their banks translates into higher engagement rates for the offers presented.

Tom Burgess [07:25]:
"When you see that, that's amazing, right? Because they trust the bank. This is their trust, as you mentioned, it's where they put all their money."

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5. Leveraging Brand Equity from Banks

[08:27 - 10:28]
Benjamin draws parallels between retail and financial media networks, noting that banks' established trust enhances the credibility of the brands they partner with. Tom agrees, explaining that this symbiotic relationship boosts brand equity on both sides.

Tom Burgess [09:09]:
"So the banks know that their brand is strong. They know they have a very trusted environment. But the brands are coming in and saying, I know I've got a good brand and you want to be associated with me."

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6. Data Sharing and Privacy Considerations

[09:09 - 10:28]
The conversation shifts to data management, with Tom highlighting banks' superior first-party data capabilities. He underscores the importance of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and Payment Card Information (PCI) in creating targeted and effective marketing campaigns.

Tom Burgess [09:09]:
"In a world where you now on traditional media, even retail media, you deal with pii, personally identifiable information. And PCI is the payment card information on the banks."

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7. Applications for CPG Brands

Segment: Connection Request
Benjamin inquires about who stands to benefit most from financial media networks. Tom identifies large CPG brands, particularly those in everyday consumer goods, as the primary beneficiaries due to the consistent consumer engagement in these categories.

Tom Burgess [11:50]:
"But the brands are coming in and saying, I know I've got a good brand and you want to be associated with me."

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8. Revenue Models and Partnerships

[13:08 - 14:53]
The discussion delves into the financial mechanics behind these networks. Tom explains how collaborations between banks and retailers can offset interchange fees through shared revenue from CPG promotions, creating a mutually beneficial ecosystem.

Tom Burgess [13:08]:
"There is a value proposition to the banks and to the retailers. So we've been kind of talking about CPGs here and banks and not bringing in the retailers as much."

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9. Prioritized Categories and Consumer Engagement

[16:14 - 17:49]
Tom elaborates on the categories that banks prioritize for promotions, focusing on everyday essentials like groceries, beverages, health, and beauty products. He shares insights on consumer behaviors and engagement metrics, highlighting the high click-through rates for relevant offers.

Tom Burgess [16:14]:
"In this category, what it does is it makes that little blue/red card, the one I go to because, oh, I got to use that at the grocery."

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10. Conclusion and Final Insights

[17:59 - End]
As the episode wraps up, Tom encourages brands to seize the opportunity to experiment and collaborate with banks through platforms like Snip Media. He emphasizes the readiness of banks to innovate and support unique marketing campaigns.

Tom Burgess [18:14]:
"The banks want to work with brands. They want to try it out and they're good fun environment to do it because they'll do anything if a brand wants to influence."

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Key Takeaways

• Trust is Paramount: Financial media networks benefit immensely from the inherent trust consumers place in their financial institutions.

• Data-Driven Targeting: Banks possess rich first-party data that enables precise targeting and attribution, enhancing the effectiveness of marketing campaigns.

• Strategic Partnerships: Collaborations between banks, retailers, and CPG brands can create sustainable revenue models and drive mutual growth.

• Focus on Everyday Essentials: Promotions centered around daily consumer needs, such as groceries and personal care items, yield higher engagement and conversion rates.

• Innovative Marketing Channels: Financial media networks represent a novel and effective channel for brands to reach and engage with consumers in a trusted environment.

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Notable Quotes

• Tom Burgess [02:36]:
  "It's a brand new channel and the by far and away the most important piece of that channel is it's incredibly trusted and reliable."

• Tom Burgess [07:25]:
  "When you see that, that's amazing, right? Because they trust the bank. This is their trust, as you mentioned, it's where they put all their money."

• Tom Burgess [09:09]:
  "They know they have a very trusted environment. But the brands are coming in and saying, I know I've got a good brand and you want to be associated with me."

• Tom Burgess [18:14]:
  "The banks want to work with brands. They want to try it out and they're good fun environment to do it because they'll do anything if a brand wants to influence."

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Final Thoughts

This episode underscores the transformative potential of financial media networks in the CPG sector. By harnessing the power of trusted financial institutions, brands can achieve more targeted, trustworthy, and effective marketing outcomes. Tom Burgess's expertise provides a comprehensive roadmap for brands looking to navigate and capitalize on this innovative marketing frontier.

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For more insights and detailed discussions, visit martechpod.com or connect with Tom Burgess on LinkedIn.

Transcript

[Benjamin Shapiro]

The Martech Podcast is a proud member of the I Hear Everything Podcast Network. Looking to launch or scale your podcast, I Hear Everything delivers podcast production, growth and monetization solutions that transform your words into profit. Ready to give your brand a voice? Then visit iheareverything.com.

From advertising to software as a service to data, across all of our programs and clients, we've seen a 55 to 65% open rate.

[Tom Burgess]

Getting brands authentically integrated into content performs better than TV advertising.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Typical lifespan of an article is about.

[Tom Burgess]

24 to 36 hours.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

If we're reaching out to the right person with the right message and a clear call to action, then it's just a matter of timing.

Welcome to the Martech Podcast, a member of the I Hear Everything Podcast network. In this podcast, you'll hear the stories of world class marketers that used to technology to drive business results and achieve career success. Here's the host of the Martech Podcast, Benjamin Shapiro.

Welcome to the Martech Podcast. I'm your host, Benjamin Shapiro and today we're going to discuss CPG marketing strategies. Joining me is Tom Burgess, who is the president of Snip Media, which is an engagement solution company that offers promotion and loyalty programs or CPG brands to engage customers in store and at home. All right, I want to talk about the power of financial media networks. This seems like the biggest thing to happen in the CPG space in a decade. Right. I talked about, we've moved from the, hey, look at this. All of a sudden there's a direct to consumer brand popping up all over the place that seems to be kind of a commodity now. Now all of a sudden there's a different way to buy and advertise your CPG product. So let's get into this. I want to start off with a segment we like to call Expl Me where you're going to explain what a financial media network is like. I'm my son who's in the second grade.

[Tom Burgess]

So imagine if you're a brand and you want to find a new audience. Like you just said, that's a hard thing to do. That's a hard challenge to say. I need to find the next audience. I need to find an audience that I haven't been able to reach and maybe my whole category isn't able to reach. And I want to be the first there in the financial institutions, consumer banks, right, that have credit cards, debit cards, accounts like you and I use every day.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

My daddy has one of those.

[Tom Burgess]

Yes, there you go. We have a opportunity as brands and Media executives and media people to monetize that channel. It's a brand new channel and the by far and away the most important piece of that channel is it's incredibly trusted and reliable. It has a high engagement rate. People visit their banking application or their banking website multiple times a week and they're there all the time. They don't just go and then come back. They go and they are constantly coming back and they're there to talk about their money. So it's very valuable environment for brands to offer discounts. That's why I say I focus on the rewards, the discount side. Now, if you are a brand and you're looking to reach this new audience, what's important to you? First party data. We talked a little bit about targeting attribution. So did the consumer see my ad? Did they buy it? Well, who has better data than a bank on where's the consumer shopping? Am I able to target those people that shop at the grocery store as opposed to wasting some of my money to target people that don't shop at grocery if I'm in that category. So banks have that ability to do that targeting.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Tom, I got to bust your chops.

[Tom Burgess]

Go, man.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

If I'm the second grade teacher here, I'm giving you an incomplete because you use lots of words that my second grader wouldn't understand. Great description of what a financial media network is. But a third grader is not going to understand that. What I'm hearing from you is that there's this thing retail media networks and there's all these stores that understand who buys certain products and they can put ads in front of those people to sell your product. And the difference between a retail media network and a financial media network is instead of being the store, the Amazon, the Walmart, whoever it is that you go to the candy store. Now we're going to the banks. And the banks have media assets as well. But their biggest assets are, first off, conversion data, they understand who bought something. And second, they've got more trust than anybody because who would you trust more than the person that you give all of your money to?

[Tom Burgess]

There you go. That's the trust.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

How did I do describing this to somebody like a third grader?

[Tom Burgess]

Well, I'm glad you're here to carry me along.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

It's a team exercise. I guess the big question for me, moving beyond pretending to be a third grader, which I do a lot of at home, what are the media assets that a financial institution has? Like how do they have the tonnage to display advertising to get people from the bank website or wherever the, you know, media is coming from to actually purchase products.

[Tom Burgess]

So it's driven by the fact that the banks have an interest in this. Their interest is called top of wallet. Top of wallet means that on average all of us consumers carry multiple credit cards, some as much as four credit cards in their wallet at any given time. So any bank is looking to be that first one you reach to be that top of wallet card. Give the consumer the reason to pull that card out of their wallet first. So they the banks are then very motivated to display to you. And I reasons discounts, hey, use my card, save more money than that other guy's card. So that's the simplest version of why a bank is doing this and how a bank is wanting to push forward with this. And when we talk to banks, it's a unique approach that has gone from the old school, earn points or maybe get discounts on every purchase. But today it's much more focused on oh, let's know this person shops in this category, that category. So I'm going to now put offers in front of them that are relevant to them so we can drive that multiple.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

What's the delivery mechanism? Are they using bank websites, push alerts like how do they figure out how to promote a CPG product through the card, the website, like how do they deliver the media?

[Tom Burgess]

The banks are primarily leveraging their digital assets. All right, it's web page, it's their mobile application. It is introduced while the consumers landing on like just logging into the page, they're promoting it there. They're sending emails out to their cardholders and their account holders saying hey, we've got new ways for you to save money. It's always wrapped in that hey, we're thinking of you promotion type of environment. It's a loyalty play.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

All right, I want to move on to a segment we call what's the word? Give me one word that explains why on earth going to your bank to present offers for a CPG brand works. Why do financial media networks work in one word, trust.

[Tom Burgess]

It's a simple word that it's so strong, stronger than I anticipated. I've been working with banks on their loyalty programs and these types of discounts for a decade. We recently with snip launched a unique version of this offers at the SKU level, right down to the item level. And I maybe we can go into that. But it was very surprising to me to see the amount of engagement when the consumers saw this new thing on their bank. We had A significant number of people that activated that. You've got to engage, click on it. And not only that, but they then added when we said, do you want to put your email in here? So you'll find out when we have new offers. And we had over 50% of the people, in some cases 60% of the people were putting in there or clicking the button saying, yeah, I want you to email me now. When you see that, that's amazing, right? Because they trust the bank. This is their trust, as you mentioned, it's where they put all their money. So they believe, hey, this is a real deal, this is a real program.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Yeah. It's interesting. I'm making the correlation between what we talked about when we were talking about retail media networks and how to fend off the pricing pressure, should you discount or not? And the way to avoid having to be a discount brand is to build a brand. And when we talk about financial media networks, it seems like what you're doing is you're borrowing brand equity from the banks, right? One of the most trusted, established, stable places. So you can believe the offer is, well, if my bank is saying that this is a deal, it seems like I have fundamental trust in them. We've got a pretty established relationship. I could probably have some credibility with the brand that's being presented to me.

[Tom Burgess]

And in that the banks are. Is it right to say it cuts both ways? There are banks that are saying no to certain categories. There are banks that are looking for those brands to give the best in market, offer the best in market program, or maybe an exclusive program. So the banks do know that their brand is strong. They know they have a very trusted environment. But the brands are coming in and saying, I know I've got a good brand and you want to be associated with me. So it's a fair amount of brand equity in that relationship building that we're seeing right now. I'd say also that in a world where you now on traditional media, even retail media, you deal with pii, personally identifiable information. And PCI is the payment card information on the banks. So PII is only in that digital media world. PCI with the banks is all about additional information about your payment card or. And so you have new data and the banks have to be very careful with that. The banks now have these two elements that they cannot share and that they have to protect. And it's an environment where the consumer is trusting that that will happen. But this is a value proposition as well to the brands. It's new data.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

All right, I Want to move on to our last segment, connection request. Let's make some networking magic happen. Who needs a financial media network and how do they get one?

[Tom Burgess]

Financial media networks in themselves are the banks. So the biggest banks in the United States anyway, the top five banks all have financial media networks actively.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Wells Fargo, Citibank, bank of America, Chase.

[Tom Burgess]

PNC bank, there's a few digital banks coming hard right now. Right. But these banks all have networks right now. These financial media networks, they all have opportunities for retailers to put offers up. The newest trend, the newest innovation in those environments, which is about a decade old, is to be able to put your brand up there. So now Nestle, now Coke can advertise on these banks. That's a brand new capability. It's something that's only been up and live for about six months right now.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

All right, so it seems like the answer is that who is the financial media networks? It's the big banks and who needs one? It's the largest of the brands. And mostly when we talk about cpg, you're looking at your sodas, your chips, your, I'm assuming, batteries, things like that. Is it all consumer products or are there other types of brands outside of CPG that are also using financial media networks?

[Tom Burgess]

Yeah, this is where we go back to the banks making some decisions on what's most important based on their knowledge of spend. Right. And what drives spend. So they want everyday purchase products. That's what the banks are saying. So they're giving preference right now to food products, beverage products, everyday spend, grocery items. The next category is health care, beauty and health. I should say. So beauty and health are the next big products coming in. We see electric shavers with great offers coming in right now. We see different types of lotions. I don't want to throw out all these particular brands, but these are the items that are second in.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Yeah, things that when you're done with them, you refill them and you keep the product on your shelf at home.

[Tom Burgess]

That's right. That's the categories that are most relevant.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

It's interesting that you're saying it's the. And I'm assuming that this is the way the transactions generate revenue for the banks. Like you swipe your card, you buy a product, there's a 3% transaction fee and a 25 cent fee. Right now they're prioritizing the 25 cent transaction fee, not the 3% of what they're charging fee. So they want a bunch of purchases as opposed to one large purchase where the 3% fee makes a Difference.

[Tom Burgess]

This is an interesting thread to pull here because there's a value proposition to the banks and to the retailers. So we've been kind of talking about CPGs here and banks and not bringing in the retailers as much. There's an opportunity here for that interchange to be offset by a bank promoting offers discounts to a particular set of consumers. What the banks would call a portfolio across their credit cards. Right. And they would maybe go to a retailer and say, if you help us with this program, as in you as a retailer are a particular data partner with us, give us access to your data and we will give the consumer the discount and we'll share some of the revenue with you. I may have lost you there because this topic of interchange offset is what it's called is a outstanding opportunity for banks and retailers to come closer together. They don't like each other. Let's be real. There are multi billion dollar lawsuits out there about interchange fees. You just brought that up, right? So when a retailer is saying, you're charging too much, Mr. Bank, my margins are too small. But now with this type of environment where SKU level offers and a CPG wants to reach that trusted audience in that trusted environment and drive more transactions, a retailer can work with a bank and that revenue that comes in from the cpg, who the CPG is happy to pay it because you're getting attribution data, it's working. I'm running profitable transactions. Every time I pay, the retailer gets a piece of that. That in turn discounts the interchange. So it's a convoluted way to go.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

That's really interesting. You know, when I was thinking about who needs a financial media network, my assumption was it was going to be large ticket items, right? Your cars, your airplane flights. What is a offer that my bank can give me that I'd be like, ooh, I'm going to hop on this offer. It's get $200 off your next United flight. Seems like it would be something that I'm like, that's actually going to stop me from being in my banking app and get me to pay some attention as opposed to like get 25 cents off a Coke. Okay, maybe if it's a category. Normally when I think about the offers that my bank gives me, it's like get 25% off gas and it doesn't matter what gas station is. It's not CPG related, it's category related. So I'm surprised to hear that banks are prioritizing the everyday purchases. Although strategically I understand it Makes sense. But the other thing that I heard from you is the way that the banks are adding value is by sharing essentially. Not just the here's a deal to drive more conversions because the bank has media network. It's a data sharing practice. It's understanding the who it is marketing value. So you can go to the banks, understand with 100% certainty who bought your products and maybe some of their behaviors. So then you can take that information and run your other marketing campaign successfully as well.

[Tom Burgess]

You're right there. Right? It's an interesting conversation because it's a forest through the trees moment here. For me in this conversation, I'm so deep into it and I don't always bring up those maybe more obvious things. So a bank is interested in everyday purchase because it creates a behavior, a consistent behavior. Yeah, you're right. 25 cents off, a dollar off. I mean, electric razors can go up to $40 off, but those are the big ones, right? In this category, what it does is it makes that little blue red card, the one I go to because, oh, I got to use that at the grocery. Well, where do I spend most of my time shopping at grocery. That's what it is. So the banks know that the banks go after, hey, they want to get your mortgage, they want to be your deposit account. They want to know that your paycheck is direct deposited into their account. That's when a bank knows we got them. That's a primary. Now you as a bank can qualify yourself as that person's primary account. The next thing most important to them is grocery. And it plays out. So here. We've been running this now for six months on bank of America. I'll use them because it's a very public relationship we have with them. And we are grocery items. That button on the app is the second highest clicked button in their discount environment. They have everything from home improvement to travel like you were talking about to gasoline. We're the second highest click. The number one click is coffee. Okay. A little green coffee company out there. So those guys are the number one button that gets clicked. We're second.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Who may or may not have a new CEO.

[Tom Burgess]

Yeah, right. There's a whole other topic. But yeah, it's an interesting thing, right? So much so that it's a case study in its making.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

That's really interesting. Tom, before we let you go, any last words about the connection between these retail media networks, financial media networks, CPG brands, obviously, all places that snip media plays. Anything else that you want to share?

[Tom Burgess]

I can say that the environment to test and learn, like we were talking about earlier, is wide open on the snip side with these banks. The banks want to work with brands. They want to try it out and they're good fun environment to do it because they'll do anything if a brand wants to influence. Because typically you see a brand come in and say, I really want to run a campaign that does this unique thing. The banks are willing to do those types of things. So I think it's a time to engage.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

All right, and that wraps up this episode of the Martech Podcast. Thanks to Tom Burgess, the president of Snip Media, for joining us. If you'd like to get in touch with Tom, you could find a link to his LinkedIn profile in our show Notes. You could always visit his company's website, which is snip.com that's s n I p p.com and if you didn't have a chance to take notes while you were listening to this, you can head over to martechpod.com we've got summaries of all of our episodes. You can find the contact information for our guests. You can subscribe to our newsletter. You can always send us your topic suggestions, anything that you want on martechpod.com of course, you can always reach out on social media. Our handle is martechpod on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. You can contact me directly on LinkedIn. My handle is Benjschapp B E N J S H A P and if you haven't subscribed yet and you want a daily stream of marketing and technology knowledge in your podcast feed. We publish episodes every day during the year, so hit the subscribe button in your podcast app and we'll be back in your feed tomorrow morning. All right, that's it for today, but until next time, my advice is to just focus on keeping your customers happy.

[Tom Burgess]

Foreign.

[Benjamin Shapiro]

Thanks for listening to the Martech podcast and I hear everything. Production Looking to launch or scale a podcast like this one for your brand? Then visit iheareverything. Com.