Fintech (Financial technology) is changing the way the financial services industry works and looks. A new generation of Fintech startups is disrupting the financial sector powered by technology and simple solutions. But being very vocal about the ongoing disruption in the financial industry is not the only thing that sets these companies apart from their competitors and traditional industry players. Their secret to catching their target audience’s attention? Branding.
That’s quite a branding challenge. So we, at Serious Business, love a good branding challenge.
In the past few months, we’ve collaborated alongside three Fintech startups standing out in the finance space. So, we talked to their founders about their new looks, the challenges, the process, and all things branding.
Meet the clients:
1. Alinea
Alinea is the first investment app focused on Gen-Z, empowering the next generation of investors in the fintech industry. Investing can be intimidating at any age. So Alinea found a way to deliver a seamless and enabling way of investing by making it simple, personal & transparent. (Check out more about our collaboration here)
2. Sinpex
Sinpex is formed by a group of digital enthusiasts bringing together deep industry knowledge with cutting-edge technology for financial services. They are a team of seasoned machine learning and AI experts. They are dedicated to working with their clients to upgrade compliance to the digital age.
3. Finway
Finway enables companies to have simple and flawless financial processes, delivering real-time insights that become the backbone of the business. Their focus is on empowering every company department and their teams to make better financial decisions. Finway is the future of financial processes in the fintech industry.
Why is having a great brand so crucial for a young Fintech startup?
Differentiation
The Fintech world is growing by leaps and bounds; new players are popping up every minute, making it difficult for customers to differentiate between them and choose the best match.
So branding has become a vast advantage point for Fintech startups; it allows them to set themselves apart from the competition. It also allows to create a unique place in the mind of their audience. This helps build strong relationships with their customers.
Therefore, Alinea’s branding needed to connect with their Gen Z audience. Especially resonate with women and minorities – sections of society that have been historically left on the sidelines of the investment world. So when looking to position themselves as the new retail investment app, they wanted something fun, young and colorful. Something vibrant to make their audience feel comfortable and open to start investing for themselves and in themselves.
For them, this looked like relying on a different color palette than the ones commonly used in the retail investment industry, staying away from greens, blues, and blacks – that were heavily reminiscent of the big corporate masculine finance world. But, the purple and the pinks are only one part of creating a genuinely differentiable brand. Consequently, Alinea’s distinct young and relatable messaging is key in its branding. Speaking to your audience in terms they know facilities communication. In Alinea’s case, their Gen Z tone of voice means staying true to its promise of making investing accessible to the next generation.
“It comes down to messaging a lot. The problem with most people is when they hear the term investing they get scared, there’s a mental blocker and when they hear terms like stock, ETF’s and so on it scares them even more. For example, at Alinea we are reinventing the concept of ETF and put them in a playlist like Spotify for investing, like a playlist for investing and so people are able to understand that terminology much more than what an ETF and exchange traded fund stands for”
Eve Halimi – Co-CEO & Founder
Alinea
Trust
When it comes to money, we need to trust our partners, and branding says a lot about a brand in terms of trust and experience. Deciding to invest in your brand tells the world you are a serious player in the market and in for the long haul.
Finway is arriving at the Fintech space at a time when financial processes do not live up to the expectations and requirements of a digital world. Their solution: a holistic financial software that processes all expenses and involves all employees in the company, making financial processes easy, efficient and safe.
Finway’s value proposition includes building a solid and lasting relationship with its customers. Meaning they needed their brand to honestly communicate the seriousness of the company and the accuracy of their product. This calls for clear and clean branding while remaining empowering. Its holistic approach allows all departments to have a clear overview and make decisions quickly, saving time and enhancing efficiency, productivity, and satisfaction throughout the company.
The main goal of this branding project was for them to enter the space as a challenger, a new player you couldn’t ignore. Their strong color palette showcased Finway’s professional and innovative stance mixed with their bold and confident tone of voice, positioning them as a trustworthy partner.
“We are not only the ones that can help you, solve your actual operational problems, but we will be by your side and together we will evolve and excel over the next five years on how you operate in finance”
Christian Weisbrodt – CRO
Finway
Alignment
The “secret sauce” of any successful brand is for it to be truly representative of the company’s core values. But, a truly great brand is also built in a way that gives its audience exactly what they are looking for.
Sinpex is, at its core, a problem solver. They needed their branding to speak in simple terms about their solution: having technology –machine learning, AI, and Natural Language Processing (NLP) – making decision-making easier for their clients.
When branding tech products, it’s easy to get caught in a lot of tech-lingo and jargon. Sinpex’s branding keeps the focus on what the audience truly needs. Creating a genuinely user-centric website puts the clients’ needs center stage, allowing for easier connection with users and potential users.
The color palette is also aligned with who they are, a young and innovative team. A traditional feel and look couldn’t have worked for a disruptive player. The bright orange mixed clean graphs are helping them get past that first entry barrier and become a memorable player in the Fintech world.
“We created a logo that is definitely different from the competitors. We also try to make it really clear and also bring our core value which is really technology-driven into that logo, in line with our overall strategy”
Camillo Werdich – CEO & Co-Founder
Sinpex
Branding memorable Fintech startups require connecting to the core of the brand. With so many players and rapidly moving tech, it is imperative to dare to be different and to remain user-centric regardless if you are B2B or B2C, there is always a human looking to connect with your brand.
Finance and technology used to be cold and distant. Not anymore. This is Fintech’s new era.