How Fintech Can Use CDPs to Grow Revenue Through Cross-Selling

In this week’s issue, I delve deep into the transformative power of Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) within the fintech sector, especially in the context of cross-selling insurance products to credit card holders. The dynamic nature of fintech, coupled with the extensive data it garners, sets the stage for innovation and personalised service delivery that can significantly enhance customer experience and drive business growth.

The inspiration for this article came off a new hiring for a Marketing Automation Lead in a fintech company where the founders were looking for someone who could tap on a Customer Data Platforms (CDP) that they have already paid for, to grow the revenue of their insurance vertical by cross-selling to their customers in their credit card vertical.

Let’s unravel the magic behind Customer Data Platforms (CDP) and their pivotal role in the use case of empowering fintech companies to cross-sell insurance products to credit card users with unparalleled precision.

The Strategic Importance of CDPs for Fintech Companies

In the digital age, fintech companies are not just providers of a single financial product; they’re data powerhouses with the potential to offer a myriad of tailored financial services. CDPs sit at the heart of this potential, acting as the brain that comprehensively understands every customer’s needs, preferences, and life stages. Imagine having a crystal ball that tells you exactly what your customers need before they even need to ask for it. That’s the prowess of CDPs in the fintech realm, enabling the seamless cross-selling of products like insurance to credit card holders at just the right moment .

With increasing revenue in our insurance vertical as our north star, we embark on a journey to offer our users insurance solutions that aren’t just relevant, but timely. Whether it’s a new homeowner in need of property insurance or a recent car buyer looking at car insurance, CDPs can ensure we’re there with the right offer at the right time if they have the relevant customer data. This isn’t just about selling more; it’s about adding genuine value to our customers’ lives, protecting what matters most to them with products that truly meet their needs.

Understanding the Customer

Diving deeper, CDPs allow us to have an eagle-eye view of our customer’s financial landscape, once we inject them with the large amount of customer data that we typically have in various sources like our data lake and cloud solutions. This panoramic perspective allows us to identify when a customer’s life event—like an upcoming vacation, buying a house or starting a family—signals the need for new or additional insurance coverage. It’s like being a financial guardian angel, anticipating and addressing risks before they become reality.

The key to effective cross-selling lies in truly understanding the customer. It’s not about bombarding them with offers but engaging them with solutions that resonate with their individual situations. By leveraging the detailed insights provided by CDPs, we tailor our insurance offerings to fit like a glove, ensuring relevance and enhancing customer trust in our brand.

In order to achieve this, it is extremely important for fintech businesses to invest time and effort to build and provide a single view of their customers to all departments across the organisation by injesting all the profile attributes, behavioural and event data of every customer into their choice of CDP in a timely manner. For some data, it could be synchronised in real-time while for others, it may be more reasonable to schedule daily synchronisation jobs.

Challenges and Solutions in Cross-Selling

Of course, the path to successfully achieving revenue growth through cross-selling isn’t without its hurdles. Customers today are more protective of their data than ever, wary of lengthy sign-ups or sharing too much too soon. My approach? Simplify, then simplify some more. I would streamline the process, making it as easy as pie for our users to explore and adopt new products without feeling overwhelmed or overexposed.

Creating a seamless onboarding experience is just the start. We must prioritise transparency, explaining clearly why we’re asking for certain pieces of information and how it benefits the customer. This approach builds trust and paves the way for a more open, fruitful relationship with users.

Strategies for Effective Cross-Selling

In our quest to refine cross-selling strategies, we can learn a thing or two from others who have implemented CDPs before us. First off, keeping it simple really does work wonders. By reducing barriers to entry and the steps it takes for users to learn about new products suitable to their needs, will result in higher conversion rates and greater customer satisfaction. It’s all about making the first step as inviting as a warm cup of tea on a rainy day.

Instead of introducing many cross-selling initiatives at one go, it is more important to conduct small experiments to test and learn, identifying cross-selling initiatives that work before scaling up. Start with a single product that is very suitable for customers who met specific profile attributes or have performed specific behaviour. Create a simple journey to introduce the product to them, allowing customers to dip their toes in the water without feeling overwhelmed. Once they see the value for themselves, they’re much more open to exploring what else we have to offer. It’s about guiding, not pushing, and always with the customer’s needs at the forefront.

Conclusion

The journey through the world of CDPs and cross-selling in fintech is a fascinating one, filled with opportunities to not only grow our business but to deepen the relationships we have with our customers. By leveraging the insights and capabilities of CDPs, we’re not just selling products; we’re providing solutions that matter.

As we continue to navigate this journey, our focus remains on delivering value, ensuring relevance, and building trust. The future of driving revenue growth through cross-selling the right products is getting easier, and with CDPs as our compass, we’re all set to navigate it successfully.

Cheers to innovation and the endless possibilities it brings!