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#154 How AI is Changing the Marketing Game with David Lahmi & Bret Rachlin

Today we’re speaking with David Lahmi and Bret Rachlin. David is a seasoned business development executive and wealth management specialist with over 20 years of experience in international finance, currently serving as Co-Founder of Finberry and Head of Business Development at Shine Global Family Office. Bret is a go-to-market strategist who helps B2B companies and entrepreneurs grow by aligning strategies with customer behavior and building thought leadership programs. In this episode, we explore the intersection of wealth management and go-to-market strategy, uncovering how to build trust, reduce friction, and create sustainable growth in today’s fast-changing business landscape.
“When you have the humility to reshape your business narrative and your business approach, I think it’s the big innovation in our business in what we’ve done.” -David Lahmi
“The thread through my entire career is resonating with target audiences.” -Bret Rachlin

About the Episode

Welcome to a deep dive into Episode 154 of the NTM Growth Marketing Podcast! This episode brings together two standout voices in the world of marketing, finance technology, and community building: David Lahmi, CEO and co-founder of Finberry (a pioneering wealth management platform), and Bret Rachlin, a seasoned marketing pro with over three decades of experience.

In this blog post, we break down their stories, strategies, and lessons for anyone at the intersection of marketing, technology, finance, and community growth. We’ll look at how wealth management is being democratized, what marketing approaches are working in 2025, community-building as a competitive advantage, and how AI and automation tools are re-shaping workflows.

Along the way, you’ll get actionable insights, helpful links, tech resources, and plenty of inspiration to take into your own business or marketing career.

Meet David Lahmi and Finberry: Democratizing Wealth Management

“Hi David, welcome to the NTM Growth Marketing podcast. I am excited to speaking with you today.”

That’s how the episode kicks off, introducing us to David Lahmi, CEO and co-founder of Finberry.

David’s mission? Simple to say, complex to achieve:
Make wealth management accessible for everyone, not just the ultra-wealthy.

“We are both ex private bankers… and decided it is time to democratize this sector. So that’s, in a nutshell, the vision of Finberry—democratizing the wealth management sector.”

The Journey From Banker to Startup Founder

What makes someone with a comfortable, established finance career take the entrepreneurial leap?

For David Lahmi, it was years of seeing clients fall through the cracks.

“Basically, the day to day experience with clients and the frustration of some of them plus my frustration as a private banker or wealth manager not to be able to deal with… smaller clients and leaving a lot of people aside with nothing to offer them from my industry. It was this frustration that brings us to Finberry.”

What stands out here:

  • First-hand pain points shape the solution
  • Founders often wear “all the hats” in the early days (CEO, CMO, CFO, HR, you name it!)
  • The best startup ideas come from deep industry experience and real empathy for those underserved.

Early Stage Marketing: Funding and the Power of Crowdfunding

What do you do when you have a big vision but need capital to get to launch? Like many startups, Finberury began with “love money”—that friends and family round that makes things real.

But David Lahmi and his co-founder knew that wasn’t enough. They wanted to embody their mission even in the way they raised money.

“For the seed part, we decided to go to a crowdfunding platform in Israel… because those platforms democratize private equity investment and we are democratizing wealth management. So it fits together.”

This isn’t just raising money—it’s about matching the values of your business with your actions. Finberry chose a crowdfunding round because it aligned with their vision.

Pro Tips from David Lahmi’s Fundraising:

  • Align your funding method with your brand values.
  • Crowdfunding platforms are eager to work with startups that symbolize larger trends (like democratization in any industry).
  • Be ready to explain your story and vision to thousands, not just a few investors.

Learning Marketing as a Founder: Brand Versus Lead Gen

David Lahmi admits he didn’t start with a classic marketer’s playbook. Coming from a private banking background, his “marketing” was always around personal networks and 1:1 relationships.
But launching a consumer-facing, tech-enabled financial startup is a different beast.

He shares:

“When you come to the public, and you want to build a name, to build a brand, that’s something very different. Publishing all the time, posting all the time, being on top of things and talking not necessarily about your brand, but more building your name… that’s what I’ve learned.”

You can’t just say, “Here’s my track record, trust me!” Modern marketing is about:

  • Continuous content and presence
  • Showing expertise in finance AND insight into customer pain points
  • Storytelling—sharing not just what you do but why you do it

B2B2C: Rethinking Go-to-Market for Modern Wealth Platforms

One of the turning points David Lahmi highlighted was a big strategy shift—from starting direct to consumers (B2C) to embracing a B2B2C model. That means:

  • Finberry partners with financial advisors who then use the platform to serve their own clients.

“The most innovative approach would be for us the shifting we decided to make from pure B2C to B2B2C or B2B first and then B2B2C…”

This isn’t just a tactical shift—it’s a deep humility and learning. Sometimes what you envisioned at launch needs to evolve as market realities become clear.

  • Direct-to-consumer wealth platforms are a tough sell
  • Financial advisors everywhere (Israel, UK, US, France…) need better tools
  • Opening up the platform to advisors creates network effects and accelerates adoption

“When you have the humility to reshape your business narrative and your business approach, I think it’s the big innovation in our business in what we’ve done.”

Automation and AI in Outreach: Doing More With Less

In the age of small, scrappy startup teams, automation tech levels the playing field. David Lahmi and his partner are only two people—but with clever tools, they get the output of a full team.

He outlines their outreach stack:

  • LinkedIn Sales Navigator: Find and segment financial advisors
  • AI survey tools: Auto-build surveys for lead qualification
  • Monday.com: CRM and workflow automation
  • Personalized LinkedIn outreaches: Using tools like Waalaxy

“Back in the days we would have needed maybe five to seven people to do what we’ve done today with those tools, and actually was a success.”

What are the results?

  • They uncovered real pain points for financial advisors
  • They rebuilt their product and narrative to match exactly what the market needed

Key Takeaways for Startups:

  • Don’t try to do every task manually—let automation compound your effectiveness
  • Even “personal” touchpoints can be scaled with the right tech mix
  • Revenue-generating activities often require a combination of brand building and direct lead gen workflows

Real Talk: Building a Brand and Narrative in Financial Services

Let’s pause for a big insight here. Many founders (especially from technical or expert backgrounds) want to tell the world: here’s our amazing solution, take it or leave it.

David Lahmi points out that it’s not enough.

“You need to build this narrative… That’s what I learned from those guys and from, you know, everyone in the sector.”

What does this mean in real-life marketing?

  • Talk about market problems and your vision for fixing them
  • Build awareness around your expertise, not just your startup
  • Use publishing and content to plant your reputation in people’s minds

AI Everywhere: Tools, Tactics, and the Future

David Lahmi’s team isn’t just using AI in a few places. It’s become central to nearly every part of their business.

  • For ideation and writing: ChatGPT, Gemini
  • For data analysis: Custom models, external LLMs like GROK when analyzing survey/lead-gen data
  • For outreach: Waalaxy (LinkedIn automation), Monday.com integration
  • For creative/graphics: AI-powered tools

But that’s just the start. The real magic, David says, is their plan to build agentic AI directly into their platform—not just for their marketing team, but for financial advisors who use Finberry.

“All these proactive… actions should be implemented through an AI agent that we are already training and building with, you know, financial models, et cetera. And that’s our next step basically.”

Meet Bret Rachlin: 30+ Years in Marketing Communications

Switching guests, podcast host Andrew invites Bret Rachlin onto the show—a marketing veteran who has spent the past three decades thinking deeply about how companies connect with their audiences.

Bret’s journey:

  • Began in public relations and high-tech sectors
  • Moved into integrated marketing and demand gen
  • Focused on aligning marketing and sales for revenue growth

“The thread through my entire career is resonating with target audiences.”

2025 Strategy: Community-Led Growth in the Attention Economy

Bret Rachlin’s big theme for 2025 marketing: Community-Led Growth.

“…what is really a need right now is to help companies and individuals…get attention in that attention economy through community-led growth strategies.”

Let’s break it down.

What’s the Attention Economy?

Simply put, everyone is flooded with messages 24/7—via email, social media, ads, notifications. The scarcest resource isn’t money, it’s attention.

Why Community-Led Growth?

  • Communities help you cut through the noise: A trusted circle, not a faceless blast
  • Members help each other: Turning customers into advocates
  • Not just for companies: Communities help individuals, small businesses, execs—anyone seeking traction

Types of Community (in Bret Rachlin’s words):

  1. Formal: Slack channels, dedicated membership platforms
  2. Semi-formal: Consistent email communication within a group
  3. Informal: A personal network that enables mutual support and value exchange

How to Build a Community That Works

Bret underscores: digital marketing (paid search, social, SEO, email) is no longer a sustainable solo play—costs are up and results are harder. But supporting your community with digital tactics elevates both.

“If you’re able to incorporate a community-led growth program, but use digital marketing to promote that program, you ultimately can be more effective and use that as another channel.”

Bret’s Real-World Communities

  • Product Led Growth (PLG):
    Built by Wes in Canada, grew from 2,000 to 20,000+ SaaS members in a few years. Slack-based.

    • Channels for intros, job boards, Q&A, sharing experiments
    • Main driver: “How do I fix my onboarding? How do I improve conversions?”

What Makes Thriving Communities Tick?

Andrew asks: “What encourages people to come back to that community on a regular basis?”

Bret’s take is clear: It all boils down to value.

“A community is only as strong as the members that are in it and the interest level and the value that’s being created… If people aren’t helping other people, you’ve got to have the right people in there.”

Some elements that help:

  • Quality of members: The more the community helps each other, the stickier it becomes
  • Shared values and experiences: E.g., a group for women leaders helping each other grow—willing to pay for it!
  • Consistent value in every interaction: Otherwise, people’s attention wanders

Bret points to the importance of content too—regular interviews, newsletters, or sessions that provide fresh, relevant ideas.

“If it’s providing value for them and you have another one next week that’s going to keep people subscribing to your content… value is the main component.”

AI for Marketers: Research, Analysis, and the Human Element

How does all this tie into AI? Both David Lahmi and Bret Rachlin share similar experiences: AI is a massive time-saver, especially when it comes to:

  • Market research and analysis:
    “In my career I’ve done a lot of market analysis… AI has been unbelievably a time saver in helping to determine more quickly without having to sift through reams of data.”

“AI has been… exciting. The opportunity to be able to save a lot of time on the grunt work of things…”

Best Practices: Safe and Smart AI Use

It’s not all smooth sailing. Bret Rachlin warns:

  • Don’t upload confidential data into public AI tools unless you have facts about their privacy protection
  • Be careful with unvetted information—always validate before taking action
  • If using proprietary or client data, get explicit sign-off

“Do your research understanding the terms and conditions to make sure that they are keeping that information private. And if you’re doing anything from a client perspective and you have access to proprietary data, I would definitely get sign-offs from your clients prior.”

Quick Checklist:

  • ✅ Use paid AI platforms for privacy
  • ✅ Read terms and conditions for AI tools, especially regarding data rights
  • ✅ Validate research results with other sources before sharing
  • ✅ Always prioritize client trust and data safety

Go-To AI Tools According to the Pros

Both guests shared the AI tools making the biggest difference in their workflows right now:

For Writing & Ideation:

  • ChatGPT (OpenAI)
  • Gemini (Google’s LLM)
  • GROK (Elon Musk-backed LLM)

For Research & Analysis:

  • Perplexity:
    • Great for fast, referenceable web research
    • $14B+ valuation, gaining steam as a perennial research companion
  • Anthropic (Claude):
    • Strong for content creation, less for Bret’s research-heavy workflows
  • Waalaxy:
    • Automated (but personal-feeling) LinkedIn outreach
    • “It’s powerful, well integrated with CRM, MailChimp, etc.”

For Workflow/CRM:

  • Monday.com – Tasks, surveys, lead gen, automated outreach

Join the NTM Growth Marketing Mastermind

Before the episode wrapped, Andrew shared a quick plug for a community of his own: the NTM Growth Marketing Mastermind.

  • Who’s it for? Marketing executives wanting to connect, share advanced strategies, and face real-world challenges (like implementing AI agents)
  • What’s included? Monthly roundtables, group discussions, expert insights

Apply to join our marketing mastermind group: https://notypicalmoments.typeform.com/to/hWLDNgjz

Final Thoughts: What We Learned in Episode 154

This episode is packed with actionable lessons and fresh ideas for marketers, founders, and anyone navigating the new worlds of AI and digital community building:

  • Innovation starts with empathy: Both David Lahmi and Bret Rachlin found their biggest breakthroughs by listening to audience pain points and adapting their strategy
  • AI and automation are essential tools—but only when used smartly and safely
  • Community matters now more than ever: Whether you’re a SaaS startup, a financial service company, or an executive climbing the ladder
  • Transparency and trust are the glue: Whether it’s in customer relationships or how you handle data

“Ultimately, it comes down to value. Again, if you go back to the idea that we’re in an attention economy, if you aren’t delivering value in every interaction, you’re going to lose at some point in time that person’s attention and you’re going to lose that connection with them.” — Bret Rachlin

If you’re hungry to learn more, check out the tools and resources linked above, connect with David Lahmi and Bret Rachlin, and take that next step in your own growth journey.

Stay tuned for the next episode, and don’t forget to apply for the mastermind if you want to push your marketing skills even further!

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