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#96 Exploring the Role of a Fractional CMO with Fernando Pena

“The beauty of the innovation that’s happening today is that a lot of it is finally getting to a point where it’s sustainable.” -Fernando Pena
Fernando Pena is a digital marketing and technology executive with over 26 years of experience within financial services, consulting, and advertising industries. He has multiple successes initiating, developing, and executing digital marketing strategies in pursuit of growth, retention, and decreased attrition goals and objectives. In this interview, Fernando dives into financial services marketing, innovation, and leveraging AI in business.

About the Episode

A Day in the Life of Fernando: The Fractional CMO

Fernando’s journey into fractional CMO services began about a year ago when he decided to leverage his extensive experience in financial services marketing to help smaller organizations. As he explains:

“I’m about a 25+ year veteran of financial services marketing. What’s interesting about my career trajectory is that I’ve really sat on the fence in terms of balancing technology and business application.”

This unique balance has allowed Fernando to develop a deep understanding of how technology can address business challenges. His focus is on demystifying the digital channel for smaller financial services organizations, such as credit unions, banks, financial advisors, and mortgage brokers.

What is a Fractional CMO?

A fractional CMO offers a blend of consulting and agency services without the full-time commitment. Fernando elaborates on this hybrid role:

“With a fractional CMO, you essentially become a member of that executive team… you bring your expertise to that organization, but you do so in a way where it’s not costing them the traditional CMO salaries and benefits package.”
“With a fractional CMO, you get to a much deeper understanding of what problems they may have, what their vision is, and in many cases, you’re helping to establish that vision.”

This approach provides smaller organizations access to high-level marketing expertise on a flexible basis, typically around ten hours per week.

Why Financial Services?

Fernando’s decision to specialize in financial services is rooted in his extensive experience in the industry.

Financial organizations tend to be conservative in their marketing approaches, making it difficult to disrupt the status quo. Fernando’s role often involves pushing for modernization while ensuring that the high standards expected by clients are met.

“The financial services industry has some very unique nuances in terms of regulation, in terms of the brand, reputations that need to be upheld, security, and just the fact that you’re trying to offer a service that is near and dear to those that consume it.”

Innovation in a Conservative Industry

One of the most compelling aspects of Fernando’s work is driving innovation in an industry known for its cautious approach. He emphasizes the slow but significant shift towards embracing technology.

“The beauty of the innovation that’s happening today is that a lot of it is finally getting to a point where it’s sustainable.”

In the past, financial institutions were hesitant to adopt cloud technology due to security concerns. Today, they are beginning to recognize the benefits and security that cloud technology offers.

Laying the Foundation for Marketing Strategies

When starting a new project, Fernando’s approach is thorough and methodical. He stresses the importance of understanding the organization’s goals before diving into execution.

“Instead of just dealing with executing on what we think needs to happen, we first need to understand what the landscape is, understand who the core client is, understand what strengths that organization has.”

This involves conducting research, interviewing internal and external clients, and developing a plan that incorporates technology and execution strategies aligned with the organization’s goals.

Metrics and KPIs

Understanding and tracking the right metrics are crucial for measuring marketing success. Fernando focuses on several key performance indicators, including:

  • Number of accounts opened
  • Revenue generated
  • Attrition rates
  • Cost of acquiring and servicing clients

He ensures that these metrics are aligned to provide a comprehensive picture of the organization’s performance.

Leveraging Technology in Marketing

Fernando is a proponent of integrating various technology tools to enhance marketing efforts. Essential tools he mentions include:

  • Content Management Systems (CMS): For maintaining a robust web presence.
  • Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems and Marketing Automation Suites: To track client interactions and nurture leads continuously.
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI): For decision-making and content creation, although with some reservations about its current capabilities.
“I am a proponent of AI. I don’t think it can do everything yet… It’s highly capable of creating content. But I think that where there’s probably a little bit more potential for AI… is for decisioning.”

Building Loyalty in Financial Services

Creating customer loyalty akin to that seen in sports fandom is a challenging yet achievable goal.

By ensuring consistent, personalized service across all channels, smaller financial institutions can foster strong customer loyalty. This, however, requires a higher investment but acts as a differentiator against larger, more impersonal banks.

Navigating Crisis Situations

Fernando also shares his experience in managing marketing during crises, such as the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. The key is to emphasize stability and conservative risk management:

“When there are overly aggressive sorts of promises for earnings… the big message there is to just discuss how the brand that you’re trying to market is a lot more stable.”

During financial downturns, conservative strategies and stability become major selling points for financial institutions.

The Future of Marketing in 2024

Looking ahead, Fernando is excited about the potential of personalized marketing.

While Fernando doesn’t foresee any revolutionary changes, he sees significant room for evolution in refining existing technologies and approaches to make them more effective and personalized.

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