Professional Spotlight Series®

Connexien’s Professional Spotlight Series highlights select professionals who are part of the Connexien community of experts. Our goal is to showcase our service providers who consistently deliver at the top level of their field, representing great work and excellent relationships with clients which ultimately lead to successful projects.

Facundo A. Tangona
Founder of Impact Brand management, LLC
Digital marketing & branD management consultancy

We caught up with Facundo at Mi Piace restaurant in Pasadena, California to talk about his business and the impact of digital marketing on the financial services industry.

“It’s all about the Right message”

Connexien: Why don’t you tell us a little about how you got started in the industry?

FT: It really started when I went to work for Thompson Reuters in Chicago.  I was hired as part of the Legal Marketing team which also included marketing for Super Lawyers®.  After some time, I was lucky enough to transfer to California, which is originally my home, to focus on a larger territory with greater responsibility. That gave me a great understanding of the social media and digital marketing business and a solid foundation to build an independent practice.  I started Impact Brand Management after seeing an increasing need for a more focused and individualized approach to brand and marketing strategies that extended beyond law firms to small and medium sized financial service firms.

Connexien: What trends are you seeing in digital marketing especially as it relates to financial services?

FT:  There are a few trends that come to mind, specifically in the areas of social media/video, brand awareness, chatbot and mobile marketing. In terms of social media, all firms are starting to understand that social media, although difficult to accurately track ROI, is a necessary channel for distributing your message and communicating with existing and prospective clients, especially with the use of explainer videos for the greatest impact. 

Regarding brand awareness, although sales revenue and new customer growth remain important, there is a growing trend among firms that say brand awareness is their focus to evaluate success of marketing centered around promotional offers and deals.

The use of Chatbots is another interesting topic.  Chatbots are a great tool for increasing client interaction and are used for engagement, general questions, resolving customer service issues and closing sales.  We can expect to see a growing use of Chatbots, even among financial services firms who must manage the communication aspect in terms of the regulatory framework. 

For mobile marketing, a growing number of today’s consumers are making their buying decisions on mobile devices.  Firms are investing more in mobile marketing to help drive business and are expanding their mobile efforts from ecommerce to digital marketing.  This seems to be a result of the increased opportunities of having mobile marketing impact all digital and sales channels. 

Overall, financial service firms have added challenges compared to non-financial firms in that there’s a need to properly manage these trends in light of the existing and consistently changing regulatory environment.  Whether financial service firms internalize, co-source or outsource these functions, its important to select the right people to oversee these processes to effectively manage the message while maintaining and enforcing compliance.  In my experience, this seems to be the best path for a successful outcome.

Connexien: Why have you chosen to focus on the financial services industry?

FT:  Through our interaction with many financial service firms, it became readily apparent that these firms desperately needed guidance on branding and digital marketing strategies while navigating the regulatory landscape.  I think because of the regulatory requirements, it seems that the financial services industry is slower to catch-up in implementing digital marketing strategies to truly realize its impact.  We soon realized that while many larger firms have dedicated marketing departments, many of those individuals have come from other departments like compliance or operations, so we can compliment their team by adding our insight on the latest trends and strategies.  On the other side of the spectrum, many smaller firms lack the big budgets to hire a full-time marketing team, so we offer outsourced solutions that can operate within their budgetary restraints.

Connexien: Who are your clients, and how do you work with them?

FT:  We feel you don’t have to be a big firm to create a big impact. Whether you’re large or small, every firm stands to benefit from the right message.  Our clients consist of small to medium sized professional and financial services firms.  Through my previous experience at Thompson Reuters, I was able to connect with a number of small to medium sized firms in need of assistance with brand management and digital marketing strategies to take their firm, and message, to the next level.  We take a very hands-on approach that truly sets us apart from the rest of our competitors by focusing on communication, trust and results.  We are selective in building the right partnership with our clients where we share similar values and work ethic to achieve the most successful outcome.

Connexien:  Why did you decide to build a profile on Connexien?

FT: As a professional service firm, its important to offer your services through several different channels. In addition to word-of-mouth referrals which largely rely on testimonials from existing clients, additional freelancer or gig-economy platforms such as Connexien are a great way to offer your services to a wider audience on your own terms. I feel the benefits to using these platforms are that it allows firms who are looking for the types of services I provide to easily find me based on my specific skill set and experience. I see the use of Connexien as a natural extension of our branding and growth strategy. Ultimately, regardless of how you find new clients, the key to growth in any business is listening to the client’s needs, understanding the objectives and exceeding expectations. A basic formula that seems to stand the test of time.

For more information about Facundo, please visit his Profile on Connexien, or sign-up as a member to search our entire community of experts that are ready to handle your specific project needs.