“There is not enough education about finance or money…People are hungry for information. ”
Araminta is a marketing consultant at Mint Studios where she helps fintech companies acquire and retain customers online with content. She’s also the host of the Market Like a Fintech podcast, publishes her own blog and newsletter, and is a partner at the Fintech Marketing Hub. She loves talking about everything fintech and content.
In our interview we talk about the unique challenges fintech companies face, her top 3 favorite fintech companies that are killing it in marketing, the importance of a founder’s personal brand, how she scales her own personal brand, and more!
Full Episode Transcript:
Kenny Soto 0:00
Sounds good. Well, very loud. We are now recording and 54321. Hi, Menza how are you?
Araminta Robertson 0:15
Hey, Kenny, nice to meet you. Thanks for having me on.
Kenny Soto 0:18
Perfect. So I gave you a little backstory of the podcast. And now that we’re recording this interview, I wanted to start off with a very straightforward question, which is, how did you get into marketing?
Araminta Robertson 0:34
Sure, so I guess like most people will say, kind of by accident, I started out as a writer, I was a writer since the day I was born, probably I started reading writing a lot. And I use writing as a tool to understand things really, from the from from the beginning, really. So whether it’s financial concepts, whether it’s marketing, whether it’s people, I always used when I wanted to understand something, I would write an article about it. And that’s how I that’s how I really understood stuff.
And then I realized that, you know, there were other kind of utilities to writing, which is also marketing, content marketing to be specific. And I realized that by producing content, I could actually help whether it was just any website kind of to help that website, generate pageviews. So and then, you know, create, or earn money through ads, or whether it was a startup or a company that could actually use content to acquire and retain customers. So started out as writing, then I realized I could, it was also kind of marketing. And now I help I specialize in helping FinTech companies acquire and retain customers with content written content.
Kenny Soto 1:45
Why fintech?
Araminta Robertson 1:53
There are a lot of reasons why? I’ll say, well, a few reasons. First of all, I’m very interested in finance, finance, money moves the world, whether you like it or not. And it’s very interesting to see how people work with money, how it changes their behaviors, how it influences their lives. That’s one thing. The second thing is that there is not enough education about finance or money. And actually, a lot of people well, in high school, or in university, wherever it is, there is not enough information, no one tells us how to do our taxes. No one tells us how to do a budget.
And so where do people go? They go to Google, they start researching online, how do I do my budget? How do I do my taxes, and so people are hungry for information. And so I knew that there was like, a need to be met there. Now, if I wrote about this kind of stuff, I could help people understand their finances more easily. And hopefully, that would help their own lives, too. So it was kind of like, yeah, it was, it was a problem that needed to be solved. And I know, it’s something that can really change someone’s life, you know, a pension with $500,000 is very different to a pension with 100,000. Right.
And so if you finish your, if at retirement, you have a lot more money, you’re gonna be a lot more comfortable. And you’ll be able to give something to your children. So it’s life changing, really finances, life changing. And then finally, FinTech because it has that tech side, which is super interesting. And it’s an industry that never stops moving. It’s an industry where people are super excited, super passionate, super ambitious. And I love being surrounded by people like that. So yeah, that’s kind of a few reasons right there.
Kenny Soto 3:38
It’s reassuring to hear your answer. Because I think when you work in FinTech or just in finance in general, regardless of what your role is, in most cases, you’re helping to change someone’s life. So I do agree with why you joined fintech. It’s the same reason that I did. And I think the best way to lead into the next question would be when you think about FinTech, right? It’s obviously its own industry, and it has its own unique challenges. What are those unique challenges? And what kind of unique skills would you say, are necessary for a marketer to excel in FinTech as well?
Araminta Robertson 4:20
So I think the answer to the first question would be regulation. I think there’s people that don’t realize when they set up a company, the ex bankers do we know this completely, very well. But some people who work in tech might not realize this, but when you set up a FinTech company, there is a lot more regulation and compliance that you need to deal with. And that means that’s why a lot of FinTech companies need to raise a lot of money in order to have the right licenses and meet the regulations and have the right advisors on board. Maybe you need to enter a sandbox, you need to know your stuff, basically.
And so, as a FinTech, that’s a huge part of your company. Whether you You’d like it or not. So it’s important to budget that in. And it’s important to be aware of it. And it’s important to respect it, I think and to work with the regulators rather than try and be, you know, against them basically, as a marketer. It I mean, I guess, I would say you want to really focus on education, there are three things that I like to say that Fintech is three things that make FinTech marketing different to other kinds of marketing.
The first one is education, which is what I’ve mentioned before, finance is complicated, or it seems complicated from the outside. And we’re not taught anything about finance growing up. So a big part of FinTech marketing should if it speeds, tea, and even if it’s b2b, actually, there’s a big like open banking or API’s, all that there’s, there’s a big part, which is education. And so that’s where content plays in. The second one is transparency Fintech is is different, by being more transparent by being more customer centric by trying to build something that people actually need, that people actually want. And so, you know, as a marketer, you want to prioritize transparency, whether that means making your T and C’s, a couple of sentences rather than three pages long.
Whether that means admitting when you’ve made a mistake, whether that means publishing your fees, even if they’re a little bit high. So as a marketer, you want to make Trump do you want to take transparency seriously. And then finally, I say customer experience, or simplicity, which is once again, what makes FinTech different from other companies, which is that, you know, modern day customers are used to customer experiences like Apple, Google, Uber, super customer centric, super great UX, all that stuff. And so modern day marketers want to make, you know, make it simple, make it easy, and also personalized.
And that’s why also, I think content marketing is so important for FinTech, because content is personalized, you’re educating the user. And when you’re educating them, you’re kind of empowering them, and you’re letting them make a choice, even if that means maybe they don’t choose you in the end, but you’re kind of leaving it up to them. So yeah, these are kind of the three main pillars in my opinion. And in my experience, that make the foundation of FinTech marketing
Kenny Soto 7:13
for the listener who didn’t catch that T’s and C’s Terms and Conditions. My next question is more so on companies you admire, I discovered you through your blog, and you have a really unique ability to dissect what other companies are doing. So it may not be just this year, it can be 2020 2019, throughout your history of studying companies, what are like your top three FinTech companies from a marketing standpoint? And why?
Araminta Robertson 7:53
Okay, from a marketing standpoint, because from a product standpoint might be different. So that’s true. I’m going to say, from a marketing standpoint, I’m going to say, first of all, Klarna, they raised a lot of controversy here in the UK, because a lot of people say, you know, by now pay later is essentially debt, whatever, the marketing, though, I love it, it’s very out there, it’s very different. Full of colors. I don’t know if you’ve watched the videos, but you just watch them. And you’re like, What on earth is going through their head when they make stuff like this, but that’s what makes them fun to watch.
And I have to say, I’m very impressed with with kind of what they’ve done. Another another marketing that I like, I’m not really I like to focus more on the product. Because then once again, you know, if the marketing, if the product isn’t good, then the marketing is also going to be difficult. So that’s why, if I were to mention another one, I can also mention specific tactics. So for example, Starling bank is one of my favorite fintechs, just because I use them every day, and I’m a big fan of the founder. And there’s, there’s certain like things that they do that. I don’t know, I know, even banks would do that. I’m not sure if other fintechs would do that. And so just, you know, on my point of transparency, for example, they once like made a mistake, I can’t remember I was like, when one of my accounts, they made a mistake. They, they I think, I don’t know, they put me an overdraft by accident.
And then like a few days later, I received like a beautiful hamper at my doorstep with like, full of goodies. And I was like, how this is this is amazing. So that’s maybe a second one. And in general, I’ve really liked what they’re doing. So you could say that, and then a third one. I mean, I could, there’s so many. I could maybe mention, transfer wise transfer TransferWise also do a great job. When it comes to transparency. They’re one of those companies where when you when you want to do a transfer, they will they will say you know if there’s an option that’s cheaper than them. And that’s crazy, right? Because that means that, you know, maybe you’re choosing something else, not them. But it’s kind of just bolsters that confidence, you’re like, Okay, well, I can trust them even more, because they’re really on my side. So yeah, that’s kind of three examples of companies that I think are doing a great job.
Kenny Soto 10:19
We’re going to digress just a little bit and not talk about FinTech specifically, but more so something that you commented on with Starling bank, you like the founder? Right. So my question to you is, how important is a founders personal brand and their story when it comes to marketing and company in general? Hello, sorry. The question is, how important is a founders personal brand when it comes to marketing a company?
Araminta Robertson 11:03
Very important, very important. And I have a FinTech Marketing podcast. So I interviewed quite a few CEO, chief marketing officers. And I’ve asked him this, this question. And they’re like, it’s so important. A lot of them have said, for example, that if you’re a company, and you want to set up a community, you’re trying to build a community, if your founder is not involved in that community, and the community is more of like a checkbox thing, then it’s just going to feel really fake, and it’s just not gonna work, your founder has to be involved.
Others have said that, also your company, when when you’re trying to build your values, when you’re trying to build kind of the culture, it really has to be aligned with the founders, culture and values, because if not, the founder will say one thing, and then the team will do something else, and it’s just not going to work out. And I’ve also talked with a lot of marketers who have worked with huge brands, you know, like Nike, and I mean, anything you can, all the big ones that we always use as examples. And when they were small, it was really the founder personality that came out. And so if you know, if people who have done really well tell me that the founder personalities important, then I listened to that, and I take it seriously. So yeah, for sure, definitely.
Kenny Soto 12:18
Now we’re going to shift into your marketing and your personal brand. My first question is, what does your weekly schedule look like? And how do you balance between your podcast, your blog, and your newsletter, and then all the client work that I also have to do? Honestly, I don’t know how I’m not gonna lie. I just recently took on a part time position at a fin tech company. So three to three days of the week, I am, I am completely busy. So I do some work on the weekends, I guess. But it’s more kind of branding. I’m also allowing myself to I used to publish every week, for example.
Araminta Robertson 13:06
Now it’s every two weeks. And I think now I’m going to do once every month for the blog, the newsletter, I do it every two weeks, it takes me about an hour, so it’s okay. And then yeah, the podcast is I’ve kind of optimized it well, we have, we kind of have like a sop, you know, so we kind of know exactly what to do. And then an air table where when you click on certain things, everything goes out automatically. So it’s quite streamlined. And it’s something I can do in the evenings as in the research, not the episode recording.
So I use a a calendar method, I think it’s called Zero Hour calendars. So basically, every single hour is kind of in my calendar is is booked, let’s just say and then I have other very strict, I’m very, I do a lot of deep work. So you know, no phones and all that. And I have, I just really stick to my calendar. And when I’m doing deep work, I stick to not doing more than about four hours of deep work per day, just so because more of that and you can’t really you get like tired very quickly. So it’s just very, very optimized. But I think I’m going to start Yeah, ticking things a little bit more slowly so I can go deeper and better. Because that’s also very important. I don’t want to spread myself too thin either.
Kenny Soto 14:22
What is the hardest part about managing a podcast?
Araminta Robertson 14:28
Um, I think the hardest part for me personally is when the guest that I’m interviewing is is not very public on the internet, so there’s not much that I can find out about them. Because my favorite thing to do is to research and so I listen to their podcasts, I listen, watch their YouTube videos, I read all their articles, but if there’s not much to read, then I’m like. Okay, so I have to really like think up some really interesting questions because my favorite thing to do is you know, they’ve written an article on a really interesting topic. And maybe it’s It’s kind of debatable, right? And then I kind of like talk about that on the episode. But when I’m not sure what their arguments are or what their point of view is, and it’s a little bit more difficult, so I think that would be the hardest part.
Kenny Soto 15:11
Another random question, if you will, what are your favorite resources to use to learn new marketing tactics and strategies?
Araminta Robertson 15:24
I am someone who believes that when you’re trying to learn something new, the best thing you can do is completely absorb every kind of content and also create content as possible. So I sign up to all the newsletters. I listen to all the podcasts. I watch, I follow the YouTubers. I’ve read the books, I’m in the slack communities, I follow them on Twitter, like I’m completely surrounded by the thing that I’m learning. So at the moment, obviously, it’s fintech. Now, it’s a bit crypto, and then obviously, content marketing and marketing.
So these are kind of the three or four industries or areas that I’m completely enveloped in. My favorite way to learn is books personally, but there’s certain industries where that’s not so applicable. So like crypto man is changing so quickly that you can’t, they’re not many books, but marketing, there’s some really good books out there. And then just finding influencers that you really, really like. And I’m not saying huge ones, I’m saying just people that you can reach out and ask questions like Andy Crestodina is one that I’m just thinking off the top of my head? Who who would be willing to answer your questions like following them? reading their stuff, for tests, testing, and also experiment, hunting?
Kenny Soto 16:37
Yeah. My next question would be, if you had to teach a course, and can only use one marketing book, what would that book be?
Araminta Robertson 16:56
I have read that I’m trying to read more marketing books, for some reason I’m finding it in books seem to say the same thing. So I’m trying to find some that don’t. But I think one of my favorites has to be added Christina’s content chemistry is just jam packed with information, and actionable advice. And literally step by step how to do stuff, which is my favorite kind of book. It’s almost like a textbook, essentially. Because you can actually sit down and do it yourself. So you can definitely turn everything that’s in there into a course for sure. But he should probably do that, not me.
Kenny Soto 17:30
Two more questions. One is hypothetical. If you had access to a time machine, and go back in time, 10 years from today, knowing everything you know, right now, how would you get to where you are today? Faster.
Araminta Robertson 17:51
I’d have probably started a blog sooner, started writing sooner. Because I didn’t really know I knew from a very young age that I wanted to write a lot didn’t know on what topic or how or where or anything, but I knew writing was going to be involved. But the hardest part for me was trying to find something interesting to write about when you’re very young, like 16 is like, what do I write about? So maybe, if finding that topic a little bit sooner, whether it was FinTech or personal finance, or whatever the topic is, finding that topic sooner and then writing about it sooner, but honestly, in hindsight, obviously, we’re always going to be correct. And I don’t regret anything like, it’s just, it’s just how you know how life went. And to be fair to start very early, so just fine.
Kenny Soto 18:41
Now, this question is more so geared around life in general? What is one task or thing that you suggest the listeners do after listening to this podcast that might make them happier?
Araminta Robertson 19:07
Well, right after listening to a podcast, I’m sure that treating yourself to a meal is very nice. I mean, trading or Yeah, going to a meal with a friend is one of my favorite things to do so probably. Yeah, texting a friend and saying, let’s do something together. Whether it’s eating or playing a board game, playing chess, whatever it is
Kenny Soto 19:32
hanging out to your friends. Yeah, got it. Perfect. Everyone, you just listened to another episode of Kenny Soto Digital Marketing podcast. Thank you Minta for your time today and if anyone wanted to connect with you online, where could they find you?
Araminta Robertson 19:49
You can find me at mint copywriting studios.com Or on LinkedIn at Araminta Robertson or on Twitter at mint see studios. Happy to answer got any questions
Kenny Soto 20:01
Amazing branding by the way love it you just listened to another episode of minisodes Digital Marketing podcast and to listeners thank you for your time and your attention I hope you have a great week bye.