At A Glance
Psympl explains how psychographic data improves financial marketing by revealing consumer motivations. This Q&A covers how tools like the Consumer Console™ and Psymplifier™ help financial institutions target, engage, and retain customers during the Great Wealth Transfer. The interview ends with practical steps for starting psychographic segmentation.In our Ask the Expert series, we interview leaders from our partner organizations who are helping lead their brands to new heights in AdTech. Today’s interview is with Brent Walker, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Psympl.
What value does psychographic data add to financial marketing?
Demographic data tells financial marketers WHO a consumer is (like age, gender, or income), but it doesn’t predict decisions. Behavioral data shows WHAT a consumer does, but people can take the same action for different reasons. Understanding these reasons helps marketers engage consumers more effectively.
Psychographics reveal people’s attitudes, values, lifestyles, and personalities, the core of their motivations. This layer helps marketers understand WHY people act, anticipate needs, and connect in more meaningful ways.
This matters now as the “Great Wealth Transfer” unfolds: $124 trillion will be transferred from older to younger generations by the 2040s. Psychographics vary widely across generations, and up to 80% of heirs may switch financial institutions.
Using psychographic insights gives financial marketers a competitive edge during this historic wealth shift.
How can marketers apply Psympl Financial Segmentation?
Psympl Financial Segmentation groups households into five psychographic profiles, each with distinct approaches to money, investing, and engagement with financial advisors.
Psympl’s platform, the Consumer ConsoleTM, offers reference materials for understanding and engaging each Financial Segment, as well as access to extensive market research data conducted with Ipsos on the Segments to inform marketing strategy and campaign planning.
Psympl collaborates with Experian to map psychographic segments for all U.S. adults over 18. This allows financial services brands to enrich their consumer databases and find target customers based on psychographic, demographic, and socioeconomic profiles.
Experian Marketing Data also powers Psympl’s Geo-Targeting tool, which heatmaps the U.S. by psychographic segments down to the zip code, with filters for demographics, socioeconomic factors, and household counts.
Psympl’s platform also includes the PsymplifierTM, which uses Psychographic AITM to create, analyze, and rewrite marketing content tailored to specific segments or generate new content from simple prompts.
How do Psympl and Experian aid targeting strategies?
Psympl and Experian support targeting strategies by connecting psychographic insight with consumer data, geography, and channel preferences. That combination gives financial institutions a more actionable view of who to target, where to reach them, and what message is likely to resonate.
By connecting psychographic insights with consumer data, geography, and channel preferences, Psympl and Experian show financial institutions who to target, where to reach them, and what message will resonate, forming the foundation for effective targeting.
For example, a bank can pinpoint areas with consumers who prefer in-person service. Psympl’s Consumer Console™ highlights the Guided Mindset segment, those seeking expert financial help with $250,000+ in assets, as prime prospects. Psympl’s Geo-Targeting feature, powered by Experian Marketing Data, heat-maps where Guided Mindset households with $250,000+ in assets are concentrated.
In this example, one location stands out with a high representation (41.9%) and concentration (10,796 households) of the targeted Guided Mindset segment with $250,000+ in investable assets, shown in orange on the heat map. While nearby areas are dominated by Ambitious Mindset (blue) or Performance Mindset (green), the data suggests that ZIP code 45208 is an excellent candidate for a new branch, supported by targeted print, outdoor, or digital marketing.
Beyond location, Psympl’s research and Experian TrueTouch help firms choose the best channels for each segment and predict responses to direct mail, email, digital, and broadcast channels. Enriching customer databases with Psympl segments lets firms tailor messages—like notifying Guided Mindset customers about new locations, and use the Psymplifier™ to quickly generate targeted marketing content.
What are the top use cases for psychographic profiles?
By addressing customer motivations and priorities at every stage, organizations drive consistency, align communications, and deliver on customer expectations, whether acquiring, retaining, or upselling clients.
Relationships with Baby Boomer clients often do not carry over to younger heirs, who typically have Ambitious and Hopeful Mindsets instead of the Guided, Performance, and Self-Reliant Mindsets more common among older generations. Psychographics reveal these generational differences, distinct needs, values, and engagement preferences, so firms can anticipate, address, and communicate more effectively across generations.
Tools like Psympl’s Consumer Console and Psymplifier, combined with Experian TrueTouch Engagement data, equip financial professionals to tailor interactions and marketing content to each segment’s unique preferences, maximizing impact and receptivity.
Firms that fail to adapt to the needs and preferences of younger generations will inevitably lose AUM. The Psympl platform, enhanced by Experian data, positions organizations to turn The Great Wealth Transfer into an opportunity rather than a threat.
How can banks, credit unions, and wealth marketers start using psychographic segmentation?
Building a psychographic segmentation model is resource-intensive and challenging to scale, but Psympl’s collaboration with Experian addresses these challenges. After 20 years leading psychographic initiatives at Procter & Gamble, I wish I’d had Experian’s data and capabilities; they make planning and measurement much easier.
To start, enrich your CRM with Psympl psychographic Financial Segments from Experian. Analyze your customers to see which segments are over- or under-represented, revealing strengths and growth opportunities. Identify which segments most use specific products to target Prime Prospects. Then set a campaign goal and test psychographic messaging against a control group or with pre- and post-measures. Start small, earn, and adapt as you go.
Once you see results with relevant, psychographic-based content, expand this approach to prospecting, customer experience, and other applications.
Where can readers learn more?
I appreciate this opportunity! To learn more, readers can visit the psympl.com website, and more specifically, the Resources Page on the website, which includes videos, whitepapers, and guides for utilizing the Psympl psychographic Financial Segments for customer acquisition, retention, and enhanced engagement.
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About our expert
Brent Walker, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Psympl
Brent Walker is Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer for Psympl, helping wealth management firms, banks, credit unions, and financial services enhance customer acquisition, retention, and cross-sell initiatives. Brent started his career in Brand Management at Procter & Gamble, and over 20 years he led teams in product management, customer marketing, and psychographic segmentation initiatives. In 2012, he cofounded his first company focused on psychographics in healthcare, which saw a series of multiple acquisitions. Brent has delivered a variety of publications covering critical marketing topics, featured in Forbes, The Ohio Bankers League, The Commonwealth Fund, and Healthcare Finance.
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FeaturedWith Tapad, part of Experian, technology, AdsWizz AudioMatic is the first Audio buying platform to offer cross-device identity resolution across the U.S. and EMEA NEW YORK and LONDON, July 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Tapad, part of Experian and a global leader in digital identity resolution, today announced a new joint capability with AdsWizz , the leading technology provider for digital audio advertising solutions. The partnership combines Tapad’s digital cross-device technology with AdsWizz’s AudioMatic buying platform, enabling the ability to connect audio ad experiences across screens. AudioMatic, AdsWizz’s audio-centric buying platform, supports programmatic audio buying and entirely new audio ad experiences for listeners. The integration of The Tapad Graph onto its platform enables new opportunities for marketers to reach, engage and measure each interaction with their desired consumers on digital radio and podcasts channels, and across devices. This partnership makes AdsWizz the first audio buying platform to offer this enhanced cross-device identity capability in the US and EMEA markets. “Marketers need privacy-safe digital identity resolution to reach their consumers,” says Tom Rolph, VP of EMEA at Tapad. “With audio becoming an increasingly powerful medium for engagement, it’s important that our technology extends to this channel, which is why we are excited to announce our integration with AdsWizz’s AudioMatic platform.” Digital audio is experiencing high growth, with 84% of advertisers and agencies saying it will play a bigger role in their media plans in the future. Today, 60% of digital audio is consumed via a mobile device.* The Tapad Graph is the largest digital identity resolution graph with differentiated global scale. The partnership enables audio advertisers to leverage The Tapad Graph for enhanced attribution, analytics, and targeting. Alexis van der Wyer, CEO at AdsWizz, added, “Digital audio is increasingly becoming ubiquitous in our media consumption and in our daily digital interactions, and because of that, audio advertising offers tremendous opportunity to personally interact with consumers in every moment of their daily lives. By integrating with Tapad, we enable our advertising partners to increase the effectiveness and the relevance of their marketing messages across audio channels.” To learn more about Tapad and our digital identity resolution products, visit our identity solutions page. *Digital Audio Exchange, “The Rise of Digital Audio Advertising,” https://thisisdax.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/DAX-Whitepaper.pdf About Tapad Tapad, Inc. is a global leader in digital identity resolution. The Tapad Graph, and its related solutions, provide a transparent, privacy-safe approach connecting brands to consumers through their devices globally. Our one-of-a-kind Graph Select offering enables marketers the flexibility and freedom of choice to correlate devices to varied objectives, driving campaign effectiveness and business results. Tapad is recognized across the industry for its product innovation, workplace culture and talent, and has earned numerous awards including One World Identity’s 2019 Top 100 Influencers in Identity Award. Headquartered in New York, Tapad also has offices in Chicago, London, Oslo, Singapore and Tokyo. About AdsWizz: AdsWizz has created the end-to-end technology platform that is powering the digital audio advertising ecosystem. AdsWizz powers well-known music platforms, podcasts and broadcasting groups worldwide with a comprehensive digital audio software suite of solutions that connect audio publishers to the advertising community. From dynamic ad insertion to advanced programmatic platforms to innovative new audio formats, AdsWizz efficiently connects buyers and sellers in digital audio. AdsWizz is headquartered in San Mateo, California, with an IT Development hub in Bucharest, Romania, and presence in 39 markets around the world. About AudioMatic: AdsWizz Demand Side, audio-centric DSP and audio buying platform, AudioMatic, enables programmatic audio buying and entirely new audio ad experiences that are proven to be more engaging and more effective, and have delivered measurable results for agencies and their brands all over the world. All the biggest ad agencies have used our programmatic trading platform, including Omnicom, GroupM, Havas, Publicis, Mobext, and more. Contact us today