The global economic fluctuations we’ve experienced over the past few years have forced many people to make difficult financial decisions. This includes how to meet everyday needs like groceries and rent, as well as achieving longer-term goals around debt repayment and retirement.
Ongoing uncertainty over factors like inflation have led one in three consumers to cut back on spending, but that may be not enough to get through the challenges they’re facing. They will be looking to see what their options are – and who they can trust to help them outside of traditional financial services organizations.
That search will inevitably take them online, and in most cases to their smartphone. Among those who bank digitally today, three out of four consumers say they prefer to manage their finances through a mobile app or web browser. Apps were the top choice at 41%, probably based on the convenience of having access to their account profiles and payment services. Other research shows a third of Americans use three or more financial apps.
As a result, more consumers than ever before are becoming accustomed to looking at financial service content on their device – and will likely be receptive to content that connects them to brands offering loans, credit and debt consolidation services that address their unmet needs.
The in-app advertising advantage
In-app advertising already drives the lion’s share of marketing through mobile devices today, and is forecast to represent more than 83% of brand spending on mobile in 2025. Large financial institutions are taking the role of publisher, with giants like Chase launching a retail media network that will connect brands to its vast customer base.
If you’re working in consumer finance, the opportunity is to promote your products and services in popular apps across a host of categories. These include gaming, finance, news, lifestyle, entertainment, education and more. Given how crowded many existing channels can be with financial services ads, apps are less saturated. Not only is competition lower, but campaigns and lead acquisition processes can run with incredible efficiency and effectiveness.
Overcoming the consumer finance digital advertising crackdown
Exploring in-app advertising has become even more important as major platforms such as Google and Meta have made life difficult for brands by imposing restrictions on promoting debt relief services. Google’s most recent update on personalized ads, for instance, prohibits targeting audiences with consumer finance offers based on common variables such as gender, age, ZIP code and marital/parental status.
Of course, it’s never been easy to find and scale leads who meet the financial requirements for debt relief. With the right in-app advertising partner, you can identify and reach consumers who meet specific criteria that increase the propensity for conversion and return on ad spend (ROAS).
How LifeStreet can help consumer finance brands achieve their in-app advertising objectives
LifeStreet is already a leader in the in-app advertising space, managing more than eight billion bid requests per day and working across eight exchanges. Our reach also extends across more than 600,000 mobile apps. We have a proven track record of high engagement rates and offer services that are more cost-effective than traditional approaches.
While companies like Google and Meta have put in restrictions in order to protect user privacy, which LifeStreet takes just as seriously. We allow consumers to opt out of interest-based advertising and we don’t collect personal information about them. We also work with exchanges that offer brands tools and controls to prevent fraud, ensure safety and scale more quickly.
Our data sets can identify and reach the people who want and need to connect with consumer finance brands. We can find them through IP lookalike models, zip code targeting and inferences around factors like age, gender, marital or parental status. This means your marketing budget is directed towards consumers most qualified for debt relief.
LifeStreet also offers the ability to deliver customized ad experiences at scale through Nero Dynamic Creatives, which lets you personalize and enhance elements that will most likely drive a target event.
Success with any in-app advertising campaign depends a lot on strategic planning. We assist with that by working collaboratively with our clients to identify specific targeting requests. We discuss the pros and cons of applying more limited supply targeting, and whether we’ll be using any first-party data for modeling or campaign adjustments. Finally, our team offers guidance on messaging that resonates and reporting dimensions that can help with optimization.
Take the next step with in-app advertising
As consumer confidence regarding the economy begins to improve, researchers are seeing greater interest in purchasing plans for homes and new cars. In many cases, those purchases will only be possible with mortgages, auto-refinancing and other products and services.
By reaching them on the devices and within the apps where they’re already spending so much time, consumer finance brands can connect with the right people at the right time. Working with a partner like LifeStreet means you’re positioning yourself for optimal success.
Ready to take the next step? Connect with us to get started or check out our infographic to learn more about IAA.