Last year saw the biggest number of financial services data breaches, with over 232 million individual records impacted as a result.
It’s no wonder that customers are concerned about the security of their financial information and transactions. And with so many competing companies to pick from, customers have a right to be choosy when their sensitive information is at risk.
Making sure your customers understand your preparedness to survive a cyberattack—with their information intact—is paramount in building trust and instilling confidence.
Let’s explore why it’s so important for customers (and you) that their information stays secure, how you can assess your risk and recover when an attack happens, and why a Fractional CMO is a powerful tool for creating and maintaining trust with your customers.
The Stakes of a Data Breach Are Sky High
Your customers are smart. They’re regularly keeping track of just how often attacks happen in financial services organizations, and they’re rightfully worried their sensitive information is at risk.
That information includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, credit and debit card numbers, social security numbers, and bank account numbers. Understandably, customers want to keep that data away from the wrong hands.
And of course, your brand reputation can be severely hurt after a cyber incident. Customers may lose faith, see you as unprepared, and take their business elsewhere. It’s up to you to not just be prepared—but also be able to prove that to your customers.
Assess Your Regularly And Prepare Accordingly
Your customers don’t just expect you to be able to respond to a data breach. They also want to make sure you’re proactively taking steps to minimize risk.
This is an area where AI is uniquely suited to help you. While some traditional security tools can help you stay on top of potential risk factors, AI goes the extra step to detect attacks and assess how big of a risk they pose, identify and flag potential sources of phishing or malware, spot vulnerabilities before threat actors find them, and analyze affected data quickly.
Keep in mind that cybercriminals are already aware of just how powerful AI is, with many exploiting it to hack passwords, execute social engineering schemes, and even create “deepfakes.” If AI is not already a part of your cybersecurity strategy, you are one step behind cybercriminals—and your customers will take note.
When your customers see the effort you have put in to minimize risk, you’ll be in a better position to maintain their loyalty. But even the best security measures can’t always prevent an attack from happening, so your responsibility is proving to your customers that you can keep their information safe even in a worst-case scenario.
Make Sure You Can Actually Recover (Be Ready to Prove it!)
Customers put tremendous trust in financial institutions like yours—and it’s up to you to hold up your end of the promise to protect their sensitive information.
When a cyberattack happens, you need a comprehensive recovery plan and a dedicated recovery team in place to make sure your customers’ data is as safe as possible. You can boost the effectiveness of your plan by using AI-powered systems that can quickly identify what data was affected by an attack, so you can react faster (and avoid having to restore everything manually). Your customers will feel safer knowing you’re using modern, AI-forward technologies that can respond to an attack from many angles.
Also, be prepared to notify customers in a timely manner following an attack, and let them know what (if any data) was impacted as soon as you know. If your customers need to take action themselves, this is the time to let them know to change passwords or expect new cards.
Ultimately, while you can’t prevent every attack, you can minimize the risk to your brand reputation by taking the onus to improve your response and recovery strategy. But how can you make certain your customers understand your commitment to protecting their data?
How a Fractional CMO Can Help
When it comes to cybersecurity, many organizations might overlook how powerful marketing can be in communicating your readiness to recover from an attack and your ability to protect customer data. This is where a Fractional CMO can do wonders.
A Fractional CMO can help you align your team on the focused mission to protect customer information and create messaging that proves your dedication. The right message can showcase all the steps you have taken to ensure security and help your customers feel safe and confident in their partnership with your brand.
And while many of your competitors may have cybersecurity measures in place, your ability to prove your commitment to security can help you differentiate your brand in the market.
Here is more information about the power of Fractional CMOs.
Upgrade Your Leadership
As a Fractional CMO with in-depth experience in the financial services and marketing sectors, I am eager to help your organization use AI and data-driven strategies to give your customers the confidence to bank with you.
Let’s talk about how to amplify your brand visibility, build and maintain trust, and maximize the benefits of AI in your organization.
Find some time on my calendar to get started.
Reach out today and discover how we can work together and help you leverage AI to revolutionize your marketing efforts.
Let’s make AI work for your business.
Kim Jackson
CMO
A senior strategic marketing executive with an exceptional track record spanning over two decades, Kim has in-depth experience in both the financial and marketing sectors, with a special emphasis in AI. She is also a current member of the American Bankers Association.
