How Values-Driven Branding Is Transforming Financial Services

Michelle Borkowski [00:00:00]:
At the end of the day, you're asking somebody to trust you with your money. But in reality, there is so much commonality. Putting your authentic self out there and getting people to know who you are to build that relationship is going to have a bigger impact for you in the long run.

Joanna Ehresman [00:00:27]:
Hi there, thanks for joining us. I'm Joanna Ehresman. And I'm Leah Alter. And this is Women Share, a celebration of women in financial services. Today we wanna thank our presenting sponsor, Xtella, the home for financial professionals who believe that people make the biggest difference.

Leah Alter [00:00:45]:
If you're looking for a network of firms that elevates every experience with their professionals and their clients, check out Axtella today at go.extella.com/womenshare. That's go.axtella.com/womenshare. And we are so excited for today. We are joined by Michelle Borkowski, head of marketing at f two strategy, where she focuses on marketing, strategic planning, brand development, and execution of all project work across f two Strategies client portfolio. Her passion for producing meaningful work and on point solutions, as well as over a decade of financial services expertise, provides trust and confidence in her partnerships with clients. We're really, really excited to dig in with you today. We always love having marketers on the show, Michelle. And we are

Michelle Borkowski [00:01:45]:
excited to hear where you and your team are seeing success across the industry. So welcome to Women's Shed. Thank you so much for having me. You know, I really have been with you guys as a listener since the beginning and very much value all of the the great advice and, you know, just sharing of information that all of your guests and and those of you lovely women have, you know, put out there for all of us. So thank you for having me. It's an honor.

Leah Alter [00:02:13]:
Aw. Thanks. Leo.

Joanna Ehresman [00:02:14]:
Yeah. And thanks for being a listener. Well and we know I'd like Leah said, we we nerd out with other marketers in the industry. But prior to getting into financial services, you were in a couple of other industries, in architecture, in the nonprofit sector. So we just love to hear what is it now that you've been in this industry for more than a decade. What's kept you engaged with the financial services space?

Michelle Borkowski [00:02:36]:
Yes. I am very much a classic case of falling into the industry. I knew absolutely nothing about financial services when I spring. Yeah. And, you know, I think there's really two two answers to that question for me. There's there's definitely, like, the creative and marketing side of it in terms of, you know it's a really interesting industry and that there are a lot of challenges and, you know, rules and regulations, but also it's, you know, a a populated industry with a lot of people trying to do the best for a lot of other people. Right? And so and and doing, you you know, and doing this work, trying to come up with fresh creative ideas and differentiators for for people and to really tell their story authentically has always been a a passion of mine and what I really love to to lean into with my clients. But the other side of that story is the people.

Michelle Borkowski [00:03:42]:
Right? Jeremy Jackson and Josh Roslyn were starting what was formerly known as Sky Marketing Consultants and had asked me to join. I had known Jeremy for a really long time. And, you know, like I said, he I knew nothing about the about the industry, but because I knew them and thought that that would be a great opportunity, I I jumped in. And so then that really, like, evolved to this, you know okay. Well, let me try and figure out how I can connect with my clients because I don't totally know what they're doing, but I know creative, and I know advertising, and then I know marketing. So I can, you know, get to know them, get to know their their process, and use that as my advantage to move things forward. And, you know, that's just grown over the last ten years and and working with different people. And so it really is the partnerships that I make with my clients and the connection that we have together that's kept me here this long.

Michelle Borkowski [00:04:41]:
And it's it's something that I would say is even, you know, heavy on my mind as I continue to grow in my own career is, like, I don't wanna lose that portion of getting to work with people on a day to day basis and building that trust together.

Leah Alter [00:04:59]:
Yeah. Yeah. I love that. I also you know, when you were talking, it reminded me too of it was like a a team building thing that I did once. It's a long time ago, but it was this idea of you really are pushed to get your the most out of your creativity when you have a lot of restraints. Yes. Right? Totally. Because when the world is, like, wide open and there's no restraints, it can become, like, overwhelming.

Michelle Borkowski [00:05:28]:
Right? Yeah. You almost get stuck in the what could be rather than being able to just create

Leah Alter [00:05:36]:
100 Yeah. When it's like you can't do this, this, and this, then it's like, okay. I know I can't do that, but what I can do is all this other all these other things, all these other ideas, and it actually helps us kind of tap into that creativity. Right?

Michelle Borkowski [00:05:54]:
I couldn't no. I couldn't under War. It's actually it's funny that you say that because it's one of the talking points I always bring up when I'm interviewing, like, designers is that, you know, for because that's where I I started on the design side and then moved, you know, creative direction into, you know, running the department out. But being able to, like, having those guardrails, I think, is the challenge, but it is what's fun. Like, you know, you have to continuously work towards something that feels different or, you know, it's it you have the puzzle or, like, the sandbox, and you've got to make it work within the confinements of what you have. And I think that's where people produce their best work too. Mhmm.

Leah Alter [00:06:45]:
Yes. I agree. It's also the most rewarding work. Yes. Yeah. Because, like, you solve the pre you solve the problem. Yeah. Yeah.

Joanna Ehresman [00:06:54]:
What do they call it? Thinking outside of the box while in the box. Right? We have this very clear delineation of compliance and all these different things. You know?

Leah Alter [00:07:02]:
But Yeah. Yeah. That's cool.

Michelle Borkowski [00:07:03]:
Yeah. Yeah. Exactly.

Leah Alter [00:07:04]:
I love that. So you talk about helping firms build a brand that people are loyal to by building relationships. And we know that this industry is a relationship industry. Right? That's, like, one of the first things we hear when we got into it. Yeah. So how are you helping firms build that brand loyalty beyond all the valuable services that they offer to their clients?

Michelle Borkowski [00:07:29]:
Yeah. It's an interesting question because, you know, one of the things that stood out to me when I joined the the industry was that people were mostly talking about marketing from a, like, activities and task standpoint. It was, like, the actual engine that are doing the things rather than what are you feeding the engine. What what is the message that you're putting out there? What is the story you're trying to tell? But if you think about, you know, like, a lot of the household brands that you are loyal to personally, it's usually much more or, you know, there it's broader than just, like, the product itself or or the solution that it's, you know, claiming to solve for you. It's about, you know, your overall lifestyle and sharing values and goals and feeling, like, understood by somebody else even if it is a brand. Right? But that's why influencers have become so big is because there has that human connection. And so I think that's a really important part about what we do with our with our clients and what they should be focused on putting out there is to be really thoughtful in how they can tell their story and share their values. Because, you know, at the end of the day, you're asking somebody to trust you with your money.

Michelle Borkowski [00:08:50]:
So you can you can sit and talk about, oh, you know, my process is a little bit different. I do it this way. But in reality, there is so much commonality between, you know, what each individual firm offers that putting your authentic self out there and getting people to know who you are to build that relationship is going to have a bigger impact for you in the long run.

Joanna Ehresman [00:09:14]:
I love that. And the values alignment, I remember we did brand study at the RIA I was at, and it was around the time of, like, values driven planning being a really big thing. And one of the key insights was, yeah, doing those exercises with clients wasn't actually like, our clients were clear on their values. It was more assessing the fit of their values with that adviser. Like, a value it was like a reverse match. You know? We thought, like, oh, we're being this is all about helping these clients discover themselves. It's like, no. They know themselves very clearly.

Joanna Ehresman [00:09:46]:
It's now how are you reacting to the values that they're sharing with you, and how are they feeling that alignment? So

Michelle Borkowski [00:09:52]:
Yeah. No. Exactly. You know, there's because I love to read different marketing books and theories and all sorts of stuff, and I actually keep a Post it on on my laptop right here that says, lead with the need and then define the why. So often people talk, you know, in their marketing materials will will lead with this is what I'm gonna solve, and this is what I'm gonna do rather than saying, like, I know what's keeping you up at night. I know what your goals are. I'm I understand. I feel those too.

Michelle Borkowski [00:10:23]:
Let's walk this path together. Let's, you know, get there together. And I think that's exactly you know, it hits right at what you were saying about they they want to make sure that you understand their values and that, you know, when when you call and maybe you're vulnerable about whatever is going on, that they're gonna feel comforted and, you know, guided on the other side of the line. So Yes. Yes.

Leah Alter [00:10:51]:
I feel like that's becoming even or not even becoming. It is even more prevalent in the younger generation of investors. They really like, values alignment, all of that is just so important. They are not gonna work with someone just because their parents did or their grandparents did. They are definitely gonna seek out the person that they connect with and and can build that relationship with. So it's I think incorporating that as, like, a key piece in their marketing is is super important going, you know, into this next, like, decade of of new investors.

Michelle Borkowski [00:11:31]:
Yeah. And I think you're starting to see it a little bit more already where, you know, I've seen some firms and practices start to talk about, you know, total wealth and and what that means for, you know, your lifestyle and fulfillment in life and and all of those things, which I think is is going to be a really cool transformation. And I'm excited to see where where that really goes and and how that resonates with people because, you know, money is, you know, so it's at the heart of so much of what we do, but it's not who we are, and it's not all of us. You know? We're we as human beings are so much more than that. And so to to be able to find that security and prosperity and trust and all of those things just makes it easier to enjoy everything else. Well, before we get into our next question, we are just so proud to be partnering with Xtella, where exceptional service is the standard.

Joanna Ehresman [00:12:36]:
Yes. And Xtella elevates and empowers financial professionals to build a stellar practice and leave a lasting impact for their clients. Explore how Xtella goes above and beyond for their professionals by visiting go.extella.com/womenshare. That's go.axtella.com/womenshare. So, Michelle, you stated that f two is focused on bringing marketing, technology, and insights together to build that optimal growth engine for your clients. So would love to hear what you think about how brand plays into all three of those kind of contexts and and how they work together. How do they

Michelle Borkowski [00:13:16]:
integrate? Yes. Yeah. No. So, another one of my favorite quotes is by Marty Mumeier who wrote the the brand gap. And to paraphrase, you he, you know, he says that a brand isn't what you say it is. It's what your audience say says it is. Right? So it's all about that reputation and and their experience. And I think, you know, that's obviously a big component of marketing, right, is because marketing is communication in so many ways.

Michelle Borkowski [00:13:49]:
And so I think I think that's people think about your brand in sort of that small, context. And, you know, even when we're doing branding work, I try and remind our our clients that, you know, the the overall message and our our strategy on how we're communicating your Vowel prop and all of those things is just as important as the, you know, visual aspect of your brand. It's it's everything. So but in terms of, like, brand and reputation on the technology side, I think that really becomes sort of twofold in that, like, there's the external portion of your technology in terms of client experience and, you know, what their user interfaces look like and how they're able to digest their different plans and performance and and how they're doing. But there's also the internal view in terms of how easy is it for your advisers to, like, work on a day to day basis. Right? The the efficiencies that technology creates so that they can spend more time focus on their clients and helping, you know, solve their needs because everything is is streamlined in the background. So I think there there are those things working together, and, you know, marketing is all about generating revenue and growth and, you know, either acquiring additional advisers or acquiring additional clients, whereas technology is about efficiencies and your overall day to day and how that impacts margins and things like that. You can't make good decisions without having the insights piece.

Michelle Borkowski [00:15:40]:
So although I don't know that insights relates directly to your brand, making sure that you have the right information, to make sound decisions to, you know, not make the wrong decision is really important. And so for for us, we do, you know, a ton of our own proprietary research at f two, but it ultimately helps us become better consultants because, you know, we not only have our own experience, but we are seeing what's happening out there in the marketplace.

Joanna Ehresman [00:16:10]:
I love the concept that you shared, which it seems, I guess, obvious once you said it, but I haven't heard a lot of people talk about it this way, is how technology is an enabler of the brand that you wanna present, but it also is part of the experience. Like, it shapes your brand. Right? So there's this dichotomy, right, of of not, I guess, not ignoring that piece of Yeah. Story or making sure marketing is really connected to that client experience and the adviser experience. Well and to the point on insights too, where there is a connection to brand, I could see is, like, what you are measuring and managing as it like, is related to your brand. Like, if you're looking at, I don't know, client not just, like, client attrition and stickiness, but, like, hey. Our clients are spending a lot of time digging into these types of topics. Right? Like, it it it's all about how do you bring a brand lens to some of the insights to help inform what it is that's resonating, where do your clients have concerns, what's keeping them up at night so that you can respond.

Michelle Borkowski [00:17:19]:
Yes. No. And that that that's totally true. And I think, a really excellent point, you know, figuring out, like you said, what's resonating, but also how trends are kind of changing. Right? Like Yeah. How what people are caring about in terms of their portfolio and ultimately, you know, how technology needs to change to be able to accommodate their their new means or desires. They are intertwined. Yes.

Leah Alter [00:17:51]:
Well and if you're not looking at your data on a regular basis, you're gonna be behind the curve.

Joanna Ehresman [00:17:57]:
Mhmm.

Leah Alter [00:17:57]:
Right? So it's one of those things where if you're not looking at it regularly, you may not see those small shifts that are happening. Right. It's a big shift, and then it's too late. And then you're behind you're playing catch up. So, I mean, we used to talk a lot about looking at certain data points, like, on a monthly basis and then really in-depth on a quarterly basis in terms of their marketing strategy so that you can make those adjustments.

Michelle Borkowski [00:18:25]:
Mhmm.

Leah Alter [00:18:26]:
And make sure that you're, you know, speaking to things that people are you care about and that you might have a service or an offering that that maybe wasn't super popular. But because something happened, it might become super popular, and you haven't been marketing it. Whereas if you are able to see that data on a regular basis, you're able to make those adjustments and those tweaks. And I I do I think that, you know, I think there's an instinctual part of marketing, but also married with that data driven decision making is, like, where the magic is.

Michelle Borkowski [00:19:05]:
No. It's it's totally true. And, you know, when we're working with clients, I think that's a very important part from a consulting and a coaching standpoint is, you know and I guess you could tie it into the same way that people tell you not to watch your, performance of your portfolio. That's right. There you you wanna know what's going on, but, like, you also have to, like, allow things to run its course to properly to test it. Right? And, you know, I think doing things like having AB testing and messaging or or your creative or what have you to see what's resonating and then adjusting incrementally is important. But, yeah, it it is something that comes up often is, like, well, how often do I have to refresh my creative? And, like, how often you know, if we start to see a a dip, you know, does that mean I need, you know, new ad campaign, something out there? And we always respond like, well, let's see how long of a dip it is. Is it Yeah.

Michelle Borkowski [00:20:11]:
A holiday weekend where people just aren't paying, you know, attention? Or is there something else happening in the world that kinda has everybody distracted?

Leah Alter [00:20:21]:
Yeah. But if your advisers or if you're talking about, like, a home office, your, you know, recruiters are hearing things over and over again from conversations that they're having, and it's not something you're addressing. That at least gives you the opportunity to, you know, take a look at it and see if there is a tweak that needs to be made. Not necessarily a whole new creative direction. You know, we I don't know how many times I had to have a conversation where it's like, we need at least six months to see what's gonna happen. Like, there's no, like, easy button, you know, silver bullet. We do this one thing, and it's really good to look at the data along the way. I think it's yeah.

Leah Alter [00:21:02]:
It's a both and.

Michelle Borkowski [00:21:04]:
Yes. Totally agree. I I liked the way you said that about intuition.

Leah Alter [00:21:08]:
Yeah. Totally. Yeah. Let's talk about where you're seeing some of the opportunities that are coming up in the industry. Like, in the in an RIA space or a broker dealer space, when is it time for a firm to bring in an agency like f two that will help take them to that next level? And the second kind of part of that question is, like, what do you look for in a client at that stage of, like, yeah. This is somebody we really wanna work with because I think that's important for people to know.

Michelle Borkowski [00:21:41]:
Yeah. No. That's that's a that's a great question. Oh, what order do I wanna answer? You know, I think, one of the and this isn't you know, as a firm, we work with companies of all sizes from everybody from, you know, individual FA to enterprise level and what those engagements look like very drastically between, you know, what their problem set is and and how we can come in and help. But from a marketing standpoint, sort of my well, I I guess I shouldn't be biased, but one of my favorite areas to to work with clients are is sort of like when you're an emerging company where you're you're not startup anymore. You you're established. And, again, that you know, even saying that, I think, can vary greatly in terms of what that means to people. But, you know, you're established firm that you're either trying to acquire new advisors or or go deeper with your existing clients or or gain new clients.

Michelle Borkowski [00:22:49]:
But you're sort of at this inflection point in that you've reached enough scale and growth that all of the things that used to be kind of easy and, like, that your process was working for, really, you're not seeing the same results anymore because of the growth and, you know, adding more team members and and all sorts of stuff like that. And so for us, that's where we can really come in and, like like I hate to use the word assess, but, you know, look under the hood with you to say, like, okay. Where where are we not seeing the same growth and that we used to? What does that mean? You know? Is there is it an easy case of, like, hey. You guys have, you know, evolved to the point where we need to refresh your your value prop and really dig into how do you tell your story throughout, like, the full funnel. I think people, a lot of times, especially when, you know, you haven't reached a level of maturity yet, have, you know, just sort of segmented messaging strategies and content. Whereas as you develop into a larger scale firm, like, you need separate messaging for this audience and that audience and this audience and that audience. And then, you know, on top of it, all of the different channels that that messaging is out in the world on. And so we we like to really come in there and really start from the beginning on, okay, what is it that we need to fine tune and adjust? And then how do we take that new, messaging and really bring it to life either through, you know, your existing materials? Maybe you need a website refresh.

Michelle Borkowski [00:24:39]:
Maybe it's a look at, like, we need to refine our go to market strategy for next year. You know, where can we leverage f two's team to to be an extension of what we're doing, but just to help us get us over the finish line. So, you know, in terms of what that means for what clients what I look for in a client is is somebody who also can, like, recognize that and are just looking for help. I, you know, love to work with people who want to collaborate with us. And because of the different engagements that we have, sometimes, like I said, it is working with a nonmarketer. And then other times, we're working with firms where I'm working with their marketing team and can, you know, roll up our sleeves together and really start to, like, brainstorm ideas of what's gonna work. And like I said, I I try and go about that in a different way in terms of sort of, like, what you were saying, Joanna, about thinking outside of the box in the box. Like Yeah.

Michelle Borkowski [00:25:45]:
Well, is there something else that we can do here rather than, oh, we we need a fresh campaign and new brochures and and what have you. It's like, okay. Well, no. Maybe we can, rather than creating five different brochures or what have you, we create this really awesome video. And, you know, we deploy that on a video mailer and send that out or, you know, just trying to come up with fresh ideas that's gonna help solve the problem, but not necessarily go about it in the same way every single time.

Joanna Ehresman [00:26:20]:
I love well, and I think that's so true of just my experience of when we've worked with agencies. Right? Because I think when you're in it, when you're in the business, it can be so easy to be like, well, we kinda have this playbook. Right? And having these partners that can push you and bring additional ideas and say, hey. We've had clients find success with this sort of thing. Right? It kinda I don't know. Maybe it was just the firms I'm in or my personality, but I think there's just this kind of risk aversion when it comes to marketing in in this space. And so having a partner who's like, we have experience doing this. Not that the results are gonna be exactly the same or we're doing the exact same thing, but here's some reason to believe.

Joanna Ehresman [00:27:01]:
Right? Here's the basis for why we think this will work for you. Give it a shot and, like, nudge, nudge, nudge because, otherwise, that's how we end up with everybody having sailboats and retired tan white people walking on the beach on their website home page. So

Leah Alter [00:27:15]:
Well, 60%. One hundred At the end of a pier.

Michelle Borkowski [00:27:18]:
That's it. Yeah. And, you know, I think that's to to even tie it back to some of our, earlier conversation, everybody's unique. Right? So, like, how you represent what everybody else is striving for is difficult in that sense because you can't oversimplify. And so, yeah, thinking through how how can we help them understand that we get them, that we're gonna help figure this out together without, yeah, the the same, you know, tired sort of, oh, well, you know, if you don't fit this mold, then you feel isolated or excluded or or what have you. So yeah. Right. Totally

Joanna Ehresman [00:28:06]:
agree. Love that. So, Michelle, we ask every guest who comes on the show, what's the best career advice you've ever received?

Michelle Borkowski [00:28:14]:
So, it's really about manifesting. And I I have always been very, like, growth oriented and and ambitious myself in my own career. And, you know, I think that there's this idea of always needing to have forward momentum all of the time. And so one of my mentors got me to just start to to manifest, like, okay. Well, where do you actually wanna be in three years, five years, what have you? And write that down and then use that to work backwards on, like, no. This is actually I just need to do this in the next year. And use that to to, you know, provide some comfort for yourself, but to also not isolate it from a career only standpoint. Like, think about manifesting your your whole being, your whole life in three to five years.

Michelle Borkowski [00:29:13]:
And, obviously, your career is a huge part of that. Right? Like, we all spend a ton of time working, so don't try and separate them because they're not really separate things. And, yeah, I'm a because I'm such a a a planner and I even heard this quote the other day about, you know, they call they say that we're human beings, but being is something that we do very little of. We're always

Joanna Ehresman [00:29:39]:
do Yeah.

Leah Alter [00:29:41]:
Human doings. Yeah. Yeah.

Michelle Borkowski [00:29:43]:
Doing all of the time. But so I I've been trying to take on this mantra of don't be a a worrier, be a warrior. And so I love that. Yeah. So I like this idea of manifesting because if I can go plan it out, write it down, then I know that my, like, subconscious is going to be taking the steps I need to get there, and I don't have to constantly be, like, worrying about what I'm doing to achieve my goals.

Joanna Ehresman [00:30:14]:
Can we give you triple bonus points for using manifesting and mantra and subconscious all in the same thing? Leah Leah has helped introduce me to some of the like, these things over the past, what, two years. So I'm like, this is this is disturbing.

Leah Alter [00:30:28]:
I love it. Right.

Michelle Borkowski [00:30:29]:
I know it's I love that. The it's the creative marketer of me coming up.

Leah Alter [00:30:33]:
Yeah. Totally. Okay. And, Michelle, as

Michelle Borkowski [00:30:36]:
you know, we are a celebration of women in financial services. So what can we celebrate with you today? Doesn't have to be work related, can be, but what can we celebrate with you today? Well, it it's work related, but also personal. So I'm very excited. I'm going on vacation here in a couple of days. And so from a personal standpoint, you know, time away from work with with family, my husband, all of those things is obviously very rewarding and exciting. But I'm I'm heading into the vacation with a really supportive team behind me, and so that itself has really helped alleviate a lot of what is normal, like stress and chaos, but, like, out of the office for a week. And, you know, I've always I've always had great support in my in my career, but, you know, we're have built sort of a a a new team in the last year. And, you know, I just I I feel very taken care of and that I can trust everybody behind me to take good care of our clients.

Michelle Borkowski [00:31:48]:
We're all working towards the same goals, and so that just feels really good as I, head out of the office for a while.

Leah Alter [00:31:55]:
That's a great thing to celebrate. It is a great feeling. And I hope you have an amazing vacation. Thanks. Well well deserved. Yes. Yes. Appreciate it.

Joanna Ehresman [00:32:06]:
Well, Michelle, this has been so fun. And just yeah. Thank you for sharing your story, sharing your insights. If people wanna connect with you or work with f two, learn more about what you all are up to, what's the best way for them to get in contact?

Michelle Borkowski [00:32:20]:
Yeah. So you could reach out to me directly on LinkedIn. I love to to meet new people, and so, you know, send me a connection and Michelle Borkowski. But our website is f2strategy.com. And and on there, they have all of our our profiles and our emails, so you can reach out to me directly there too.

Leah Alter [00:32:40]:
Awesome. And we'll have that all linked in the show notes for y'all so you can easily get to Michelle. And thanks again to our sponsor, Acctella, a network of firms that elevates every experience for their financial professionals. Visit go.acctella.com/womenshare. That's go.axtella.com/womenshare.

Joanna Ehresman [00:33:06]:
And that's our show for today. If ours is a mission that you wanna share in, subscribe to WomenShare on your favorite podcast platform. With that, I'm Joanna Ehresman.

Leah Alter [00:33:16]:
And I'm Leah Alter, and we will catch you on the next episode of WomenShare.