Creating buzz with a merchant finance
startup’s brand launch
Background
Founded by payments industry veterans, Finova Capital provides financial products for small to medium-sized businesses, plus the independent sales organizations (ISOs) and payment processors who serve them. To make their presence known, Finova needed a bold brand that would stand out in a competitive market.
The challenge
The merchant finance industry is crowded and complex. Finova needed to clearly communicate its competitive differentiators — to both of its separate audiences. And as a startup, Finova needed to move quickly. FVM had four months to bring the business to market with a new brand, website, and advertising.
Our solution
The FVM team dove deep into research to understand the industry and its key players. We spoke to publishers for insights about Finova’s audiences, and looked at competitors’ brands to see where Finova could set itself apart.
In a market dominated by blue and red colors, we gave Finova an additional palette of eye-catching greens and purples. We also dispelled commons myths about merchant financing by highlighting Finova’s expertise and transparency — supported by thought leadership articles from company leaders.
Since the business relies heavily on tradeshows, we initially focused on advertising before, during, and after industry events — ensuring the brand would be seen by key prospects.
In total, FVM delivered the following assets:
- Website
- Branding, including a visual ID and style guide, positioning, and product branding
- Competitive audit
- Business materials
- Baseline content, including blog posts, video, and sales sheets
- Advertising plan
- Event booth and collateral
Results
The brand launch was a success, driving a 375% increase in web traffic during one of Finova’s largest tradeshows. General awareness of business exploded, with several competitors and prospective clients commenting they’d seen the brand everywhere.
Finova’s CEO, Bob Neagle, was pleased to see the brand rollout converting into meetings with prospects. “My entire show was booked with scheduled meetings, and I had a lot of great conversations,” he said.
With an attention-worthy introduction made, Finova is poised for continued growth as an industry leader.
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