COMPANY PROFILE
Privately held by Detroit-based Rockbridge Growth Ventures - Dan Gilbert’s (Founder and Chairman, Quicken Loans) private equity firm - RapidAdvance is an emerging, US-based FinTech lender providing working capital loans to America’s small businesses. The company competes for business with banks, credit unions, credit card issuers and other emerging and online FinTech lenders.
CHALLENGE
After being acquired by Rockbridge Growth Ventures, RapidAdvance sought to transform its reputation and scale its operations to achieve an ambitious, 5-year growth target of $1B funding per annum. They came to Marquee to gain a deep understanding of the small business borrowing experience, and find a market position and brand platform that would enable them to break through and shine in a traditional, status-quo industry.
APPROACH
Working with RapidAdvance’s CMO, Marquee laid out and executed a detailed learning plan designed to engage customers, employees and RapidAdvance’s executive team in the research, positioning and brand development process. In parallel, Marquee provided executive and organizational coaching on the meaning, importance and “how-to” of brand-building, transforming cultural thinking from transaction-centricity to customer-centricity.
Activities included:
- Qualitative Research
- Quantitative Research
- Segmentation
- Brand Platform Development
- Visual Identity Refresh (partner leadership/advisement role)
- Executive & Organizational Coaching (Branded Customer Experience)
SOLUTION
Marquee delivered detailed and illuminating research reports, and leveraged target segment insights & research findings into a new brand platform centered on an innovative, customer-centric lending experience for America’s small business owners – a platform built around the rallying cry, or new brand promise, “Money Doesn’t Have to Mean Struggle.”
In addition, Marquee advised RapidAdvance’s CMO on a Brand Identity refresh (unpublished; design work done by an independent partner), designed to take the brand from having a functional, transactional expression to delivering an approachable yet inspirational experience.
RESULTS
As the new brand platform gets integrated and implemented organizationally, application of customer insights in marketing and sales helped forge closer connections with small business owners, accelerating explosive, near-term (6-month) year-over-year (YoY) growth of +156% new leads and +247% funded deals.
RapidAdvance keeps American’s small businesses running. To-date, RapidAdvance has funded over $1B to tens of thousands of businesses nationwide, and is well on its way to achieving its annual funding objective.
Region
US
People
Lori Yuhas, Dave Chilvers
Services
Customer Research
Customer Insights
Segmentation
Brand Platform | Brand Strategy
Brand Identity
Coaching & Skill Building