“We were impressed by the team’s responsiveness and proactive approach. Even though the whole team was fractional, I felt like they were full-time because I could always get a real-time response.”
Building an AI-Driven Brand Marketing Platform for Financial Advisors
Background
Advisor Brand Builder (ABB), led by President Melissa Thomas and Kelly Waltrich, founder of Intention.ly, identified a significant gap in the market for brand-building services tailored to financial advisors and financial technology companies. Existing options were often prohibitively expensive and time-consuming, making it difficult for advisors to develop strong, professional brands.
Challenge
The primary challenge was to create a solution that could offer high-quality brand development at a lower cost and within a shorter timeframe compared to traditional marketing agencies. The goal was to leverage AI-driven technology to streamline the process without compromising the quality of the brand assets.
With over a decade of experience in brand marketing within financial services, Melissa and Kelly understood they needed an AI-driven solution to streamline the brand development process. This innovative approach aimed to enable an agency like Intention.ly to provide brand development services more efficiently and affordably.
To bring this vision to life, ABB partnered with Fraction. Melissa Thomas highlighted, “Fraction was the ideal choice for us, not only because they provided access to top-tier, senior US-based talent, but also because they included project management, which helped keep communication channels clear and the project moving forward.”
The collaboration began with a dedicated Fraction project manager and a senior full-stack developer to implement the initial proof of concept (POC). The positive reception of the POC prompted Intention.ly to expand its partnership with Fraction, adding a second developer to the team. The development team included professionals with experience from National Geographic, Google, and financial services, ensuring a high level of expertise and commitment.
Throughout the project, Fraction's team exhibited exceptional dedication and engagement, treating the project as a top priority. “We were impressed by the team’s responsiveness and proactive approach. Even though the whole team was fractional, I felt like they were full-time because I could always get a real-time response,” said Thomas.
Fraction also provided valuable strategic guidance. They helped Melissa and Kelly stay focused on achieving the Minimum Viable Product (MVP), enabling them to launch quickly and refine the product iteratively.
The collaboration with Fraction led to the successful launch of Advisor Brand Builder. The platform was developed efficiently and cost-effectively, meeting the initial goals set by Melissa and Kelly. The strategic guidance from Fraction ensured that the project stayed on track and adhered to the MVP approach, allowing for ongoing improvements and iterations.
The innovative AI-driven platform was enthusiastically embraced by financial firms and advisors for its user-friendly interface and its capacity to facilitate the creation of customized brands effortlessly.
The project not only met its objectives but also laid the foundation for future collaborations. Thomas affirmed, "We've had a great experience with Fraction and will continue our partnership. There’s still a lot of work to do on ABB and growing the platform, and want Fraction to be part of that journey.”