Fin the Week

This week, Paul and Amelia sit down for a chat with Nick Laws, the senior creative leader behind work with Nest Pensions and the recently rebranded Centre for Inclusive Money (formerly Nest Insight). Nick chats about the tricky task of engaging consumers with their pensions. We touch upon his work alongside Aardman (of Wallace & Gromit fame) on building a national ad campaign. We also discuss the role of influencers in financial campaigns; including the Everyday Investor campaign featuring a former winner of The Great British Bake Off who baked using products that benefited from Nest pension pot investment. It's a fascinating discussion covering one of the most lively parts of the world of financial services. Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Nick Laws and his role at Inclusive Money02:28 The challenge of engaging consumers with pensions04:17 Complexities of pension types and communication hurdles06:32 Creative restrictions in financial promotion09:28 Working with Aardman on the Nest brand awareness15:37 Auto-enrollment and consumer inertia in pensions21:43 The Everyday Investor campaign and innovative engagement30:24 Impact of generative AI on creative work37:54 Working on a mission-led brand and its unique aspects39:36 The importance of purpose and authenticity in branding40:59 Jargon busting: Understanding the black swan event

We've just updated our big guide to SEO in financial services, so this week the marketing team got together to define what SEO actually means in our industry.We outline the challenges banking, insurance, wealth management, and fintech firms face in search and what good search strategy looks like.We also outline our case for why search is a relevant factor when it comes to Consumer Duty.Chapters00:00 Introduction to SEO in Financial Services01:09 What is SEO and why is it different in finance?04:36 Unique challenges of finance SEO: YMYL05:49 EEAT: Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness07:01 Regulatory and compliance considerations in finance SEO11:40 Subsector differences: Banking, Wealth Management, Insurance, Fintech16:38 SEO in wealth management19:55 SEO for insurance brands22:03 SEO for fintechs23:22 Content strategies: FAQs, keyword research, and outdated content27:12 Powerful keyword research using a brand name29:28 Building a strategic approach: Technical, Content, Promotion33:24 Navigational search and user journey optimisation36:40 Impact of AI and generative search on SEO in finance42:28 Consumer duty and the importance of accurate search results45:59 Why SEO is a Consumer Duty factor46:37 Jargon Busters: AUM

Is AI actually neutral? Is that something you've even ever thought about?Earlier this year, Paul and Mayna attended BrightonSEO and our favourite session was an eye-opening talk on the bias within AI.So this week, we're delighted to be joined by the expert behind that session, Azahara Corrales!Did you know that 71% of men vs. 29% of women report having AI skills (Randstad, 2024)? Did you know that Citizens Advice found customers in areas with high Black and South Asian populations were quoted at least £280 more for car insurance?These aren't quirks of the system, they are manifestations of a deep bias that is present in the AI systems and algorithms the world (increasingly) relies upon every day.AI consultant and adoption advisor to leaders, Azahara Corrales, has devoted time to understanding and spreading awareness of this often overlooked risk.For anyone working with AI (that's probably all of us), and any firm rolling out AI systems, this episode should be required listening!Chapters00:00 Introduction to Azahara Corrales and episode overview00:57 Azahara explains her focus on AI bias and its origins01:54 Why this topic captured the interest of the hosts03:10 The importance of understanding how AI works03:54 Where AI bias actually comes from05:58 Disparities in AI usage among genders and age groups08:03 The bias triangle: builders, users, data10:26 Research findings on gender bias in language models12:02 The deep-rooted nature of AI bias and its persistence13:28 The impact of biased AI in everyday life and decision-making15:36 Self-fulfilling biases in AI and solutions17:30 Practical advice for users to mitigate bias19:10 Regulation, regulation, regulation: the need for oversight22:59 The long-term consequences of unregulated AI24:07 Bias beyond gender: race, religion, and other groups27:49 AI in financial services and personal finance40:17 What individuals and firms can do now41:49 Jargon Busters: Flat money

This week we jump back into our Consumer Duty teardowns which throughout four weeks earlier this year, shocked us with the level of web accessibility issues.Of 600 issues uncovered, almost half were accessibility challenges.We're joined by accessibility expert and advocate, Luke, who takes us through what some of the terms mean, and where things are going wrong.In an area that the FCA is sure to take an interest in, this is a must listen for teams in our sector.Chapters00:00 Introduction to the episode and guest expertise00:16 What is web accessibility and why it matters06:24 What's the difference between A, AA, and AAA in WCAG?10:06 What accessibility issues did we find in FS?11:50 What, actually, is a screen reader?17:19 FS websites are failing users who can't/don't use a mouse20:48 Is accessibility compliance extra work?23:15 Can AI fix accessibility challenges for firms?30:44 Is the finance industry failing its consumers?35:16 Is this bigger than just being the right thing to do?43:34 Why doesn't the FCA currently mandate WCAG AA standard?45:39 Jargon Busters: AER

This week, we kick off a discussion prompted by the conversations we've been having with our clients.More often than you might expect, we're meeting financial marketing teams who don't use AI (particularly agentic AI) anywhere near as much as they could/should.So, why is that?Chapters00:00 Introduction and episode overview00:16 The trust reset theme and AI in financial marketing03:28 Why do FS marketing teams struggle to get good output from AI?14:58 Are security fears scaring marketing teams away?18:27 Can AI write in my brand's tone of voice?24:45 Claude's new AI copy watermarking33:58 Where's the line between AI you can trust, and risky use of AI?49:42 Advice for marketing teams burnt by poor use of AI51:25 What does the near future look like for FS marketing teams?53:29 Jargon Busters: Zero Sum Game

Credibility gets you through the door, but trust is what makes people stay. On this episode of Fin the Week, we're joined by Indulge's newest team member, Tonicha, to unpack why financial brands can no longer rely on confident marketing alone.We dig into how consumer duty, the EU AI Act and the Sustainability Disclosure Requirements are pushing firms to evidence their claims rather than just make them, why "finfluencers" cut both ways, and how something as simple as a mortgage calculator can build more trust than a bold headline stat ever will.Chapters00:00 Introduction to the importance of trust and credibility in finance01:42 How regulatory changes are influencing trust evidence03:35 The role of consumer duty and EU AI Act in trust06:26 Differentiating credibility and trust in marketing08:19 How credibility can be faked and the importance of trust11:03 The impact of misleading claims and greenwashing13:58 The significance of transparency in insurance and finance16:52 Industry examples of trust and credibility issues19:54 Building trust through consistent messaging and evidence22:35 The importance of easy cancellation and customer support23:37 Credibility & trust in the consumer funnel25:14 Does being trustworthy put firms at a marketing disadvantage?27:43 Selling insurance on price versus features31:53 Can marketing teams incentivise and be trustworthy at the same time?33:45 Finluencers and the impact on trust36:36 Risks of misleading marketing and short-term gains39:14 The importance of honest reviews and influencer vetting41:58 Using technology to enhance transparency and trust45:55 Summary and key takeaways on trust and credibility46:46 Jargon Busters: Diversification

It's Consumer Duty anniversary day, so we're rounding off Consumer Duty month with our fourth and final teardown.We take a look at life insurance and protection: the sector with 7 of the FCA's 11 open investigations.We ran a direct insurer, a comparison site, and an independent broker through UX Duty and found 109 issues between them, half of them accessibility failures.In this episode: misleading "£3 a month" headline pricing that hides eligibility criteria in tiny asterisked footnotes, pre-ticked marketing consent boxes that breach GDPR, sites that make it nearly impossible to reach a human for a complaint, and a wrap-up of what four teardowns (12 firms, ~600 findings) reveal about where financial services UX keeps failing consumers.Chapters00:00 Introduction to the Consumer Duty Teardowns02:16 Overview of the Insurance Sector Investigations06:24 The core findings in the insurance sector08:37 Misleading Headlines and Transparency Issues15:22 Consent, GDPR, and Dark Patterns20:40 The Impact of AI on Accessibility and Regulation25:35 Collecting Data and Privacy Concerns31:22 Complaints Procedures and Vulnerable Customers33:53 Website Accessibility and Quality Testing38:13 The Future of Accessibility with AI41:17 Summary of Findings and Industry Implications47:20 Jargon Busters!50:27 Next time: the EU AI Act

Four weeks into the trust reset and three episodes into the Consumer Duty teardown series, Amelia, Paul, Pat and Russ turn to what's arguably the biggest financial decision most people ever make: getting a mortgage.Using their scanning tool, UX Duty, the team reviewed the online journeys of a top-tier broker, a mid-tier broker and a smaller, consultant-branded challenger, scoring 125 findings across the three firms and, for the first time in the series, a "medium risk" rating for one of them.Chapters00:00 Introduction and episode overview06:57 An overview of the findings from the mortgage brokers11:02 Fee disclosure issues21:21 How much fee disclosure is reasonable?23:31 Firm A drops a GDPR clanger29:19 No FCA registration details displayed32:02 Back to accessibility flaws across FS websites36:54 Missing accessibility statements39:11 A project building an accessibility plugin with a major tech firm43:40 User testing and inclusive design for accessibility47:21 Jargon busters: Understanding industry terms48:06 Upcoming topics: protection insurance and final thoughts

Week three of Consumer Duty anniversary month, and we're going up a level; from everyday bank switching to investing. We ran three anonymised robo-advisors (a big player, a mid-tier firm, and a fintech challenger) through Indulge's in-house teardown tool, UX Duty, and turned up 150 findings across the three.In this episode we get into...Why risk warnings keep losing out to bold "grow your money" headlines, and what that means for consumer understandingThe FCA's growing focus on "foreseeable harm" from platform features, not just price, and what that means for trading appsMissing exit costs and a genuinely hard-to-find "get your money out" journeyEligibility criteria buried deep in the sign-up flow, wasting users' timeVulnerability support (or the lack of it) for first-time investorsWhy 53% of all issues found were accessibility problems; including one firm whose entire brand colour fails contrast checksChapters00:00 Introduction to the episode and main themes01:11 Findings from digital journeys of banking products11:09 Accessibility issues and common themes15:22 Key findings on accessibility and design flaws20:01 Risk warnings and consumer understanding26:23 Cost transparency (joining vs leaving)31:07 Eligibility and vulnerability support41:13 One firm drops an accessibility clanger

Consumer Duty is turning three, and the FCA's message is clear: the grace period is over.In this episode, Paul, Russ, and Pat break down the FCA's new Enforcement Watch 2 report, then dig into our first teardown: a hands-on review of the bank switching journey across three UK current account providers, run through our UX Duty tool.Loud offers, quiet conditions, missing debt advice signposting, and 205 findings later, here's what good, and bad, Consumer Duty compliance actually looks like in the wild.Chapters:00:00 Introduction and Current Events01:46 Discussing the FCA enforcement watch 2 update06:12 Teardown of Bank Switching Process09:06 The methodology for the research11:18 Exploring the findings16:19 Loud offers with quiet conditions24:16 Looking out for financial distress26:36 Switching in versus switching out29:17 Dealing with vulnerability32:30 The Language of Finance37:31 Standardising financial product comparison41:13 Wrapping up the findings42:50 Jargon Busters: Hedging

Consumer duty turns three this month. Three years in, "we're working on it" stops being an excuse, and the FCA's tone has shifted from patient to pointed.So we're kicking off our Q3 edition, The Trust Reset, with a four-part teardown series where we run real financial services journeys through the wringer and ask a simple question; is this actually fair, or does it just tick a box?In this opener, the full team's back together to set the scene. We get into what's really changed since 2022, why "we don't sell to consumers" is a dangerous thing for a firm to believe, and how much of consumer duty comes down to accessibility and sludge.We also lift the lid on UXDuty, the tool we built in-house to scan digital channels against the PRIN 2A rules and surface the friction firms would rather you didn't notice.Next week we start the teardowns proper with bank switching, a big provider, a mid-tier one, and a challenger, side by side.What we cover:Why year three of consumer duty is the year the excuses run outDistribution chains, and why more firms are in scope than think they areAccessibility as good practice, not a compliance choreWhether AI fixes digital channels or quietly makes them worseUX Duty: how we scan journeys for sludge and evidence board reportsJargon buster: escrow, explainedNew episode every Friday. Fin the Week is the financial technology and marketing briefing from Indulge, a digital agency for financial services.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Personal Updates00:55 What's coming up in Q3?06:09 What was the industry reaction to Consumer Duty?11:36 Consumer Duty in 202613:47 Understanding the distribution chain for Consumer Duty22:16 Consumer Duty is about making something that's better for everyone26:22 Explaining what UXDuty is35:33 Introducing the Consumer Duty teardown process39:20 Jargon Busters!

To wrap up our Pragmatic AI Edition, we stop theorising and go looking for the receipts: where is the financial services sector actually putting AI to work? Amelia, Paul and Pat play a quick game of Yay-I or Nay-I, scoring five real-world deployments to decide whether each one is genuinely useful or just a bit of clever PR. From Morgan Stanley arming its financial advisers with an internal chatbot, to Klarna's assistant doing the work of 700 agents in 35 languages, to Stripe's fraud-fighting Radar. We dig into what's impressive, what's overhyped, and where the human still matters most. Plus an NHS phone-bot anecdote that changes one sceptic's mind, a pitch for Lenny Henry to answer the Premier Inn phone, and this week's Jargon Buster: IPO. Chapters:00:00 Intro02:35 Morgan Stanley AI Chat Tool08:53 Morgan Stanley AI Debrief Tool12:23 Klarna's AI Assistant24:03 Klarna's AI CEO33:43 Stripe Radar40:23 Jargon Busters: IPO Fin the Week is the Friday financial technology and marketing briefing from Indulge: a digital agency for the global financial services sector. #FinTheWeek #FinancialServices #AI #FinTech #MarketingPodcast #Indulge

This week on Fin the Week, Amelia, Paul and Mayna unpack five stories reshaping search and marketing in financial services: a German court ruling that makes Google liable for its own AI overviews, fresh SparkToro data showing fewer than one in three UK searches now ends in a click, Hiscox stepping into ChatGPT's advertising pilot, what 54 studies reveal about ranking in AI search, and the UK's incoming social media ban for under-16s.Chapters00:00 Intro00:54 A German court has ruled that Google's AI Overviews are Google's own words09:48 Zero click searches continue to rise20:53 Hiscox testing advertising in ChatGPT26:03 Research into AI citation ranking factors34:27 Discussing the UK under-16 social media ban46:57 Jargon busters

Mark's just back from UX London, and this week we dig into what financial services marketers can actually use from it.The headline: stop asking for more research time and start packaging what you already have. We get into validation, falling in love with the problem, not the solution, why failure is a feature of good UX, not a bug, and where AI is genuinely earning its place in the process.If you run marketing or operations in a finance firm, there's a year's worth of customer insight already sitting in your support inbox and your chatbot logs. We tell you how to find it.00:00 Introduction to UX London and Event Overview01:55 What is UK London?02:41 UX is now a board-level concern in financial services05:02 Effective Research and Stakeholder Validation12:28 Using Validation to Drive UX Success21:04 Using keyword research as a source of user validation24:15 AI chatbots as a source of user research26:34 Turning Failure into Opportunity in UX35:04 A framework for organising content37:09 How did UK London address AI?41:22 Key Takeaway: The Power of Validation44:21 Final Reflections and Future Trends

This week, we look at the concept of a two-track internet, something floated in a recent article in Digiday about work taking place at The Economist.We dive into the complexities of creating a web environment that caters to both human and AI users, highlighting the need for a strategic shift in website design and content presentation.TakeawaysTwo-track internetAI experience Tone of voice is a trust signalAI chatbots may struggle to convey a brand's tone of voiceChapters00:00 Introduction to the Two Track Internet01:31 The Economist's Case Study on AI and Content05:41 Exploring AI Experience vs User Experience08:01 The concept of AIX (AI Experience)10:59 Designing for Two Different Audiences16:13 Two-track vs one-track web25:46 Can AI agents drive trust?32:03 Navigating Google's Guidelines for Brands36:43 The Future of AI and Brand Representation43:03 The Impact of AI on Advertising and Monetisation

Google has published a guide on optimising your website for the AI features in Google Search. On the face of it, that's good news; guidance straight from the horse's mouth. In practice, the guide is weak: written in a vacuum, dodging the traffic problem, treating agentic AI as a footnote, and ultimately telling you "don't worry about it, it's just SEO." We aren't convinced.Amelia, Paul, Pat and Russell unpack the document section by section: the jargon (SEO, GEO, AEO, AIO), the technical mechanics (RAG and query fan-out, explained with dominoes), the myth-busting section that's caused half the SEO industry to celebrate, and the bit Google glosses over entirely: agentic AI, and the difference between an AI model's training data and what it pulls in through search. Plus what financial services content teams should actually be doing now, including the compliance challenge of disclaimers being clipped out of AI-generated answers.02:08 Google's New Guidance on Generative AI05:49 What is an LLM compared to an AI Chatbot?08:24 RAG (retrieval augmented generation) and query fan out11:42 Understanding SEO in the Age of AI14:15 Is structure still important?22:15 Google's AEO/GEO mythbusting section27:27 The Evolution of Search: AI and Google31:26 Trusting Google's Guidance: A Critical Perspective34:48 Navigating the New Landscape of Content Creation40:39 Is Google's GEO guide helpful?41:42 The Future of Financial Services Content47:53 The Role of Research and Authenticity in Content50:52 Jargon Busters: Churning

28 million UK adults are now using AI for personal finance. One in three of them every week.We dig into Lloyds Banking Group's 2025 Consumer Digital Index and what it means for the FS brands trying to stay visible in a world where ChatGPT is doing the top-of-funnel research.Pat shares what happened when he turned Claude Code loose on a year of bank statements. Russell looks at the UX of trust. Paul plays devil's advocate on the sycophants and the scams. And we tackle the data-privacy question every FS marketer should be asking: when ads land in ChatGPT, what does your bank statement say about you?Plus: a jargon buster on ETFs.TakeawaysAI in personal financeTrust and concerns about AIData privacy and security Monetisation through AI advertisingImpact of AI on financial services brandsChapters00:00 - Introduction and Personal Updates04:03 - Exploring AI in Personal Finance08:37 - Trust and Accuracy in AI Financial Advice16:47 - The Future of AI in Financial Planning21:00 - Concerns about data privacy & security26:31 - The Accessibility Challenge of AI Tools27:25 - Monetisation and Advertising in AI28:11 - User Experience and Trust in AI31:13 - Implications for Financial Services Brands35:11 - The Future of Personal AI Assistants39:36 - The Race for Personal and Business Assistants44:05 - Jargon Busters: ETFs

This week we explore the concept of friction in user experience, highlighting its impact on decision-making, user error, and the role of AI-driven systems.We delve into the balance between speed and convenience, safety, and comprehension, and discuss the potential adoption of AI agents in daily life.We look at the concept of friction in user experience, highlighting the role of design in mitigating friction and ensuring accessibility. We also explore the challenges in legacy processes, user research, and the impact of AI as a financial advisor on consumer protection.TakeawaysFriction in user experience can have both positive and negative impacts.The balance between speed and convenience, safety, and comprehension is crucial in the design of AI-driven systems. Friction in user experienceAccessibility and consumer dutyChapters00:00 - Introduction to friction in the user experience04:10 - The balanace of caution and convenience09:35 - Designing for user experience14:23 - AI's impact on user experience15:40 - Progressive disclosure17:59 - The future of AI agents in everyday life27:09 - Consumer Duty and the concept of 'sludge practices'42:01 - Navigating pension transfers

In this week's episode, we discuss the impact of bad data on AI, highlighting the definition of bad data, examples of bad data in AI, and the risks and challenges associated with bad data.The conversation delves into the challenges and implications of AI in decision-making, the impact of bias in AI applications, the technical hurdles in AI implementation, the importance of data structure in AI transformation, and the concept of setting guardrails for AI systems. TakeawaysAI Tool PreferenceData Quality and AIAI as a Managerial Tool AI and biasData structure and AIFriction in AI systemsChapters00:00 Introduction and Chat GPT Subscription13:36 The Impact of Bad Data on AI26:23 Data Quality and AI Implementation50:57 Understanding 'Whale' in Finance

All of the key takeaways from BrightonSEO Spring 2026.The episode discusses the impact of AI on SEO, the rise of zero-click marketing, challenges in defining success metrics, and the changing user journey. It also explores the impact of bias in AI, the redefinition of search as media, and the changing marketing funnel.TakeawaysAI's impact on SEOChallenges in defining success metricsChapters00:00 Introduction to Brighton SEO06:18 Impact on Brands and Search Results12:13 Redefining Success Metrics25:38 Impact of Bias in AI32:28 Search as Media37:56 Attribution and Long-Term Thinking

The episode discusses Google's controversial patent application and its potential impact on web search and user experience. It explores concerns, controversies, and the role of AI in reshaping web content, as well as the implications for financial services firms and regulatory concerns. The conversation also delves into positive impacts, risks, understanding the patent application, the Model Context Protocol (MCP), concerns and distrust of Google, the impact on websites and user experience, and future scenarios and accessibility implications. The conversation delves into the impact of AI on website accessibility, quality of input and output, and the challenges faced by small businesses. It also explores the role of SEO schema, privacy concerns, and the concept of a web for humans and a data layer for AI. The discussion concludes with key considerations for brands and a fun segment on jargon busters.TakeawaysGoogle's new patent application and its potential impact on web search and user experienceConcerns and controversies surrounding Google's patent applicationThe role of AI in reshaping web content and user experiencesThe implications of Google's patent application for financial services firms and regulatory concerns Quality content is crucial for better AI outputSmall businesses may face challenges with AI-driven website changesChapters00:00 Future Scenarios and Accessibility Implications32:12 Impact on Small Businesses39:43 Privacy Concerns and Data Mining45:08 Key Considerations for Brands

The conversation delves into the impact of AI on the design industry, exploring the essence of design, the changing landscape of graphic design, and the role of AI in UI/UX design. It highlights the challenges and opportunities presented by AI in the field of design. The conversation delves into the role of designers in AI production, client concerns about AI, ethical considerations, client perception and acceptance of AI, focus on outcomes and user engagement, AI in UI design and compliance with regulations, frameworks for accessibility and consumer duty, impact of AI on the job market for designers, and a discussion summary with jargon busters.TakeawaysAI's impact on designChallenges and opportunities in design with AI Designers possess empathy and understanding towards end users, making them valuable in AI production.The use of AI in design raises ethical considerations and the need for transparency with clients.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Setting the Stage06:14 The Essence of Design and the Design Process11:59 The Role of AI in Graphic Design and Client Transparency21:21 The Changing Landscape of Graphic Design and UI/UX Design26:22 The Role of Designers in AI Production32:10 Client Focus on Outcomes and User Engagement38:23 Impact of AI on the Job Market for Designers

It's episode one, and we're kicking off our series on pragmatic AI. What is pragmatic AI and what does it mean for marketers and technology teams in financial services?