#Behindthescenes Meet María Ranilla, our Global CRM Manager at ID Finance!

Understanding the customer is fundamental for any company. Knowing how they behave, their preferences, and their expectations from a product are crucial indicators for strengthening their relationship with ID Finance. Therefore, in such a competitive market, ensuring customer loyalty remains a significant challenge, and in this regard, technology plays a vital role. 

The CRM division is primarily responsible for understanding every detail of our customers and utilizing this valuable information to anticipate their needs. 

Curious about the work of CRM? Did you know it is a cornerstone of ID Finance’s work flow? 

Today, we invite you to take a peek behind the scenes at ID Finance and meet the amazing people behind our CRM department. Meet María Ranilla, our Global CRM Manager, a key player at ID Finance. Her work transcends simply knowing our clients. María began her career at ID Finance as a specialist and has since risen to her current position as Global Manager. 

A true embodiment of ID Finance’s values, María goes beyond acquiring, understanding, and retaining our clients. She actively strives to guide the customer relationship towards excellence through creativity and innovation. 

Let’s take a look at your professional career, what were your first steps in the world of Marketing? 

My career path began after completing a master’s degree in marketing and Commercial Management at EAE Business School and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC). This experience equipped me with the tools and knowledge necessary to understand the inner workings of the sector and gain entry. 

Driven by my curiosity about the technology sector, particularly Fintech, and the work experience opportunities offered by my university, I secured my first solid experience in the field and began my career at ID Finance. 

I joined the company in 2020 as a Global Specialist in the CRM department. From that moment on, it became clear that I absolutely enjoy everything that has to do with finance, technology, and Artificial Intelligence (AI). But above all, I am passionate about seeing and understanding user behaviour from the moment they become interested in the product until they become part of our customer base. 

ID Finance gave me the opportunity to continue growing hand in hand with the company, until I was promoted to Global CRM Manager. 

What exactly does the CRM division?  

Pretty much everything! The main mission of CRM is to visualize, identify, understand, and plan the entire customer relationship with ID Finance. From the moment a user has registered, we are already by their side. 

Although the loyalty aspect is the most important, we support the acquisition channels, create strategies to increase sales and work to make customers aware of the benefits of our products, among many other things. 

To do so, it is necessary to be in constant communication with the rest of the company’s teams, as the client’s relationship with ID Finance is essential to identify problems or opportunities that may have an impact on other departments. 

What is a typical day like at CRM? 

There is no day the same! Every day brings something new, which is part of what makes it so exciting. However, in general, our daily routine starts with planning tasks and creating campaigns based on our predefined strategy. 

We then monitor the performance of these campaigns, analyse the results, and identify any potential technical errors. Throughout the day, we maintain constant communication with other departments across the company, as CRM supports various areas like Legal, Customer Service, Product, and Communications. 

Why choose CRM over other areas? 

CRM is one of the most important specializations in marketing, since you observe, understand and identify how the customer behaves and how you can build customer loyalty. 

We meticulously analyse the user experience, recognizing it as the cornerstone of our efforts. Beyond that, CRM acts as a bridge, fostering collaboration with various departments. This allows us to understand their roles, offer support, and learn from their expertise. Also, working in CRM grants you a comprehensive, cross-functional perspective of the company, enabling you to grasp the overall strategy and actively contribute to its success. 

What role does technology play in the CRM department? 

Without technology, there would be no CRM. Technology is everything. 

It’s a tool that enables to automate processes, personalize, and segment campaigns, and gain deeper customer insights. With the help of technology, we can leverage data-driven predictions instead of solely relying on analysts, enabling more informed decision-making based on real-time customer behavior. 

How do you assess the importance of technology in ID Finance? 

Technology plays a fundamental role in enabling the CRM department to perform its functions effectively. 

And, in this sense, ID Finance’s tech DNA and its core as a Fintech are key for us to continue innovating and advancing. For example, ID Finance does not put obstacles in the way of new technology proposals, new programs to work with or innovations that we detect that can speed up our day-to-day work. 

Once you finish work… what do you do in the evening or on the weekend? 

After work, I mainly focus on disconnecting and relaxing. For me, that often involves sports. I regularly play various sports, including padel, volleyball, and soccer. 

When I’m not playing sports, I enjoy taking walks with my dog, resting, watching a series or movie, or reading a captivating novel. I’m currently reading “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow.” 

What do you like most about working at ID Finance? 

The team is absolutely the highlight for me. I’m not just talking about the CRM team, but everyone across the company. 

I also highly value the autonomy and trust they offer. Since I started at ID Finance, I’ve been impressed by the space I’m given to develop new ideas and explore initiatives that might require more approvals in other companies. This level of autonomy is professionally empowering, as it allows you to grow and build confidence in your abilities. 

What recommendation would you make to someone who is joining ID Finance’s CRM team? 

That they have the attitude of teamwork in a collaboration spirit way and value it as a positive aspect. Teamwork allows to get to know other ways of working or ways of thinking. 

You have a ‘think outside the box’ attitude, you really like marketing, you live it, and you can contribute a lot of ideas. 

And, finally, that you are comfortable with innovation and technology and have a strong desire to embrace new formats.