Report: 5 Ways Financial Institutions Can Boost Loyalty Among Mortgage Borrowers

Financial institutions interested in building lifelong relationships with customers and members understand that loyalty is a key ingredient to those relationships. But few realize the impact they have on the factors that most affect loyalty.

In a recent survey, Cornerstone Advisors, commissioned by Total Expert, found that there are five key things financial institutions can do to deepen relationships with mortgage borrowers.

Let’s take a closer look.

1: Improve the Mortgage Application Experience

The most common reason survey respondents cited for returning to their mortgage lender for future transactions was that the lender was easy to work with.

Other research supports this: Gartner found that customer effort is 40% more effective at predicting loyalty than customer satisfaction.

Today, though, borrowers rate their mortgage application experience a B- overall (81 / 100). The youngest borrowers give even worse ratings: 75.3 among Gen Z borrowers.

A first step for financial institutions looking to boost customer loyalty, then, is to make it easier for people to apply for mortgages.

2: Communicate Consistently across Channels

The survey suggested two key takeaways about communication.

First, unify messaging. Borrowers research mortgage loans via multiple channels: websites, branch reps, and contact center reps. To ensure the application experience is as smooth as possible, financial institutions need to ensure messaging is consistent across these channels.

Without standard messaging, borrowers will end up confused, will have to expend more effort to complete their application, and will therefore be less likely to continue their relationship with that institution.

This means financial institutions must find ways to break down silos among internal teams so there are seamless, efficient ways to ensure all stakeholders are offering consistent consumer-facing messaging.

The second important point is that communication matters just as much for existing customers as they do for new customers.

Nearly 70% of borrowers ended up getting their mortgage from an institution where they already had a relationship, but they also shopped at other institutions before making that decision.

Among those who actually got their mortgage from an institution where they were already a customer…

  1. 59% were influenced by options on the institution’s website
  2. 50% were influenced by contact from a loan officer
  3. 40% were influenced by the institution’s marketing messages

The key to successfully communicating with existing customers and members is to make communication proactive and relevant.

Download the Full Report for More

The survey also found that institution-initiated outreach was key to bringing mortgage borrowers back for additional transactions. What’s more, the findings indicate that using a person’s self-reported financial literacy level to guide marketing segments can have a major impact on results.

Download the full report for details on these findings, as well as insight about how credit unions can improve their digital offerings to stay competitive during and after mortgage lending transactions.