It’s been a tough year for lenders as many stare at red ink and staff layoffs.
It now costs almost $9,000 to originate a single loan according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Interest rates are rising. Housing prices are soaring. And there is far more demand than there is supply.
A lot of organizations are playing defense, but now is the time to play offense.
The lack of personalization, automation and consistent, relevant communication creates gaps along the customer journey that producers are struggling to get their prospects and customers across. Throughout the customer journey, lenders have opportunities to automate processes and improve customer retention to gain a competitive advantage.
Paving the Way: Personalization and Relevant, Consistent Engagement
Studies show that the average consumer is exposed to 10,000 brand messages a day. The competition for consumer attention has never been higher. Personalization provides refuge for consumers in an often cold, digital world, where person-to-person interaction is rare. Unsurprisingly, customers have embraced this one-to-one marketing approach and now expect it.
Because personalization plays a critical role in purchase decisions, it’s no longer an option – it’s a mandate. Luckily, it’s one that pays. McKinsey reports personalization can deliver five to eight times the ROI on marketing spend.
Personalization can be a powerful marketing tool – as long as it’s used correctly. Most consumers know that just because they can see their first name at the top of an email, doesn’t mean the email was crafted specifically for them. Personalization today is more about delivering the right message at the right time to the right person than knowing, for example, that your prospect’s name is Steve.
Naturally then, personalization and timely, relevant content go hand in hand.
Today’s consumers simply don’t have the time, energy or interest to invest in content that doesn’t speak to their unique needs. If you’re unknowingly sending homeowners an email about buying their first home or a college grad one about buying a vacation home, they’ll end up in their trash. Of course, that’s if those contacts ever receive any sort of communication from them in the first place. Too often, communication efforts fall to the wayside when prospects aren’t ready to convert or after deals close, leaving them to figure out their next move.
Your relationship managers must leverage the troves of customer data at their disposal to deliver personalized, timely content to their contacts at every touchpoint along the customer journey.
Bridging the Final Gap: Automation
Relationship managers simply don’t have enough hours in their day to send out regular, personalized content to each of the people in their growing list of contacts. Fortunately, one of the most empowering abilities marketers have gained from technology is intelligent automation.
Advanced marketing automation tools empower relationship managers to build customers for life by enabling them to engage meaningfully with customers through the entire customer lifecycle – and beyond.
Those that embrace change will be better prepared than their competitors to make the best of the current lending landscape and to thrive as things continue to evolve.
