The Wall Street Journal reported in January that U.S. consumer borrowing saw the largest monthly gain in 16 years, “buoyed by increased consumer confidence in the economy.” Total household debt rose to $13.21 trillion in the first quarter, according to the Center for Microeconomic Data. Credit card debt increased last year by 7 percent from the previous year (NerdWallet). Borrowing is on the rise! And this is good news for financial institutions.
To really benefit from the current increase in borrowing, you’ll need to do more than just react to consumers who are actively shopping for loans. You’ve got to capture the interest of the pre-qualified non-shoppers. This is a holistic approach to loan generation.
Here are four steps to attracting potential borrowers:
1. Get alerts. Make sure you’re alerted when credit bureaus receive an inquiry from one of your accountholders. image.works offers SmartTrack to make this a no-sweat process. You just send us your credit requirements and accountholder file, which we upload to our secure platform. Then we’ll track inquiries from all three credit bureaus and deliver lists of your active, creditworthy shoppers, and we’ll target them with a postcard and email blast. We do the heavy lifting, and you benefit from creative, get-results promotions sent to those who are looking for loans.
2. Grow your list of promotion recipients. To achieve maximum loan income, your recipients should include the non-shoppers – these are your accountholders who have loans elsewhere and individuals outside your bank or credit union who meet the credit requirements for the loans you’re promoting. image.works provides advanced mailing list capabilities to identify and market directly to your creditworthy accountholders – encouraging them to save money by refinancing their loans at other financial institutions with you. Then go beyond your current accountholders, when we also target creditworthy individuals outside your institution.
3. Grant the offer. Send multiple loan offers for multiple loan types through multiple channels to prospects who meet your lending criteria. If that sounds like a lot of work for you, leave it to us. image.works creates eye-catching collateral for all types of loans – home, auto, credit card, personal and more – and provides integrated, cohesive campaigns with cross-media marketing, which includes direct mail pieces with personal web addresses, personalized websites and follow-up emails.
4. Give the experience. Create quality customer experiences by ensuring promotion recipients can respond quickly and easily, anytime and anywhere. This means you’re ready in your branches and online with a simple, convenient loan application and an experience that keeps borrowers from seeking alternatives. This is about more than rates and terms; it’s also about building relationships.
Extraordinary results don’t come from ordinary efforts. To do more with your loan marketing, look to the expertise at image.works.
Sources:
https://www.wsj.com
https://www.newyorkfed.org/medialibrary/interactives/householdcredit/data/pdf/HHDC_2018Q1.pdf
https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/average-credit-card-debt-household/
https://www.harlandclarke.com/main/promo/2018/three-ways-mktg-success-lp-0418