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4 Personalized Finance Marketing Touchpoints for Loan Applicants

Blueshift

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4 Personalized Finance Marketing Touchpoints for Loan Applicants

There may be no financial process more personal than applying for a loan; loan applicants feel vulnerable (and justifiably so) knowing that they are literally getting their worth evaluated. To combat this sense of vulnerability, successful personal finance companies are creating personalized experiences to let applicants know they care across every touchpoint of the loan process.

The great news for finance marketers is that this approach does work: Blueshift customer LendingTree quadrupled their email revenue between 2017 and 2019 by using our customer data platform to implement greater personalization and deliverability. Your company can do the same by incorporating personalized marketing into your brand strategy, setting you apart from your competitors.

Follow along for four touchpoints where lenders can use personalization to convert potential loan applicants into lifelong customers.

ESTABLISHING TRUST

1. Loan Inquiry

During the loan inquiry phase, applicants do initial research to determine the best rates and terms for their desired loan. As a marketer, this is your opportunity to show applicants what makes your brand worth choosing over the rest.

No matter how well known your brand is, many applicants may be hesitant to complete the full application during this touchpoint — so how do you personalize their experience? The key is to use the first-party data you’ve already worked so hard to collect. In fact, campaigns using predictive content and recommendations are 116% more effective than those that do not.

By looking at applicant behavior and events like repeat visits, pages visited, and location, you can customize their user experience to make it easier for them to research your loan options. For example, if someone is coming back to your site after previously visiting the mortgage page, create an experience that recommends mortgage content — not credit card offers or recommendations irrelevant to their search — when they return. Delivering an exceptional user experience at every touchpoint builds customers’ trust and confidence in your brand, making them more likely to take the next step in the loan process.

KEEPING APPLICANTS ENGAGED

2. Loan Application and Review

Since this touchpoint includes collecting personal information from applicants, be sure to communicate the security of their data if this process occurs online. Giving your customers a sense of privacy goes a long way in reiterating your brand’s trustworthiness and dependability.

Use omnichannel marketing tactics, such as SMS, in-app push, and email, to keep applicants informed throughout this step of the loan process. Did you know that multi-channel campaigns are 283% more effective than single-channel campaigns? Your customers aren’t one-dimensional, so your campaigns shouldn’t be either. Taking a dynamic, innovative finance marketing approach will make your brand stand out and give users a memorable experience.

Pro tip: Given the level of competition at this phase of the loan application process, you want to ensure applicants choose your brand over another lender, so try to make this touchpoint hands-on and helpful.

EMPOWERING CUSTOMERS

3. Loan Processing

Once approved and selected for their loan, applicants are required to collect and provide documentation to move forward. This process can be burdensome, confusing, and overwhelming as they share even more personal information.

Keeping loan applicants engaged during this stage is crucial to empower them to build deeper trust in your personal finance brand. By using website data to track when they have visited your site, you can prompt reminders of key dates and necessary items across all channels.

Think about a time you’ve been in a similar situation, whether in your personal life or while launching your business professionally. Communicating empathy with customers will help them through this stressful step and give them the reassurance that your brand is there for them, now and in the future.

NURTURING RELATIONSHIPS

4. Next Best Product

If you want to create lasting relationships with customers that extend beyond their loan application, you need to treat them as just that — a relationship instead of a transaction. When your personal finance brand establishes a rapport with customers, loans have the potential to lead to savings accounts, credit cards, and more.

Marketers today are using less than 50% of their data in their marketing strategies, which is (to put it bluntly) a waste of valuable customer information. Using the first-party data you’ve earned from a customer is so important for determining their next best product. Blueshift customer ClearScore was able to automate 70% of their campaigns with personalized recommendations and behavior triggers.

However, using first-party data at scale requires technical expertise. Leading brands are using our SmartHub Customer Data Platform (CDP) to implement AI and marketing automation to create next best product recommendations for their customers. Keep reading to see how Blueshift can enable you to support your customers in meeting their financial goals.

IMPLEMENTING A SMARTHUB CDP

Blueshift’s Hot Take

Even in our increasingly digital world, building a lifelong relationship with customers requires getting to know them and interacting with them in a humanized way. As we’ve seen so many finance companies go 100% digital, it’s more valuable than ever to find ways to create personalized in-branch experiences through the screen.

With a SmartHub CDP like Blueshift, your personal finance brand can succeed at personalized marketing, and your customers will confidently depend on your company for years to come.

Want to learn more about using Blueshift’s SmartHub CDP for finance marketing? Download our quick 2-minute read, “Recommendation Themes for Personal Finance Companies.” Then connect with one of our customer data platform experts to see how Blueshift can transform your finance marketing strategy.