7 ways to help increase loans

Remember when lending used to be easy?  Members would dress in their Sunday best, come into the branch to make a good impression, and practically beg you for a loan? Yeah, we don’t remember that either. But lending has evolved drastically in the last few years.  The days of in-person apps are going away.

Today, when members ask you for money, they’re quite often in their jammies, not their Sunday best. It’s all about convenience and speed, and members accessing your services on their time! Sure members might come into your branch to apply for a loan, but they’re more likely to use the following:

• Call Center
• Online  (24/7)
• Mobile (24/7)
• Tablet   (24/7) 

At the heart of the appeal of all these channels is the member’s desire for a quick response and immediacy: instant decisions, e-signature capability, and a fast turn-around (closing a loan in minutes rather than in days). So, if this is today’s playing field, here are a few options to explore that can help you increase loans and stay in the game:

1. Go Mobile for Loans

• Go out to your SEG groups or a partner dealer.
• Enable members to open new accounts remotely.
• Take loan applications remotely and provide an instant decision.
• With an iPad, the member can sign their documents with their finger!

2. Use Social Media to Get the Word Out!

• Market your products and services letting your members know you have what they need.
• Create contests and have fun!

3. Educate your Members

Before your members decide to purchase a car, they do some research.

• Be relevant during the research process by providing them the tools and the tips they are looking for.
• Educate them on what they need to know before they buy a car so they can get the best deal.
• Pre-qualifying saves time and hassle at the dealership.
• 0% financing by the dealer vs. CU financing.
• Add-on fees/products – cost more at the dealers.

4. Loan Ideas

• Offer a payday loan alternative.
• Create a program for subprime borrowers.
• 90 days no interest loans.
• Consider extending new car loans out to 84 months. (Almost 25% of new cars financed in Q1 of 2014 were extended for 7 years.)

5. Auto Loan Recapture

• Identify members who have auto loans elsewhere and who could save a min of $XX by refinancing.
• Make a personal, specific offer and quote:
• Rate
• Monthly payments
• Annual savings (“Here is exactly how much we can save you in a year.”)

6. Expand Indirect Opportunities

• Market to members according to life milestones to get CU loans from retail financing … aka Lifestyle Lending.
• Create new indirect relationships with local businesses such as:
• Dentists
• Furniture/Appliance stores
• Veterinarians
• Plastic Surgeons
• Provide them with quick responses and competitive rates.
• Everyone wins!

7. Target Gen Y Early

• Help them establish credit with a small loan, no application fee, a competitive rate, and a one-year repayment term.
• This will:
• Establish a relationship with that borrower,
• Give the CU an opportunity to interact and educate them
• Help build credit.

With so many lenders vying for the same share of mind and wallet, if you really want to connect with members you need to get creative with your loan strategies. 

Loan applicants? They’re out there. Sitting at the breakfast table in their bunny slippers with their smartphone in hand with no plan to visit your branch. You need to be the solution at their fingertips.

Yvonne Sambrano

Sr. Lending Product Manager

EPL, Inc.