Demand for online capabilities across the financial services industry is booming – driven by the expectations of today’s web-smart consumers who want faster service and easier access to information. These consumers control their work, leisure and finances at the click of a button – so why not their mortgage?
In response to this demand, online mortgage centres have sprung up at a rate of knots, forcing lenders to invest in e-service systems and e-marketing to drive this new wave of e-applicants to their sites. But what about the intermediary? We carried out research among intermediaries to find out what role the internet currently plays for professional mortgage advisers.
Embracing the internet
Although the introduction of online mortgage application systems has been warmly received, it was initially met with scepticism by some. However, the majority of intermediaries are using the internet to benefit their business – with two-thirds of those questioned believing that the internet was ‘very important’ to their business. More than three-quarters of advisers say they have placed business with a lender online and the vast majority (84 per cent) said they use e-mail to correspond with clients. 81 per cent also use the internet to track their clients’ mortgage applications online.
One of the most reassuring results uncovered by the research was the perceived positive impact of the internet on broker-client relationships; both through
reduced costs and an increase in face-to-face time. Far from spelling the end of face-to-face communication, as some may have feared, more than one-in-four intermediaries believe the internet creates more opportunities for client-facing work by speeding up laborious administration processes.
Lenders’ e-application systems and online tracking services are proving to be the most popular time-saving devices, with nearly 90 per cent of intermediaries regarding them as useful business tools.
This suggests that these time-saving tools will have a positive impact on consumers’ pockets – 58 per cent of those questioned believe that the internet makes professional mortgage advice more cost-effective for consumers.
Missed opportunities?
While it’s clear that the majority of advisers are taking advantage of the internet, our findings suggest that some have yet to realise its potential, which could result in missed business opportunities. A third of advisers questioned said they felt they could run their business and retain their clients without the aid of the internet; around one-in-five advisers still don’t use e-mail and the same number won’t track their clients’ applications online.
However, the most unchartered internet territory is that of e-marketing. Less than half of advisers questioned currently market their business on the web and given that it is perhaps our greatest source of knowledge now, this could have implications when it comes to new business. Research by Forrester revealed that by 2008, the number of online mortgage applications across Europe is likely to reach 1.6 billion – that’s a lot of potential business to miss out on by not driving traffic to your company’s website.
Shaking up the market
The internet has shaken up the UK mortgage market in a way that has benefited consumers, lenders and advisers alike. Communication channels have opened to such an extent that web-based technology has become an indispensable tool for advisers. As long as intermediaries continue to keep pace with the ongoing technological advances and exploit the opportunities presented to them as a result, the advice market has the potential to thrive in new and exciting directions.
As the internet increasingly becomes the backbone of business, it’s crucial that lenders and advisers do not get left behind. In the last 12 months one-in-six advisers have invested in new technology to improve their business efficiency and nearly 70 per cent of advisers questioned predicted that those who do not use the internet effectively will begin to lose business.
In addition to this, almost three-quarters (71 per cent) of advisers questioned believe that developing customer relationships and expanding their businesses are their biggest objectives for the coming year – and see the internet as playing a key role in helping them to achieve these goals.
However, it is important to remember that mortgage lenders also have a role to play in ensuring that the internet brings the biggest benefits to all parties. By working alongside one another to develop and improve their online propositions, both lenders and intermediaries can ensure that clients continue to receive the most efficient, cost-effective service – something that can only help to strengthen client relationships.
