How can we help customers make the right decision for their loan

When it comes to a powerful decision such as applying for a credit loan, consumers must feel confident, secured and well informed. The current state of credit simulators and loan applications prove that there's still a long way until the customers reach those feelings.  

Starting the conversation with the user's main objective.

And from here we can add new levels of interaction. For instance the conversation should adapt based on the customer's needs. If a different input is needed why not provided it just for that question? 

The amount of information displayed should provide value and encourage progression.

Inputs change based on the required responses.

Get in touch with your leads and analyze their behavior.

Motivate towards the final submission.

Errors provide guidance, not road blocks.

Data visualization can facilitate trust & clearance.

As a simple exercise we browsed the top banking sites from Romania (our dear home country) and we reached the following conclusions:

Picard as a Lead Generation Tool for Banking

There’s a rigid feeling and complicated experience
The customer is overwhelmed with inputs, dropdowns and sliders. Although there is a sense of transparency, the forms don’t provide a fluent flow of completion.

There is no human touch
In case of error or if they get stuck, the customers are not guided towards the best solution. The communication gets interrupted by cold and unappealing messages.

The data doesn't provide value
The numbers are just for display and the result doesn’t offer the extra motivation the customer needs in order to apply for a loan.

The ideal outcome of a loan preview

We believe that tools like those mentioned above must adhere to a set of principles —principles with the user in mind. Therefore we firmly believe that a loan calculator should have the following characteristics:

Friendly
The interaction with the loan calculator is a comfortable, fluent and ongoing experience.

Advisor
The calculator acts as a partner and advisor when it comes to big
decisions such as applying for a loan.

Trustworthy
The customer trusts the information provided and feels confident that the data provided will help make a decision.

Human
The calculator eases the process in a natural-like conversation. Moreover it provides options for
real-life contact and support.

Actionable
All interactions are built brick by brick and lead to a customer decision—either applying for a loan or at least contacting 
the bank.

Applying for a loan with conversational forms

What if we replaced the forms and guided the users via conversations? 

Our proposal is to design the calculator as an assistant. It should look and act like one. At first we don't have to invest all the time and resources directly in Artificial Intelligence. We could start with a script and flow that the users follow to gain their desired outcome and then later on train the assistant to react to different scenarios outside the normal flow. 

Here's where Picard does best. We create the questions and answers, we map them on a user flow and add expections and error handling reactions for when users get stuck. So why not convert the pretentious loan applications into simple conversations with the same output, but a way different outcome. 

There's a tough choice when it comes to choosing a banking product for a loan. To ease transparency we can display the information direct and clear with all the extra explanations the customer needs. Moreover, users should see how their choice evolves in time.

Old patterns die hard. As banks rely on tables and lists to display numbers, Picard goes for a more practical approach and uses data visualization the user can interact with. 

A consistent tone of voice provides guidance even when users get stuck. With Picard you can customize the error messages and keep the voice human and pleasant so that users move forward, not backwards.

As we reach the final step in applying for a loan we make sure customers can verify & check one last time and of course see what's next. 

The journey doesn't end here. As a bank you get access to a private dashboard where you analyze the new leads, explore statistics based on their behavior and modify the flow. 

Picard offers an end-to-end experience with both businesses and their clients in mind. As a bank you greet your future customers and at the other spectrum — customers go through a more engaging, conversation-like flow towards their end goal. 

Interested in switching to conversational forms?