By Brad Powell

Some of the most satisfying work we have done at Axiaware started with a simple realization by leaders at a credit union with a significant automotive loan business: Their online auto loan channel was underperforming, and it was hurting them in serious ways.

It was surprising. Somehow, at a time when more and more consumers conducted more and more transactions online, this credit union's branch and phone channels produced two to three times the auto loan business as the online channel. And this low performance created several problems for the credit union:


● They were leaving auto loan revenue on the table. They could see that many members started the loan process online, but a large percentage never completed it.

● They were losing out on sales of additional products that many members bought along with auto loans: loan protection insurance and gap insurance, for instance. This failure was especially puzzling, because the rates the credit union offered on such products were much better than those offered by banks and auto dealers. So, the member was suffering, and so was the credit union.

● They were wasting marketing dollars. The credit union had campaigns in place to drive more auto loan business online, and based on web traffic, they were working. But the new web visitors converted at a low rate.

● They were losing business in other areas. Auto loans were often the first financial product members bought at this credit union, so abandoned online loan applications meant fewer applications for mortgages, home equity loans, credit cards and more.

● They weren't fulfilling a key part of their mission — ensuring that members saved money on financial products.

These were significant problems, and the credit union leaders knew they needed to fix them.

Though their existing systems theoretically worked, the systems did not deliver an acceptable user experience. This meant that members were not willing to expend the extra energy to use the system that technically worked, but not in the way the member wanted it to behave. The work we performed with their team on their online auto loan platform produced results — quickly. Shortly after the project's completion, the credit union began to see:

● An increase in the number of applications that were started and finished online. That led to more loans being booked.

● A new order among the three auto loan channels. The number of online auto loans booked almost immediately equaled the level of branch and phone channels. And online loans continued to rise, now far surpassing the traditional channels at this credit union.

● A substantial increase in loan protection and gap insurance purchases online.

● Better customer engagement, giving the credit union a better chance to provide them with other financial products.

● Members taking advantage of related products with great rates — meaning the credit union was better servicing its members and fulfilling its mission.

All these positive results came from the credit union leaders facing a common fear: We might be falling behind online. Once they analyzed and addressed that fear, they were able to help the credit union, its staff and, most of all, its members.

It's easy to say that "technically, our systems work." But, if the systems don't support the members and the mission, then they are just technology. When those systems serve members and the mission, then everybody wins.

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Compliance and Your Credit Union

• Face an daunting burden of regulatory requests?
• Struggle to manage the multiple experts inside and outside your organization who must respond to exam requests?
• Use email for regulatory communication -- possibly opening yourself to legal discovery?
• Receive the same request more than once but provide a different answer each time?

If these challenges sound familiar, Axiaware's new credit union compliance software product, Redboard, could help.