It will genuinely be an omnichannel experience for the consumer, he says
Following the announcement of the Lendi Aussie merger reaching competition today, Lendi Group CEO David Hyman told MPA what the future experience would look like for Aussie customers after Lendi’s platform had been fully rolled out.
“Our core principle that we’re operating under is that as we roll the platform out to Aussie brokers and Aussie customers, it needs to be adding value,” he said.
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This value will ultimately be expressed in having choice – the level of which is believed to be unseen in the broking industry aside from Lendi’s own platform. He offered an example of a customer starting their loan experience on Aussie.com.au.
“They’ll be able to start on however much or however little they like in terms of the online experience,” he explained. “They’ll be lots and lots of ways for them to engage with their local broker, whether that be via our chat functionality, whether that be via our book an appointment functionality, which taps straight into the live availability of brokers based on the customer’s location or based on the type of loan the customer’s looking to achieve.
“The platform will sit there in the customer’s experience, so if the customer starts online, they’ll then be able to finish in store if they wish.”
The broker will have access to this same platform – something called “Team View” in the Lendi world, he added.
“The broker will be able to go through that experience with the Aussie customer,” he said. “They’ll see exactly where the customer got up to, they’ll be able to help them through that process. If a customer is ready to finish in store, they can obviously do that, but if the customer needs more time or they need to engage their significant other, the platform facilitates that engagement.
“There might be a text message to upload payslips or verify ID or whatever that is. Ultimately it’s there to sit in the middle of that transaction and make it as smooth as possible for the customer.”
The reverse also applies, he said; making it possible for a customer to walk into an Aussie store and start the process through a conversation with their local broker.
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“The Aussie broker in store will be able to work through with them on platform,” he said. “The customer might want to take that all the way through to seeing a product comparison and then have a think about it or engage with their partner about what the next steps are.
“That engagement can then all happen on platform at the customer’s home, or they can come back into store if they like. It’s all about genuinely creating an omnichannel experience.”
While this will be an exciting transformation, Hyman said the Group was taking a consolidative and phased approach to the roll out.
“It’s going to take us some time to roll out and we’re going to do that in consultation with all of the Aussie brokers,” he said. “So whether you’re a new Aussie broker, a broker thinking about joining Aussie or an existing Aussie broker, the good news is there is going to be a lot of engagement along the way in terms of what this all looks like.”
Kate McIntyre is an online writer for Mortgage Professional Australia. She has a wealth of experience as a storyteller and journalist for a range of leading media outlets, particularly in real estate, property investing and finance. She loves uncovering the heart behind every story and aims to inspire others through the artful simplicity of well-written words.Email | LinkedIn
