Creating a Better User Experience With the Power of an Application
Member Business Financial Services, LLC (MBFS) was created to assist credit unions in providing services to the local business community in a safe, efficient, and effective manner. As a jointly owned credit union service organization (CUSO), MBFS helps credit unions provide business loans and other financial services at a cost lower than they could as a singular organization. The CUSO provides loan servicing, portfolio management services, loan underwriting, coordination of loan participations, and preparation of loan documents. MBFS has grown to serve 70+ credit unions and service more than $1 billion in business loans.
Challenges
MBFS aims to position itself as the preferred partner for credit unions in the Mid-Atlantic and northeast United States business lending marketplace. It currently services thousands of loans across thousands of businesses. However, information on those loans were accessible only to those who worked at MBFS. If a member of a participating credit union wanted to retrieve information about their loan, they would need to call the credit union, who would need to call MBFS in turn. In today’s digital economy, it was an increasingly outdated approach to member management — not to mention, a significant time delay.
Another factor in addressing the lack of digital access was the fact that prospective credit unions would often ask to see MBFS’ online member portal — which simply didn’t exist. To enhance the customer experience for participating and prospective credit unions, cut down on administrative costs and time, and be better positioned to win business, MBFS reached out to Weidenhammer to assist in creating a lender and member portal.
Solutions
To help MBFS address its lack of a digital portal, Weidenhammer recommended a custom designed and developed software solution. This would allow participating credit unions and their members to access information pertaining to their loans online. Through the portal, borrowers could view loan overview information, current balance, interest rate, and tax information. It also allows the credit unions and MBFS to easily access, review, report on and analyze information from across all loans that track back to their organization.
Now, member credit unions and their borrowers have much more autonomy in reviewing and accessing their information, cutting down on the amount of calls searching for basic information. It also positions MBFS as a stronger competitor in the CUSO industry. In the age of online and home banking solutions, members expect information to be available on demand and at their fingertips – which in turn means that credit unions seek out partners who can meet that expectation.
Results
Creating a seamless user experience while allowing borrowers and participating credit unions to take more ownership of their loans has made a significant impact on MBFS’ day-to-day operations. There has been a noticeable decrease in administrative time and costs, with a significant increase in positive feedback from clients and borrowers. It also has been a successful sales tool to land new clients and partnerships, furthering MBFS’ goal of being the preferred partner for credit unions throughout the Mid-Atlantic.
At the end of the day, Weidenhammer can say we successfully helped a financial services organization improve its customer experience, increase its sales opportunities and client retention, and become more operationally efficient.
