Promoting responsible lending for Crownsavers Credit Union
Who are Crownsavers Credit Union?
Launched in 1997, Crownsavers Credit Union are a not-for-profit financial co-operative. They provide savings and affordable loans to members (who are also shareholders) and also play an integral role in the local community.
Crownsavers Credit Union conduct their business in a way that is ethical and contributes to the social, economic and environmental wellbeing of the communities they serve. A strong emphasis is placed on helping people to be in control of their personal finances, and the money that is generated from loan interest is re-invested directly to improve services to members.
The challenge faced by Crownsavers Credit Union
Crownsavers Credit Union faced a challenge in how to best promote their services as a responsible lender around the Christmas period, which has typically been a period where borrowers can begin to get themselves into financial difficulty.
Crownsavers Credit Union also had a strong desire to use the latest communication technologies in order to provide services to their customers which their competitors didn’t, and in turn, maintain a competitive edge.
As a mobile-focused communication channel with a high engagement rate, Crownsavers Credit Union found that SMS was a great way to connect with audiences. However, they felt it lacked the ability to include the visual and interactive elements required to catch their audience’s attention as effectively as possible.
As the credit union continued to grow, reducing their cost to communicate with potential applicants for larger campaigns was also a major consideration.
What were Crownsavers Credit Union looking for?
- A platform that wasn’t limited to 160 characters, and in turn enables more in-depth communications to be sent
- A visually engaging platform, which allowed Crownsavers Credit Union to send messages containing much more information
- A platform which promoted faster response times
- Should maintain a consistent look and feel with the existing Crownsavers Credit Union website
- Simple and easy to use, with no requirement for anyone “technical” in-house
- A cheaper alternative to postal and manual telephone communications.
“SMS Landing Pages have worked fantastically! We’ve seen a big lift in website visits and inbound calls for loan applications. We’re really excited to see what else we can use the platform for.”
DOLORES BECKFORD, CREDIT UNION MANAGER, CROWNSAVERS CREDIT UNION
How was this achieved?
Having previously partnered with Esendex to send other SMS campaigns, Crownsavers Credit Union were keen to see how the Esendex SMS Landing Page platform, (Messaging Studio) could help them promote their special Christmas loan promotion, and provide a boost to their loan portfolio.
The way it works is easy. The recipient receives a tailored SMS, which links to a visually rich landing page containing detailed information about the type of loan available, the interest rate, and any other details the applicant might need.
After selecting the button link within the SMS Landing Page, the applicant is then routed to the Crownsavers Credit Union website, where a formal application can be made.
What are the benefits to Crownsavers Credit Union?
- Big uptake on the website for loan applications
- Delivered the required boost to Crownsavers Credit Union’s loan portfolio
- By using the new SMS Landing Page product, Crownsavers Credit Union were able to send far more attractive and engaging messages, which contained a strong call to action and encourages potential lenders to make a loan application
- SMS Landing Pages provide a more engaging way to promote responsible lending to customers
- Crownsavers Credit Union have enjoyed big savings to their cost to serve, by switching from expensive and time-consuming traditional channels like post and manual calls, to the mobile-focused SMS Landing Page platform
- By utilising the Messaging Studio platform, Crownsavers Credit Union are also making themselves ready for rich, multichannel communications which will be able to include communications using the new RCS channel.
More from Crownsavers Credit Union
“The relationship we’ve had with Esendex has been very very good. The support we’ve had from them has made our adoption of this new channel much less strenuous than we thought it could have been. Also by attending some of our conferences, Esendex demonstrated a clear understanding of the credit union movement’s requirements, and how they could best cater for that.
It looks like the SMS Landing Page product is going to be platform we can use and support us in meeting our targets for a long time to come”.
Dolores Beckford, Credit Union Manager, Crownsavers Credit Union
