WebProNews

Tag: Loans

  • Personal Loan Marketing Ideas to Attract More Clients Online

    Personal Loan Marketing Ideas to Attract More Clients Online

    As getting a personal loan is the best way to fulfill personal financial needs, people often search and apply for instant loans online. This is the reason, loan providing companies must switch to advanced and reliable marketing strategies that resonate with the needs and requirements of modern clients. The personal loan market in the United States is exploding and outpacing competitors can help loan companies get more clients.

    Whether you are a personal loan officer or an agency, below are some effective personal loan marketing ideas you can adopt right now to attract more clients.

    Optimize Your Website for Search Engines & Mobiles

    Search engine optimization is one of the best and most effective digital marketing techniques to reach your potential customers when they are searching for products or services you offer. Optimizing your personal loan website for search engines using relevant keywords can get your company in front of more people looking for personal loans. Along with doing SEO, you should also optimize your website for mobile devices as almost 2 billion people are running around the world using smartphones. Payday LV is the best example of a mobile-optimized website as it is very easy to view on different mobile devices. Mobile-friendly websites also tend to rank higher in search engine result pages as per Google’s mobile-first approach.

    Content Marketing to Provide Useful Information

    Content marketing is another best marketing idea for loan companies to bring in more clients. In this digital world, more than 85% of consumers expect their favorite brands to provide informative and useful content. So, don’t disappoint your audience and start creating valuable and informative content for your personal loan website and other online profiles. You can write about loan guides, filling loan application forms, and best loan offers, compare loan providers or tell interesting stories about your company or clients. Make sure to create content in different formats like blog posts, social media posts, eBooks, podcasts and infographics, etc. This helps you fulfill the content desire of your audience in a variety of ways.

    Up-to-date Social Media Profiles

    Everyone is using social media these days and most people are on social media sites to find trusted and reliable brands to shop for products or services online. You as a personal loan provider should also be there on popular social media sites like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, etc. Social media is a powerful marketing medium to promote your loan offers and consume potential clients’ information. Having a social media profile with outdated business details and content is as useless as sending out a parcel with the wrong address. Make sure your business details are accurate and updated across your social media profiles. This will help your clients reach and contact you easily.

    Targeted PPC Ads

    Yes, you can appear over the top search engine results through paid advertising campaigns like PPC ads. This is the best way to spend marketing bucks for reaching your specific target audience. You can run PPC ads for particular keywords that are focused on need-based queries. This helps you get your business out there in front of people who are about to make final decisions. However, you should choose the right keywords to bid for so you can generate more leads and convert them easily. PPC campaigns help you target a particular audience in selective areas.

    Online Reviews

    In this digital era of life, having a strong digital footprint is most important than ever to attract more clients online. Having a ton of positive reviews can help potential clients learn who you are, whether you are trusted or not, and if you can do exactly what they want. Modern consumers go through the reviews to check the credibility and trustworthiness of brands they are about to connect with. This is the reason; your personal loan company must also have enough positive reviews and recommendations to lure potential customers and win trust.

    To get more reviews, make the review process easier for your clients. Send them thank you notes to show gratitude and ask for reviews. Creating profiles on local business directories like Yelp is another best way to encourage people to share their thoughts about your products or services.

  • Square Starts Offering Loans Through Square Capital

    Square Starts Offering Loans Through Square Capital

    Square launched Square Capital in 2014 as a cash advance program for eligible businesses. The program gave businesses quick (the next business day) access to thousands of dollars, with great flexibility in payback.

    Payback came out as a percentage of daily sales, so slower days meant less and better days meant more.

    Now, rather than just providing cash advance offers, Square Capital is providing flexible loans to boost lending. Square’s Jacqueline D. Reses writes in a blog post:

    Square Capital is still as fast, simple, and transparent as ever. There is no burdensome paperwork to apply, qualified sellers can get funds as soon as the next business day, repayment happens as a fixed percentage of your daily card sales, and the cost of the loan is a fixed dollar amount that never changes.

    So you might be wondering, do I need to do anything different? Nope, just check your Square Dashboard to see if you have an outstanding offer through Square Capital.

    Square offers tips on how to get noticed by Square Capital here. It provides a list of things they take into consideration, including processing volume (at least $10K a year), activity, growth, history, recent payments, and customer mix.

    Image via Square

  • Facebook Patents a Way to Let Lenders Reject You Based on Your Friends’ Crappy Credit

    Facebook’s filed a new patent, and it might make you think twice about the (virtual) company you keep.

    Here’s the abstract of Facebook’s new patent:

    In particular embodiments, a method includes accessing a graph structure comprising a plurality of nodes and edges where each node represents a user, receiving a request to transmit content related to a first user to a second user, and prohibiting transmission of the content to the second user if the first user and the second user are connected in the graph structure through a series of edges and nodes that comprises an unauthorized node.

    Ok, pretty generic (like a lot of patents).

    The “first embodiment” of the patent addresses a way to fight spam content, and the second deals with search.

    But when you get down to the fourth use for the ‘invention’, it starts to get a little dicey.

    “In a fourth embodiment of the invention, the service provider is a lender. When an individual applies for a loan, the lender examines the credit ratings of members of the individual’s social network who are connected to the individual through authorized nodes. If the average credit rating of these members is at least a minimum credit score, the lender continues to process the loan application. Otherwise, the loan application is rejected,” reads the patent.

    In theory, Facebook says it could develop a way to let lenders use your friends’ credit scores to determine whether or not they want to give you a loan.

    Gee, no thanks.

    Of course, this is just a patent – tech companies files tons of these and they never materialize into actual products.

    But, no. Just no.

    [USPTO via The Next Web]
    Image via Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook

  • Payday Loans Could Be Changing Soon

    If you have ever had to use a payday loan to get you from one week to the next, you know how stressful it can be to worry about fees and interest. Although payday loans were designed to be helpful, many people have a hard time paying them back and often suffer from credit problems as a result.

    A recent study shows that the number one reason that many people use payday loans, at 69 percent, was simply to pay regular bills. Another 16 percent used them to pay for emergencies. With interest rates and late fees at extremely high rates, most of these people will find it very difficult to pay back the loans on time or at all.

    When borrowers are unable to pay their payday loans back in time, they often borrow from other payday loan lenders and get the ball rolling on a debt they will never be able to control. People who have defaulted on payday loans in the past are not likely to use them again and for this reason, many payday loan companies lose business.

    In some states, payday loans have been banned and are even considered predatory loans. States that do allow payday loans are now putting caps on the interest rates and amount of interest that can be charged for each loan.

    A new bill that is currently making its way through the Legislature in Utah, will allow borrowers 60 days after reaching the 10-week limit to pay off the debt without lenders taking any further action against them. Giving the borrowers a chance to pay back the loan without added fees may motivate more people to use payday loans and help them pay off their loans and get out of financial trouble.

    The bill also states that if the lender must sue a borrower for nonpayment, they must do so in the borrowers city, instead of making the borrower coming to the lender’s area. The bill also, modifies the reporting requirements for deferred deposit lenders, imposes additional requirements before the extension of a deferred deposit loan, prohibits a deferred deposit contract from modifying statutory venue provisions, requires notice before initiating a civil action, modifies provisions related to extended payment plans, and makes technical and conforming amendments.

    Very few people have opposed this bill and most believe it will help make payday loans more popular. While this bill only applies to the state of Utah, other states will likely follow suit.

    What do you think about this new bill?

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • FAFSA Student Aid Application Is Here

    FAFSA Student Aid Application Is Here

    It is that time of year again for college students that are seeking financial assistance…time to fill out your FAFSA.

    For those of you who do not know what the FAFSA is, it is a Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

    FAFSA is part of the U.S. Department of education and is one of the largest providers of financial aid for college students in the nation. Annually, FAFSA provides nearly $150 billion to students who are seeking a higher education through federal grants, loans, and work-studies.

    First time FAFSA users may be overwhelmed when they start their application. This is normal. Even seasoned FAFSA users have trouble from time-to-time. Here are some tips to get you started:

    1) Determine if you are eligible for aid. There are certain criteria a potential student must meet in order to receive aid.
    *Be a citizen or eligible noncitizen of the U.S.
    *Have a valid Social Security Number
    *Have a high school diploma or GED
    *Be enrolled in an eligible program
    *Maintain satisfactory progress while in school
    *Must not owe a refund on a federal student grant or be in default on a federal student loan.
    *Register with Selective Service, if you are male and not on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces.
    *Not have a conviction or offense while receiving aid

    2) Gather the necessary materials that you will need before you get started. You will need:
    *Your Social Security number
    *Your Alien Registration Number if you are not a U.S. citizen
    *Your federal tax returns, W-2s, and any other form of earned income
    *Current bank statements and investment records
    *Any records of untaxed income if applicable
    *A federal student PIN (click here to obtain one)

    Once you have determined if you are eligible for aid, and have obtained the documents that you will need, you can start the application. It is free, and will give you step-by-step instructions on how to complete it. Click here to access the application.

    Do not forget…there are deadlines that have to be met in order to be considered for financial aid. You can complete a FAFSA anytime between January 1, 2014 and June 30, 2015. Any corrections or updates are required to be submitted by September 19, 2015. Some funding for aid can run out quickly, so it is recommended that you complete the application as close to January 1 as possible.

    Image via Twitter

  • Student Loans- Being Smart About Your Credit

    If you are planning to go to college, a student loan may be inevitable. While many students are able to get scholarships or can afford to pay for college on their own, this is not the case for many. There are many horror stories about student loans ruining credit or keeping the borrower in debt for most of their life, but these scenarios don’t have to happen to you. By knowing which loans are the best and how to pay your debt off in a timely manner, you can feel confident in using a student loan to pay for college.

    The state you live in can also affect your student loan. According to a recent study, some states have lower debt rates than others. The top 5 states with the lowest debt rates include, Wyoming, Nevada, Arizona, California and New Mexico. If you don’t live in one of these states, you can still make student loans work for you.

    One of the best ways to pay your student loan off quickly is to choose the right payment plan. Don’t opt for the standard payment plan if you can afford to pay more each month. The standard plan may seem cheaper, but you will end up paying back more money in interest in the long run. Check our your repayment options and don’t opt for the lowest monthly payment.

    If you find yourself in the middle of a hardship and unable to pay your student loans, there are several things you can do to save your credit. One of the most common is to apply for deferment. This means you can take a break from making payments on the loan until you get back on your feet. The loan will continue to accrue interest during this time though.

    You can also apply for loan forgiveness. While this is often hard to qualify for, if you are eligible, you will not be required to pay your loan back.

    Do you have any experience with student loans and if so, was it good or bad?

    Image via Wikimedia Commons.

  • Wendy Davis Says Official Should Resign for Lending Views

    On Monday, State Sen. Wendy Davis suggested to Gov. Rick Perry the resignation of William J. White, chairman of the Texas Finance Commission.

    White was appointed by Gov. Perry in 2011 to chair the Office of the Consumer Credit Commissioner, an agency built on the bases of protecting loan borrowers from the rapacious and faulty practices of lenders.

    Oddly enough, White is also vice president of Cash America, a major payday lender accused of making money off the poor.

    Davis’ proposal ironically stems from a statement by White she views to be insensitive towards consumers, revealing a complete contradiction to his leadership role in the Office of the Consumer Credit Commissioner.

    In a past report by El Paso Times, the official said that consumers are responsible for their own debt caused by loan entrapment.

    In response to city Rep. Susie Byrd who believes that Cash America purposely payout out loans to desperate borrowers unable to make consistent repayments, White implies that payday loan consumers are accountable for their own debt.

    “People make decisions. There’s nobody out there that forces anybody to take any kind of loan. People are responsible for their decisions, just like in my life and in your life. When I make a wrong decision, I pay the consequences,” he told El Paso Times.

    Cash America was fined $19 million by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last month for abusive practices.

    Davis deems that White’s role in both areas is simply a conflict of interest.

    “William White can’t protect Texas consumers while he represents a predatory lending company on the side,” Davis said.

    However, in a statement by Yolanda Walker, vice president of public relations and corporate communications, she defends her fellow Cash America colleague:

    “Bill White is an employee of Cash America and holds the title of vice president of Government Affairs. He came back to work for the company after retiring in 2004. Prior to retirement, Bill lobbied the Texas Legislature for many years, during which time he built a solid reputation in Austin and developed strong relationships with government officials…The Governor’s office recognized him as a good fit for one of the executive seats with the Texas Finance Commission. One of the requirements for that seat states that Bill must be affiliated with a consumer credit organization, which he is through Cash America. Bill does not work with specific lobby teams, but members of the Finance Commission are regularly contacted by bankers, mortgage bankers, savings and loan representatives and consumer credit organizations…Cash America does not see his appointment to the Commission as a conflict of interest.”

    A video recapping the scrutiny Cash America faced in November:

    Image via Facebook Fan Page

  • Occupy Wall Street Buys Debt at 50-1, Abolishes It

    Reuters and the Guardian both report one of Occupy Wall Street’s spinoff groups, the Rolling Jubilee Project, announcing this week that they have successfully bought $14.7 million in healthcare debt accumulated by Americans for roughly $400,000.

    Rolling Jubilee was set up by the OWS debt group Strike Debt! after the widespread financial protests in 2011. Andrew Ross, a member of Strike Debt! and a sociocultural analysis professor at New York University, said “We thought that the ratio would be about 20 to 1. In fact we’ve been able to buy debt a lot more cheaply than that.”

    Bigger lenders that deal with failed bills from loans, insurance, or credit cards often sell the debt at a loss to a third party for a fraction of the debt’s actual value. Debt-buying companies will pay pennies per dollar, then try to collect from the debtors for a profit. Strike Debt! has managed to relieve 2693 people of debts they owed for medical services that OWS believes should be universal. The remainder of their funds will likely go to relieving some student loan debt.

    Ross acknowledged the seemingly futile objectives of Strike Debt! when he said, “We’re under no illusions that $15m is just a tiny drop in the secondary debt market. It doesn’t make a dent in the amount of debt. Our purpose in doing this, aside from helping some people along the way – there’s certainly many, many people who are very thankful that their debts are abolished – our primary purpose was to spread information about the workings of this secondary debt market.”

    When the OWS offshoots purchase debt, they receive no information about the person who’s debt they are abolishing other than an address. They mail a letter to explain how the person’s debt was cancelled; that letter is the group’s only direct contact with debtors. However, Ross noted that “one person wrote back and said that he had gone through periods of being homeless and he was trying to get back on his feet.”

    If you want learn more about economic inequality in the United States, check out these enlightening charts from Business Insider.

    [Image via RollingJubilee.org]

  • Student Loans With Fixed Rates Could Help Lenders

    The Fitch Group announced this week that it believes fixed-rate private student loans just might be the answer to kick-starting the loan industry. The company, though, does temper this advice with the warning that competition from variable-rate private loans and fixed-rate government loans could be a stumbling block.

    The Fitch Group is one of the “big three” credit rating agencies that control nearly all of the credit rating market. The company made its student loan proclamation on its Fitch Wire credit market commentary page, where it cited new fixed-rate private loan offers from Sallie Mae and Discover Financial Services as evidence that those types of loans can fuel loan growth. Sallie Mae’s new loans are offered with interest rates ranging from 5.75% to 12.875%, depending on credit score. Discover’s loans will be offered at a starting interest rate of 6.79% From the Fitch Wire statement:

    These rates compare favorably to the 6.8% rate offered on a government Stafford unsubsidized student loan and the 7.9% rate offered on a government PLUS loan, both of which also come with origination fees. Additionally, while the new loans have a higher cost than the current 3.4% rate on government subsidized Stafford loans, that rate is scheduled to double, absent Congressional extension, to 6.8% on July 1, 2012 as part of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007.

    This loan increase, which is distressing students, could make private loans very attractive in the future. There has been talk in congress, however, that student loan debt is so out of control that it might need to be waived for some students. Not even a bankruptcy can currently relieve a former student from student loan debt. Fitch warned in its message, though, that it believes pardoning student loans would inevitably increase the price of private loans.

  • Payday Loans Reform : ZestCash by Ex CIO Merrill Helps Americans

    Did you know that high interest loans, like payday loans are typically doing more harm than good for American Borrowers? Many of these loans have annual percentage rates equivalent to 350% ! Low income families who don’t meet requirements for a conventionally backed bank loan or home equity line of credit are forced to take these loans when crisis arise. 90% of Payday loans are taken by households averaging five or more of these transactions a year. At these interest rates and these frequencies, people are better off borrowing money from the mob or a loan shark!

    Former Google CIO and VP of engineering Douglas Merrill has been fighting to reform high-cost Payday loans and bring reason to the American borrower. Read this statement from Merrill below and hear what he thinks about the situation:

    “We believe all data should be credit data,” says Douglas Merrill, Founder and CEO of ZestCash. “By using ‘big data’ analytical techniques we are able to offer a fair, lower cost alternative to people who do not have access to traditional credit.”

    The data-based underwriting Merrill refers to above takes more comprehensive factors into account when lending money and these loans actually help consumers credit situation.

    ZestCash is offering Americans better loans based on Merrill’s beliefs. His company is lending borrowers between $300- $800 under more acceptable terms than previously offered to low-credit clients. ZestCash customers pick the amount, then adjust the duration accordingly to what small weekly payments they can afford, rather than lump sum payments like Payday loans requires. The result is more than 2/3 of the customers return to use the service again.

    The company just announced that they have raised another $73 million to keep the ball rolling on these types of ventures. Reports from ZestCash say most customers are using the loans for unplanned auto expenses, medical bills, and other emerging household emergencies.

  • FTC Launches Site Warning Of Loan Scams

    The Federal Trade Commission has created a website for a fake lending company that warns people about how easy it is to be tricked by scammers charging upfront fees for bogus loans.

    The website is part of a consumer education campaign to help consumers manage their money and learn how to spot scams.

    The fictitious website Esteemed Lending Services offers consumers a loan for every situation guaranteed. The site claims qualified loan specialists will help you find a loan for any purpose, or consolidate your high-interest debt – regardless of your credit history.

    FTC-Loan-Scams

    When consumers click to learn more or apply for a loan, they will discover that Esteemed Lending is not a real company.  The website provides information to warn consumers about scammers pretending to be lenders. 

    These scammers start by promising loans, only later revealing a fee that consumers have to pay first.  If they pay, it’s unlikely they will see the promised loan, and they run the risk that their personal information will end up in the hands of identity thieves.  The site also gives consumers tips to help spot an advance fee scam, and includes links to more information from the FTC.