Adapting Customer Experience in the time of a Pandemic

Johannesburg, 30 June 2020 - Some of the biggest leaps in consumer behaviour and purchasing preferences have generally followed profound historical events. What we once considered a helpful or luxury service has now become fundamental in a world forever changed by Covid-19.Forced isolation and social distancing restrictions, put into place during the Covid-19 health crisis, will have a lasting effect on the world as we know it.

The gradual shifts towards digitisation that were happening over time, have now accelerated to become more immediate behaviour changes. When it comes to changes, WeApply, South Africa’s premier fully-digital home loan provider, has created a platform that gives customers a user-friendly alternative to home loan applications no matter the changes in the global environment.

By harnessing the power of technology to facilitate efficient lending decisions via a digital and transparent journey, WeApply empowers customers with a Covid-19 appropriate solution and an improved overall user experience.

What makes WeApply unique in today’s online home loan environment?

• The specialist home loan team at WeApply stand shoulder-to- shoulder with clients in support throughout their application process.
• If clients go direct to a lender then they will only get their home loan, whereas the WeApply technology platform is impartial and enables applicants to receive comparable offers from multiple lenders.
• Clients can securely upload documents straight to their application file on the platform.
• WeApply has direct relationships with the lenders' processing teams, which means that our customer support team is in daily contact with them to make sure that all our deals are progressing smoothly.If a lender declines an application, WeApply can assess the reasons and look to engage with the lender on behalf of clients.
• With 25 years’ experience in the home loan industry WeApply has a great in-house team of experts looking after clients every step of the way, right up to registration.
• WeApply use industry-approved security protocols and data encryption, to ensure online security and protection of personal data.

"The challenge for online home loan companies is to establish accessible entry points that ease resistant customers into the online application process where they will, in all likelihood, quickly find that they are very satisfied with the experience," says Mark Bruyns CEO of WeApply.

Trust in general is still the biggest obstacle to overcome, as potential clients perceive their online information as being vulnerable. WeApply clients are in full control of who accesses their data through the consent process, which is bolstered by the platform’s full audit trail.

 “Customer satisfaction is built over time and can be gained by delivering a helpful and easy-to-use application. To create an engaging, seamless transactional experience and efficient customer support must be the primary focus for any online home loan provider,” Mark Bruyns said. 

The Coronavirus and the recent lockdowns will no doubt have a dramatic effect on how people obtain mortgages in the future. The WeApply platform in response to these highly fluid times; whether it is improved technology, fresh needs of South African home buyers, or better and faster ways of doing things, will always strive to be at the forefront of innovation.