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If you build it-"it" being a credit card application portal on Amazon-will they come?
Not unless credit unions can make their online access a lot easier, suggests a new report from the Filene Research Institute on the experiences of credit unions that listed their products on Amazon's Credit Card Marketplace from September 2012 through November 2013.
Filene, which organized the pilot program, fielded interest from 152 credit unions, and 44 ultimately made their credit cards available on Amazon. Of the 25,802 visits to CU landing sites originating from Amazon, 372, or 1.4 percent, resulted in approved applications during the pilot.
The report, Digital Lessons From Amazon: Credit Unions and the Online Experience by Rob Rubin, cites two main reasons for the low numbers: (1) "credit unions put up many barriers" between the Apply Now button and credit card approval, and (2) many of the applicants who persisted despite those barriers did not meet underwriting guidelines.
The report offers several recommendations:
Simplify the interface. Amazon shoppers were frustrated by poorly designed landing pages, lack of an immediate member eligibility screening tool, and the need to complete two applications, one for membership, another for the credit card.
Streamline internal processes. Any additional steps, such as requiring applicants to print out, sign, and mail a form or wait for a follow-up phone call, will likely derail participation.
Understand online shoppers' expectations. These consumers are primarily product-focused, not interested in relationship building, Rubin notes, and they expect key information like rates and fees to be clearly and visibly stated.
"To win new members in the future, credit unions must make it easy for consumers to shop and buy online," he concludes. "Credit unions recognize the benefits of technology and some are fast adopters, but many are constrained by a lack of executive commitment to IT, poor coordination between IT and business departments, and a general aversion to IT risk."
