NMP - December 2016 - 91


not have to be difficult or even
prohibitively expensive. Here
are some tips for putting
together a digital mortgage
strategy tailored to the needs of
your organization:
1. Don't try to do everything
at once. Even if budget is
not a significant constraint,
the best results usually come
from putting together a good
plan upfront and executing it
in phases. This way you can
go live sooner, collect
feedback from multiple
users-and different types of
users (not just consumers
but loan officers, processors,
etc.)-and then iterate your
plan based on that feedback.

There is, of course, overlap
between different channels and
your digital mortgage solution
must adapt to whatever the
situation may be. But regardless
of the channel, the consumer
experience must leave a great
impression on your borrowers
and referral partners alike to

ensure they will continue
referring their friends, family
and customers to you. After
all, there is no marketing like
word-of-mouth marketing and
that applies as much in
today's digital world as it did
decades ago-perhaps even
more now because reviews,
good or bad, are easily
accessible and significantly
impact your ability to acquire
customers.

Valentin Saportas is co-founder and chief executive
officer of MortgageHippo, a mortgage platform provider
that works with lenders to devise and implement their
digital mortgage strategies. Before starting
MortgageHippo, Valentin was a finance attorney at the
bank lending group of a large Chicago-based law firm. He
may be reached by e-mail at
Valentin@MortgageHippo.com.
91

www.LykkenOnLending.com

n National Mortgage Professional Magazine n DECEMBER 2016

3. Put together a crossfunctional team to work on
the project. In addition to
any tech employees, you
should consider having a
project manager to be the
main point person with the
platform provider and make
sure things are getting done
(the platform provider will
have their hands tied with
respect to many tasks that
only an insider can do, like
requesting an integration
with a third party with whom
they have not yet integrated).
Furthermore, depending on
your digital mortgage
strategy, you should also ask

4. Different loan origination
channels must be
addressed differently. A
direct-to-consumer division
operates very differently from
a branch or a loan officer. As
a result, the user flow and
experience of your platform
should adjust to the channel,
not the other way around.
Let's take a look at two
common origination channels
for many lenders:
l Direct-to-consumer: In a
direct-to-consumer
channel, a borrower is
more likely to come
directly from an online
source to a lender landing
page or Web site. The
main focus of your digital
mortgage strategy for such
a borrower is to capture
and convert him into a
qualified lead, without
forcing him to speak with a
person right away (online
consumers are more likely
to bounce if they don't get
what they're looking for on
your Web site). The new
borrower onboarding
experience is very
important, making sure,
among other things, that
there is a smooth handoff
from your lead source-
whether a search engine
like Google or a lead
generator like Bankrate or
LendingTree-into your
digital platform.
l Loan officer: A loan officer
will probably have a
conversation with the
borrower first (whether
over the phone or in
person) and therefore that
borrower is much more
likely to stick with you than
an online consumer who
doesn't have any loyalty
towards your company.
The focus of your digital
mortgage strategy for LOinitiated borrowers should
be to help the LO complete
the 1003 application as
seamlessly and accurately
as possible and facilitate
the interaction between the

LO, the borrower and
other parties involved
throughout the process.

NationalMortgageProfessional.com

2. Work with a technology
provider that will take the
time to understand your
needs. Presumably you will
be working with an outside
technology company that will
provide a solid foundation
for your platform-as
opposed to building a
platform yourself (a feat not
every lender will be able to
successfully achieve). Make
sure that this company's
platform can be customized
and configured to your
needs and is not a one-sizefits-all solution. Take the
time to discuss your current
workflows and processes
with your provider and
understand how the platform
fits into the current flow
and/or what adjustments will
be necessary.

a loan officer and a loan
processor to provide
feedback to the team at
various points in the process.
http://www.NationalMortgageProfessional.com http://www.LykkenOnLending.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NMP - December 2016
