You’ve seen it. You’ve researched it. You’ve longed for an automated loan tool to make your life easier. But convincing your boss to invest in loan automation software may seem easier said than done. Luckily, the benefits far outweigh the costs, making it an easy sell for managers who are concerned about ROI (all of them).
Now it’s just a matter of helping them see the light. Follow our three-step guide for convincing your manager to invest in the power of simplified loan origination.
#1 – Develop a captivating pitch.
You may not be in sales, but a killer pitch is what it takes to gain interest and seal the deal. Be prepared with data and answers to anticipated questions before you approach your manager. Craft a clear, concise elevator pitch that encapsulates key points like:
- The challenges you or your team are experiencing. This may include time wasted on double-checking accuracy, rekeying information, manual/duplicate tasks, multiple platforms, data inaccuracy, etc. When your time is spent addressing these challenges, it leaves less time for you to develop relationships with customers, build loyalty, or strategize new ways to grow business.
- How loan origination software will solve these challenges. Demonstrate that you did your homework and vetted other possible options to solve your challenges. Stress to your manager how automation not only saves you time but the company’s time, positively impacting the bottom line. Loan origination software also ensures data is more accurate, eliminating human error and saving time and productivity on double-checking information.
#2 – Seek out supporters who share your views.
Enlist the support of co-workers who are in the trenches with you and deal with similar pain points. These colleagues not only validate your experiences, but help you advocate for better processes. Have them point to additional examples and repeated challenges with the current process. Then, use their name(s) and proof points in pitching to your superior. If your manager sees that it’s not just you shopping for new software, but a teamwide problem, they’ll be more likely to take action.
#3 – Explain why your software of choice is the best option.
Make it easy for your boss to agree with you by doing the legwork for them. Present the best technology platform that will be conducive to your team’s work style, along with features and benefits that will save your company time and money. Remember: while your manager will naturally be attentive to price, presenting the loan origination platform that will produce the highest ROI is ultimately the best option.
And that’s SPARK.
Why SPARK?
SPARK is the industry’s best platform for simplified business loan origination. That’s because SPARK is an end-to-end solution, automating everything from lead capture to funding and all points in between including underwriting. — so you can focus on building stronger, more meaningful customer relationships. The benefits of SPARK are many:
Save time.
Reach borrowers directly and have them complete their full loan application through SPARK’s convenient information requests. SPARK allows lenders to request tax forms, business plans, contact information, and personal/business finances in a single request.
Then when you’re ready, SPARK generates SBA forms with the click of a button. Information is pulled directly from SPARK into the forms, preventing any rekeying of information already contained in the platform. Plus, SPARK saves names, addresses, and loan product characteristics that are reused across the platform, eliminating manual and duplicate entry as the loan application progresses through the origination process.
Easily collaborate.
Maintaining a wide variety of technology systems can be expensive. Rather than typing up credit summaries in Word, completing financial spreads in Excel, and organizing documents in a shared drive, you can do all those things (and more) in SPARK alone. SPARK acts as a single source of truth throughout the loan origination process. All data, documents, files, and finance statements and spreads are contained within the platform and are easily accessible by anyone on the loan team at any point during the lending process. No more repeating status updates or keeping everyone informed. They can see for themselves.
Avoid mistakes.
With SPARK, you can ensure the lending process is executed the same way each and every time. SPARK mirrors the linear flow of the lending process, and through configurable navigation, it also enforces your organization’s specific lending practices. Plus, SPARK uses requirements and validation to ensure borrowers can’t skip steps and have entered all the information the lender needs to move forward. Finally, a series of checkpoints between teams allows the recipients to review the loan file for completeness and send it back to the previous stage if any information is missing. These checkpoints act as safeguards, catching mistakes early on in the process that could be costly during an audit.
In addition to these benefits, SPARK is also extremely easy to implement. Unlike other cloud-based lending platforms, SPARK doesn’t require any additional IT investment to implement. Our support team also releases software updates automatically every eight weeks, introducing new features and functionalities or improving existing ones with two goals in mind:
- Increasing automation
- Improving User Experience
Plus, there’s little time lost in training your team. SPARK boasts the industry’s fastest training experience, onboarding new customers in just four weeks.
If you need proof points to convince your manager, share these:
| Over $8 billion in loans funded on SPARK | 65,000+ loans approved | 30% reduction in origination time |
You’ve Got This
Ready to pitch? With research, a well-formed argument, and industry-leading technology on your side, you’re sure to pique your manager’s interest. If you’re still unsure about broaching the subject with your boss, SPARK can help! Let us conduct a demo to address specific concerns and support you in convincing your boss of the tremendous value of loan origination software.
