6 features in your loan app that chases borrowers away

You’ve put in so much effort, you raised money from investors, fired up your team, and built a loan business you believed would revolutionize the market. But suddenly, downloads are slow and abandonment rates are through the roof.

Borrowers, the lifeblood of your business, are clicking away in droves.

The reality is it’s probably not the lack of need. The credit gap is still a gullywide and people still desperately need accessible mobile first loans for one thing or another. So, why are users abandoning your loan app for the arms of your competitors?

It all boils down to a series of seemingly minor features that, when combined, create a user experience that frustrates more than facilitates. Let’s explore these potential red flags and how to ensure your loan app attracts, rather than repels, the very customers it aims to serve.

Feature read: 5 reasons a digital lender must have a loan app

Your loan app is large and it takes an eternity to download

You designed a feature-packed app to make applying for loans a breeze. But in your eagerness to include everything imaginable, you might have created a huge app that takes forever to download and gobbles up valuable phone storage space.

The problem is patience is a scarce commodity especially for borrowers looking for quick and convenient loans. So, a loan app requiring a multi-hundred-megabyte download feels like a brick wall before they even begin.

This initial obstacle can be enough to send them scrambling to a competitor with a smaller, faster-downloading app. Think of it like this:  the faster and easier it is for users to download your loan app, the sooner they can experience the benefits you offer.

Feature read: Lendsqr vs Loandisk: Which loan management software is right for you?

Your loan app’s onboarding process is frustrating

People can start the onboarding process and stop halfway for so many reasons. It could be they needed to attach a document and left the page to get it, or got distracted by something else, or dozed off.

What they don’t want to see is the loan app redirecting them to the beginning of the application because it didn’t save their application progress. This can be quite frustrating.

Your user interface is a confusing mess

Borrowers looking for loans are often dealing with time sensitive needs, so every minute counts. Unfortunately, a confusing user interface (UI) can quickly turn what should be a straightforward process into a frustrating maze.

For example, a borrower who’s unfamiliar with loan applications opens your app, eager to get started, but is immediately bombarded with unclear instructions, technical jargon, poorly labeled buttons, and a cluttered layout. 

They might find themselves clicking through endless menus, unsure of what information is required or where to find it. This lack of clarity not only wastes their valuable time but also creates an overwhelming and discouraging feeling.

Customers don’t have anywhere to turn for help

Another major turnoff for borrowers is the lack of readily available customer support.

Imagine a user hitting an error message and not knowing what to do next. Or maybe they have questions about loan requirements or interest rates, but there’s no easy way to get answers.

A user-friendly app should make it easy to get help whenever you need it. This could include clear and simple FAQs, a chat function where you can talk to a real person, or a toll-free number displayed right within the app. 

If borrowers can’t find help easily, they might get discouraged and give up on your app altogether, taking their business elsewhere. After all, if a lender can’t provide basic help during the application, how can borrowers feel secure about borrowing a larger sum of money?

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Here are other things silently chasing away your borrowers:

Your web app is not mobile friendly

Most people use their smartphones for almost everything these days, including applying for loans. If your loan app isn’t designed to work well on mobile devices, it’s a major turnoff for potential borrowers.

A website that’s clunky and zoomed in, requiring constant pinching and scrolling is a major turnoff. Text might be too small to read, buttons might be difficult to tap, and the overall experience would be frustrating and time-consuming. This is a surefire way to chase away borrowers who are likely already juggling busy schedules.

A responsive web design ensures your loan application automatically adjusts to fit any device,  be it a desktop computer, tablet, or smartphone, providing a smooth and user-friendly experience for borrowers on the go.

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Your web app doesn’t have smart tools

Missing out on powerful analytics tools like Google Analytics or Mixpanel is a major blind spot for your loan app. These tools are like behind-the-scenes helpers, quietly tracking how people use your app. They follow users as they go through the loan application process, seeing where they might get stuck and give up.

That’s golden information easily at your disposal. It helps you understand what users are doing and where things might be confusing. For example, if a part of the application was causing people so much trouble that they just stop halfway through, you can see these trouble spots and make things easier. 

These tools can also help you find the best ways to reach potential borrowers, like through social media ads or online searches. Ignoring these valuable tools means missing out on important information that can help you improve your app and increase signups and downloads.

Fix these issues to stop losing customers

A loan app can be a great tool to reach borrowers quickly and conveniently. But a poorly designed app can chase potential customers away.

Lendsqr can help! With Lendsqr loan management software, lenders can get a mobile app set up in 7 weeks, and a mobile friendly free web app set up in 5 minutes. Our platform makes it easy to create a user-friendly loan application process that will win over borrowers and keep your business thriving.

If you’re ready to turn your red flags to green, reach out to [email protected] and we’ll get you started immediately.