Today’s consumers expect simple, digital end-to-end solutions. They want flexibility, speed, and transparency. And we built Blend Close with these features in mind. But even with a product as easy to use as Blend Close, it’s important to ask the right questions of your solution provider to best set yourself up for simple implementation, quick wins, and long-term success.
Here’s where to start
The first questions to ask yourself when exploring eClose technologies are: What kind of experience do you want to deliver for your borrowers, your loan teams, and your partners? And how do you ensure that the people responsible for guaranteeing flawless and accurate closing experiences are actually delivering on that promise, as well as reinforcing the brand you’ve worked tirelessly to create, and celebrating the milestone of homeownership for your customer?
Making your vision a (tech integrated) reality
If your vision includes seamless experiences for borrowers, integrated collaborations, portals to keep processors and settlement agents in as few systems as possible, and deeply connected integrations to keep data and documents synced and secure — you’ll need to consider how various systems in your tech stack will talk to each other.
Integrating your LOS, POS, and document provider with a digital closing technology is critical. Otherwise, your borrowers may have to create another login for the eClose or your team may have to manually copy and paste information between different systems.
In the driving spirit of efficiency, digital transformation, and customer experience excellence, Blend eClose is fully integrated with an out-of-the-box experience for lenders.
But we also recognize that tech stack integration is only half the battle with new product implementation. You also have to consider the wide spectrum of stakeholders and the challenges that can come with change management.
Driving adoption with key stakeholders
You’ve identified the demands and expectations of consumers and you have a vision for delivering an eClose solution. Now, who are the individuals and teams who will be most impacted by new eClose technology?
Capture feedback early and often. Align the realities of day-to-day processes with your future state and make sure what is good for borrowers doesn’t hurt loan team efficiency. The key stakeholders who will drive adoption are not just borrowers, but also lender operations teams, IT teams, mortgage brokers, and settlement agents.
Change management is another a crucial piece of integration — onboarding, training, and support. To ensure successful, widespread adoption, Blend Close is built to be reliable and intuitive. That consistency and dependability — paired with the high level of hands-on, white-glove service and training that Blend provides — is what drives successful onboarding with settlement agents and others.
Fully digital mortgages are here today, and here to stay. When evaluating eClose solutions — and driving adoption with key stakeholders — it’s important to consider the process forthcoming for those expected to successfully utilize this new product. Look for flexibility, ease of use, intuitive processes, and a best-in-class level of transparency that is simple, informative, and coordinated for everyone involved.
Maintaining focus on the end goal
Are you and your potential solution provider aligned on your larger business goals and end result customer experience? Are they clear on your primary objectives and current pain points? Ultimately, your eClose solution should deliver not only an excellent customer experience but also solve for any errors and inefficiencies you may have.
Are your closing disclosures going out on time? Or many times? Are closing dates, times, and locations causing any confusion across the parties involved? Are borrowers getting the transparency they need and increasingly expect?
What do customers write in the comments of your CSAT? What feedback do you receive from your settlement agents?
The answers to these questions will ensure you’re investing in a solution that will drive business and increase revenue. And it’s crucial that your potential eClose provider also understands your primary objectives so they can serve you effectively and with real business benefits.
Assessing state and county regulations
What are the potential regulatory constraints for in-state or out-of-state notarization? Each state and county have various laws and policies surrounding eNotarization and not every market is fully digital. And it’s important to remember that RON eligibility is driven by the seller’s property address, not the borrower’s address. Your eClose technology must be capable of serving borrowers where paper documents are still required.
What no one will tell you when considering an eClose solution
At Blend, we keep it simple: no embellishments, no exaggerations. We’ve built a powerful product. And we partner with our customers for the long haul with a focus on removing friction and complexity from the process, end-to-end.
Blend provides a tailored approach to the entire eClose journey, from implementation to scaling eNote, RON, and beyond. Our customers’ success is our success. We’re all in this together. Whether it’s Blend Close, our Loan Officer Tool Kit, or any of our mortgage suite products, we build for growth and we partner with customers who are ready to take their business to the next level.
Look at the bigger picture
When implementing a new eClose solution, consider the current state of your business operations. Is now the best time? Are your current processes well-documented? Are you planning any additional operational shifts or changes that may impact an eClose solution deployment? At Blend, we work with our partners to implement the best approach at the right time to ensure a successful rollout.
What’s the true ROI?
Of course, you want to ensure you have a return on your technology investments. And with hybrid and remote online closing options, you’ll save money too. Blend customers who add digital closing to mortgage loan applications can cumulatively save as much as $962 per loan, according to Marketwise Advisors.
Blend wants to make your life easier. Blend Close is a simple and efficient eClose solution that can strengthen your relationships with borrowers, save time, close more loans, and deliver a flexible and delightful closing experience for all stakeholders today and beyond.