Reach Borrowers Before They Ghost You: The Subprime Lender's Guide to Effective Text Communications
There's no denying that when it comes to the world of subprime lending, inaction costs a lot of money. When a borrower quits answering your calls, it's not because they are "busy" — they've typically gone into "hide" mode and by the time a collector reaches them, they have probably rolled into 60-day delinquency.
The truth is the borrower is not ignoring their phone but rather ignoring you. With outbound call answer rates dropping to all-time lows, response rates to text messages remain at a staggering 98%. For the average subprime borrower, a text is not just a convenience — it's their primary method of communication.
Lenders can send messages quickly, but with Omega's Mass Text Program, they can do it with high impact. Omega's Mass Text filtering capabilities allow users to switch back and forth from aggressive delinquency prevention messages to high-margin marketing opportunities.
Below are the top four Mass Text Program filters that give Omega users a competitive advantage in targeting borrowers.
1. The Growth Engine: High Credit Limit & Refinance
When it comes to marketing your subprime portfolio, it's important to have a well-balanced approach. You want to provide more credit for as many customers as possible, but at the same time you want to approach the right borrowers.
Using the High Credit Limit filter in conjunction with Account Status: Active will allow your users to market to "Gold Star" borrowers who have a proven track record of managing larger credit limits and who are therefore eligible for refinance or secondary loan products.
Instead of sending a generic mail piece, send a personalized version: "Hi [Name], Thanks for being a valuable customer. We would like to offer you a lower interest rate… Click to see your offer."
2. The "Nudge" Filter: Billing Days
The best kind of payment is one you don't have to follow up on! Use the billing days filter to stay ahead — keeping borrowers top of mind in a world where people expect reminders — rather than waiting until a payment is missed to make a collection call.
The Billing Days filter allows users to gently remind borrowers to process their payment due in X days. As a result, your borrower will receive an automated text about their payment. Including a click-to-pay URL will add an extra layer of convenience and ultimately transforms a potential delinquent account into an effective customer service point of contact.
3. The "Relationship Saver": Exclude Pending Promise-to-Pay
Nothing destroys a customer's trust in their collector faster than a generic "Where is your payment?" right after they just spent twenty minutes on the phone with a collector making a commitment to pay.
Using the option "Exclude Pending Promise to Pay" is a great way to prevent this from happening in the first place. This filters out all records of those customers who have promised to pay on the system at the time of your automated communication, providing an accurate view of what has been promised.
4. The Accountability Nudge: Promise-to-Pay Date
A promise is only as solid as the follow-through. Don't wait for an individual to eventually break their promise before you reach out to them.
For each account with an impending next day promise-to-pay date, send out a text reminder message. These reminders serve as a good way of holding clients accountable for making on-time payments and creating a friendly reminder without creating friction.
The Bottom Line
The subprime market is tighter than ever. With 60-day delinquencies at historic heights, you can't afford to be just "another unknown caller." Using these filters allows you to transition from a "Collections Shop" to a "Financial Partner." Whether you are using Billing Days to intervene before a 30-day roll or using High Credit Limits to capture refinance opportunities before your competitor does, precision is your best ROI.
Your borrowers live on their mobile phones. If you aren't in their text thread, you're invisible.
Ready to see how Omega can help improve your borrower communications? Let's talk about modernizing your outreach.
