Big shocker, I was flipping the channel and watching some TV this weekend. I get over 200 channels, but there’s still nothing good to watch. As I channel surfed the one thing that stood out was a commercial by Esurance about the value of going paperless. If the mortgage industry got it the way Esurance does, it would be a lot better off, I think.
The commercial doesn’t pitch the consumer on going paperless by talking about cost savings or time savings, or any of that. The pitch is around going green and how doing your auto insurance in a paperless fashion benefits the environment. So I checked their website to see how truly dedicated the company was to saving the environment.
Interestingly, upon visiting the site the first thing people are greeted with is the very same pitch: go paperless because it helps the environment. The exact image is below for you to see with your own eyes. The same cartoon characters in the commercial are there and the slogan reads: “Save some green with Esurance!” I love the play on the double meaning of the word “green” here.As I clicked through I was greeted with these remarks: “All of us have a part we can play in protecting the environment — even auto insurance companies! At Esurance, we strive to make sure that our operations are as environmentally friendly as possible.
“With hybrid claims vehicles, a virtually paperless customer experience, carbon offsets, and partnerships with environmentally focused non-profits, Esurance customers can really save some green — for their wallets and our environment.”
Before they even pitch themselves, they pitch helping the environment. Why? Because it makes the company appear more trustworthy. Of course I’ll get my car insurance from a company that cares about the environment. They’re not just looking out for me, they’re looking out for future generations.
The green elements of going paperless are undeniable and e-collaboration vendors in the mortgage space are using this to pitch lenders on their products. However, it’s those lenders that are actually paperless that have the even better story to tell. At a time when the mortgage industry is going through a huge downturn and every Average Joe thinks lenders are crooks out to put them in loans that are not right for them and will cause future financial distress just to make a buck themselves, this message of being environmentally friendly can be very powerful.
Why don’t more paperless lenders use this in their marketing? First, because only a few lenders are actually paperless. Second, because lenders are more interested in the bottom line and assume borrowers are too. Sure, we all are, but why not help the environment while we’re helping ourselves?
This is just another reason for lenders to go electronic and use it as a competitive advantage. I think it just makes sense. Do you agree?
