2008-09-05 10:35:04 -

www.researchandmarkets.com - Research and Markets (www.researchandmarkets.com/research/e29713/an_analysis_of_con) has announced the addition of the "An Analysis of Consumer Trends in UK Online Personal Lending" report to their offering.

This report uses the Financial Services Consumer Megatrend Framework to identify the key consumer trends and attitudes that are targeted by UK lenders in their

online materials.

Scope

-- An understanding of how the consumer Megatrends framework applies to the online personal lending market

-- A framework for analysing how the top UK lenders are covering the overarching consumer trends

-- Ideas on how UK lenders can improve their targeting of the ten Megatrends

Highlights of this title

A Megatrend framework is not only a tool for developing strategies to acquire new clients; it can also be used to help retain existing clients. A Megatrend framework, as a tool for retention, has the advantage that companies already hold large amounts of information regarding their existing client base.

Due to the nature of an unsecured personal loan, most applicants will place a lot of importance on a quick and hassle-free application process. As a key issue among consumers in the market, the report has ranked Convenience as the most important Megatrend for the loans market.

Lenders wishing to target the Convenience Megatrend could develop the repayment holiday incentive further. For example, borrowers who are prompt and regular with their repayments could be offered the reward of having the final month's interest waived, which is an incentive offered by GE Money in Singapore. -0- Key reasons to purchase this title - Gain an introduction to the Financial Services Consumer Megatrends Framework - Learn how the Megatrends framework can be applied to online personal lending and can be used to acquire and retain clients - Understand how practices from other markets can be applied to your personal lending proposition through the Megatrends framework Key Topics Covered: - The Financial Services Consumer Megatrend Framework is a vital tool for analyzing and structuring consumer attitudes and behaviors - A Megatrend framework is vital for financial services - Customer retention as well as customer acquisition must also be considered - There are inherent obstacles in financial services that limit innovation in customer targeting - Price and performance have historically been relied upon as the primary means of targeting customers - Greater customer understanding can help to overcome the obstacles encountered when targeting and communicating with customers - The framework is defined by a series of consumer behaviors and complexities - The Megatrend framework has a hierarchy of trends and sub-trends - The Megatrends hierarchy has no ranking at the global industry level - The six behavior trends identify the benefits that consumers wish to gain from a product or service - The four Complexities are areas within which traditional assumptions or measures of behavior can no longer be applied - Trends are distinctly different from fads - The existence of counter trends does not invalidate the trend - 10 Megatrends that impact the actions and attitudes of financial services customers have been defined - Authenticity - Comfort - Connectivity - Convenience - Individualism - Wellbeing - Demographic Complexity - Financial Intelligence Complexity - Lifestage Complexity - Wealth Complexity - Lenders are covering most trends to a certain extent; however, there is still plenty of capacity for greater innovation in UK online personal lending - Lenders are most commonly targeting Convenience and Financial Intelligence Complexity - Despite Convenience being the focus for most loan sites, there are huge missed opportunities - There are many ways to target the Convenience Megatrend - Financial Intelligence is an important trend, but appears to lack any deliberate targeting - More can be done to target Financial Intelligence - Lenders use images to convey a sense of Comfort, but they could do more - Providers can improve the manner in which they target the Comfort trend - Like the Comfort trend, lenders are using images to appeal to the Wellbeing Megatrend - The Wellbeing trend can be targeted in a variety of ways - Few providers are successfully hitting the Lifestage Megatrend - Changes in the traditional Lifestage boundaries are presenting lenders with new opportunities - Despite being a strong focus for some sites, Authenticity is another area where improvements can be made - There are at least two ways in which lenders can strengthen their focus on Authenticity - Most providers are not focusing on Wealth Complexity, but there are ways to rectify this - There are other methods that lenders could use to target their offering to Wealth Complexity - Lenders offer some coverage of the Individualism Megatrend, but there is room for improvement - There are elements of Individualism that lenders have so far failed to exploit - There is a disparity in the extent to which lenders cover the Connectivity Megatrend - Encouraging consumers to connect with a loan product is difficult, but can be achieved - UK lenders do not currently offer products that appeal to Demographic Complexity - Overall, HSBC, NatWest and RBS target a wide range of consumer attitudes through the messages on their websites, whereas Abbey has a message that is more focused on the key trends of Convenience and Wellbeing - Abbeys functional website places importance on the convenience of its rapid application process and the environment - Abbey is targeting customers who place a high value on convenience - Abbey is targeting consumers who are seeking higher levels of wellbeing by promoting its rates offering - Surprisingly, the bank is one of the few UK lenders to promote a green message through its banking operations - Abbey is looking to encourage greater financial intelligence - Abbeys efforts to provide comfort for its customers are embodied by its PPI offering - The principal message from Alliance & Leicesters website is cheaper loans - By promoting its rates, Alliance & Leicester is targeting consumers who fall within the Wealth Complexity trend - Alliance & Leicester is also pushing the simplicity and convenience of its offering - In order to appeal to the Connectivity trend, Alliance & Leicester uses a panel showing the financial products that other borrowers have taken out - Alliance & Leicester promotes a feeling of wellbeing to its customers through claiming that its loans can save money and improve lifestyle - Alliance & Leicesters loan calculator may improve financial intelligence - A more subtle message is that consumers can take comfort from the banks PPI - Barclayss website is informing consumers of the freedom a personal loan could afford them - Convenience is the key message on Barclayss personal loans website - Freedom to be individual is another of the websites clear messages - Barclays is promoting authenticity by focusing on its achievements - The banks loan matching and PPI provide comfort to consumers - Those with greater financial intelligence may be able to get an improved deal with Barclays - Barclays targets Wealth Complexity through its repayment matching facility and premier loans offer - Connectivity is an advantage for existing Barclays customers because the loan application process is quicker - Barclayss suggestions for loan purpose promote the wellbeing aspect of a personal loan - The first message that visitors to Halifaxs loans website see regards improved management of their finances - Improving financial intelligence is the principal message on the Halifax loans website - Halifaxs message also strongly promotes a sense of wellbeing - The Comfort trend is covered by a portfolio of PPI products - Convenience is still a fairly strong message for the provider - Halifaxs rate clarity appeals to the Authenticity trend - Halifax targets individualism through its offer of a web dialogue - Halifaxs smaller loan offer touches upon Wealth Complexity - HSBC has a functional website emphasizing convenience for its standard loan offering, but the more interesting layout for its non-standard products reflects their innovation - Convenience is the key message from HSBC - HSBC is experimenting with innovative ideas which appeal to the Authenticity trend - HSBCs four-part PPI offer may appeal to the consumers desire for comfort - The bank appeals to individualism through its professional studies loan - HSBCs Professional Studies Loan also targets consumers within the Lifestage Complexity trend - Repayment holidays target financial intelligence - HSBC suggests what consumers might do to improve their wellbeing - The trend towards a sense of connectivity is targeted more in other areas of the HSBC product portfolio - Flexiloan hits the Wealth trend - Lloyds TSBs use of illustrations gives the personal loans website a more cheerful and colorful feel, which reflects its focus on comfort and wellbeing - The Lloyds TSB loans site offers a feeling of comfort - Wellbeing is another clear message from Lloyds TSB - Convenience and flexibility are also key themes coming from the website - Lloyds TSB refers to its achievements in order to appeal to the Authenticity trend - The loan repayment holidays offered by Lloyds TSB meet the Financial Intelligence Complexity - Lloyds TSB pushes the idea of individualism through its personalized quotes - Connectivity is not a key message on the website - Nationwides site is fairly functional and has clear messages on speed and convenience of arrangement - The Nationwide websites key message is convenience - Nationwide is keen to promote its authenticity credentials - Nationwide is targeting improving financial intelligence - Nationwide caters for changing wealth through its loan top-up facility - The clarity of the website promotes wellbeing - NatWests message focuses on the ease and convenience of getting a loan, although it also hits other messages such as informing consumers - Convenience is the principal message of NatWests website - NatWests website highlights its strength in covering the Comfort trend - NatWest appeals to the Connectivity trend by offering favorable terms for existing customers - The bank offers favorable terms for those seeking to improve their house, tapping into the Wellbeing trend - NatWests exotic offers tie in with the desire for authenticity - The loans website promotes financial intelligence - NatWests products demonstrate some flexibility over lifestage - NatWest encourages individualism - RBS shares much of the look, feel and focus of its website with NatWest - Convenience is the key message from the RBS website - RBS is also promoting the comfort factor of its offering - RBS appeals to the Connectivity trend through favorable offers to existing customers - RBS is appealing to consumers by hinting at how a loan may improve wellbeing - RBS promotes its award winning PPI to appeal to the Authenticity trend - RBSs private banking website appeals to the other side of Wealth Complexity - RBS encourages financial intelligence through its loans calculator - RBS does not discriminate on lifestage in its loan offering - Chatting with an expert appeals to the need for individualism

Companies Mentioned:

- HSBC

- NatWest

- RBS

- Abbey

- Alliance & Leicester

- Barclays

- Halifax

- Lloyds TSB

- Nationwide

For more information visit www.researchandmarkets.com/research/e29713/an_analysis_of_con

Source: Datamonitor

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