In five years your clients could be applying for home loans using their eyeglasses. It might seem like something out of a sci-fi movie now, but the technology is here today and advancing at breakneck speed.
In five years your clients could be applying for home loans using their eyeglasses.
It might seem like something out of a sci-fi movie now, but the technology is here today and advancing at breakneck speed, says digital expert Scott O’Brien.
O’Brien is co-founder of Explore Engage, a company at the forefront of augmented reality technology, an innovative new platform which allows real-world views to be augmented by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data.
The implications of this technology for the financial sector, says O’Brien, are enormous.
O’Brien points to examples such as CBA’s Property Guide iPhone application which the bank implemented in 2010.
The app, which is free to download, allows users to gain detailed interactive information about a property simply by pointing their smartphone at it.
If a user finds a house they’re interested in, they can calculate monthly home loan repayments via the app and then contact an agent or lender directly from their iPhone.
In the first six months 100,000 Australians downloaded the app, directly generating close to 8,000 home loans for CBA, says O’Brien.
This translated to a total cost of $56 per application to distribute, 78% below the average cost per acquisition, says O’Brien.
“In comparison it slams all other methods of acquiring new customers. It gives people a fun, practical tool to play with.
“People work enough as it is, so why not, when they’re doing a mundane activity, give them a fun way to achieve their goal?”
O’Brien suggests that this kind of ‘gameified’ marketing is becoming more and more popular in the financial sector, as businesses start to move away from more traditional ‘push’ advertising.
“In the past financial institutions have been some of the most guilty for push marketing and that could be one of the reasons perhaps why a lot of people have been a bit anti-financial institutions and education.
“But if you can make this more interesting and more entertaining in a real-world context, by using a property that you’re looking at with your naked eye, it starts to make more sense and people will naturally gravitate towards something that is fun.”
Augmented reality technology can also be an extremely useful tool for market research says O’Brien, as customers are generally open to sharing information about themselves via applications if they can see a personal benefit in doing so.
The efficiency of augmented reality in explaining intangible concepts can also be hugely beneficial for brokers in terms of meeting requirements under NCCP, says O’Brien.
“There is no doubt that for financial institutions there is a huge challenge to have comprehension and engagement from their clients.
“It’s amazing what people can learn and how they can learn quicker by following the old adage: ‘Tell me and I’ll forget, show me and I’ll remember, involve me and I’ll understand.’”
While so far most interest in augmented reality technology has come from the larger institutions in the sector, O’Brien believes it won’t be long before smaller businesses get on board.
“One may suggest [larger institutions] have a larger marketing budget than others but in terms of delivery and returns I’d suggest even smaller institutions have the budget for this kind of thing.”
As the technology evolves O’Brien sees situations in which smaller businesses can use the technology without having to pay for the entire platform.
Those who decide to take on the technology earlier, says O’Brien, will be the ones who reap the most market share and lead the way for others in the financial sector.
“I would strongly urge mortgage brokers and financial institutions not to delay, to get on top of this now because it’s only going to accelerate and it will be harder to catch up later.”
Scott O'Brien will be speaking at AMP's Amplify festival which runs in Sydney this week June 3-7
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