National Student Loan Consolidation Company Uses InboundProspect’s Pay Per Loan Student Loan Leads to Outperform Internet Leads and Outbound Telemarketing Live Transfer Leads, resulting in a 25% Cost Per Loan Reduction.
A national Student Loan Consolidation company approached InboundProspect to provide a scalable lead generation solution. They needed a consistent flow of at least 100 Student Loan Consolidation leads per day in the form of pre-qualified live inbound calls. The client was increasingly growing frustrated because they were using Internet leads and outbound telemarketing live transfers to generate calls. The lead volume and lead quality was inconsistent and they were no longer meeting their Cost Per Acquisition (Cost Per Loan) goals.
The Challenge
The client explained that with Internet leads they are only able to contact about 50% of the Student Loan Leads they receive. Meaning 50% of the leads they purchase are dead on arrival. The client also expressed that outbound telemarketing leads were difficult to convert because of the nature of the initial contact of the Student Loan Debt Lead. The inquiry is not initiated by the caller, but by a cold call by an offshore or domestic telemarketing call center to an unsuspecting consumer. InboundProspect recognized the Internet lead dilemma and outbound telemarketing challenges that many Student Loan Consolidation companies face today. In short, Internet lead quality is low, contact rates are low, it’s a grind for the call center to call 100 Internet Leads and only reach 50 of them on a good day, the Student Loan Debt Leads are not pre-qualified and the inquiry into Student Loan Consolidation is not initiated by the borrower especially with outbound telemarketing. In addition, many Student Loan companies contact the same leads all at once because they are sold multiple times. These are not exclusive Student Loan Leads. This often leaves the Student Loan borrowers and call center representatives frustrated and in the end no one wins.
The Solution
InboundProspect proposed a Pay Per Acquisition (Pay Per Loan) direct mail lead generation solution in which student loan borrowers receive a direct mail solicitation with a call to action that motivates them to initiate communication to speak directly with a call center representative. It wasn’t until the Student Loan Debt Lead converted to a customer that InboundProspect was paid. True Pay For Performance. The Student Loan Consolidation company had tried direct mail in the past using traditional, direct mail campaign strategies, but had failed. After review of their company structure, financials and cash flow needs, much to the client’s surprise InboundProspect’s decided that using a Pay Per Call or Pay Per Lead pricing structure wasn’t the ultimate win-win. Instead we proposed our Cost Per Acquisition or Cost Per Loan pricing option. Needless to say the Student Loan Consolidation company was enthusiastic to move forward because we took on all of the financial and performance risk, which means we got paid only when they got paid.
The Results
The initial Student Loan Lead order was for 2,500 Student Loan Debt Leads, or 125 Student Loan Consolidation Leads per day. The pilot at this volume was important for two reasons. First, their immediate call center lead needs required a scalable Student Loan Debt Leads source. Second, InboundProspect was the only Student Loan Lead source among all of their lead generation providers that took on all of the financial and performance risk by providing Pay Per Acquisition pricing. In conclusion, this client’s Student Loan Debt Lead pilot program was an absolute success. It did so well that this client continues to order and scale their Student Loan Lead orders with InboundProspect. The client’s Cost Per Loan goal was $200 for the pilot. InboundProspect significantly exceeded their expectations by delivering a Cost Per Loan of $135 for the pilot, a 25% reduction from their Cost Per Acquisition goal.
