By maintaining dedicated, personal relationships with mortgage lenders, Genworth Mortgage Insurance continually identifies new opportunities to serve housing finance professionals through technology and innovation. One of its recent opportunities was also one of its most significant: launching a premier website designed after extensive user experience (UX) research.
The site, new.mi.genworth.com, incorporates advanced cloud-based technology and has now been ranked No. 1 for ease of use compared to all other mortgage insurance websites, according to a 2018 Genworth survey.
Genworth began this project by discovering how loan officers and processors interact with Genworth online on a foundational level.
“We conducted surveys, focus groups and one-on-one interviews throughout the development process to ensure that the site’s function aligned to customer needs,” said Kevin McMahon, senior vice president, commercial strategy.
MI application forms were designed with fewer required form fields, pre-filled data and available preference settings to eliminate data entry time. And document uploads were made faster through a bulk upload drag-and-drop functionality.
The new website also makes submitting and managing MI apps easy through enhanced functionality, including:
- Searching for submitted MI apps
- Viewing app status in real time
- Modifying submitted applications
- Getting personal assistance from Genworth representatives
A visual pipeline tracking system is a highlight of the MI Site. Similar in design to online package delivery services systems, the visual pipeline tracks the status of each MI application as it travels through submission to underwriting to approval.
“Customer feedback on the visual pipeline has been overwhelmingly positive,” McMahon said. “It provides users with insight into their MI-related workflow, eliminating the pain related to lack of transparency associated with other websites.”
The MI Site also features fast and accurate rate quotes and product comparisons through a redesign of the Rate Express rates and comparisons tool. Rate quotes can be generated, compared, and shared among colleagues for easy collaboration.
All of that functionality has been designed using a mobile-first design approach for easy on-the-go access from any mobile device. Users can even add Genworth’s MI Site icon to their mobile home screen.
Genworth delivers a more customized experience to users with dedicated pathways, or journeys, through the MI Site based upon the user’s role, company, or experience on the site. Users get a differentiated view of key MI products and services that are most relevant to them through personalized website content.
Finally, Genworth has baked ongoing improvement into the website’s design, with an iterative user program that continually identifies ways to enhance user experience and functionality. With every innovation Genworth’s goal is the same: to help mortgage professionals work more efficiently to meet and exceed borrower expectations.
PRODUCT: "MI Site" website
SNAPSHOT: Genworth’s MI Site combines today’s advanced cloud-based technology with insights from experts — our customers. It’s proof-positive that, while technology is a key enabler of innovation, user input and feedback are the true drivers of change and evolution of the online experience.