Ironhorse Funding | LaunchPad Lab

Company Overview

A Closer Look at Ironhorse Funding

Ironhorse Funding is a leading provider of innovative, technology-driven, full-credit spectrum finance solutions to consumers and dealers in the motorcycle, powersports, RV, and marine markets. In contrast to the automobile industry, where specialized lenders are abundant, the motorcycle, RV, power sports, and marine markets have fewer financing options. Although local credit unions are a common choice for consumers seeking financing, Ironhorse Funding stands out among the limited number of national lenders as one of the only ones offering direct-to-consumer financing.

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Delivering Streamlined Processes and Improved Customer Experience with Salesforce

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The Challenge

Reimagining How Consumers Apply for Financing with Tech

The Ironhorse Funding team processes thousands of monthly applications from consumers applying directly and from its dealer networks. With very few national lenders offering direct-to-consumer (D2C) lending options in this space, there was a growth opportunity to improve the consumer experience, starting with a quick and easy pre-qualification process.

One major blocker for the organization was the inability to run soft credit pulls to pre-qualify applicants. Consumers were required to provide a social security number (SSN), which would immediately result in a hard credit pull. There was no way to capture partial application data, so if an applicant started an application and left, the system didn’t have the information required to follow up on that interaction.

To resolve the cumbersome process and poor data integration, the organization set out to provide a stand-out pre-qualification experience and a streamlined, self-paced online process for consumers that integrated seamlessly within its Salesforce ecosystem. The Ironhorse Funding team turned to LaunchPad Lab as their digital product partner based on the company’s expertise in Salesforce integration.

The Approach

Building a Streamlined, Web-based Loan Application Experience for Customers

To kick off the project, LaunchPad Lab facilitated a Blueprint Workshop with the Ironhorse team. With a clear understanding of the organizational challenges and vision for the project, the LaunchPad team mapped out plans for building an application that made it easy to apply for financing a new vehicle or refinance an existing loan.

The product would include a landing page with a step-by-step loan application form that makes it easy for consumers to submit their personal information and documentation. The subsequent data captured needed to integrate seamlessly into the Salesforce ecosystem to save time and boost efficiency. Additionally, the portal would offer more self-serve options, enabling consumers to move through the process and finish their loan applications at their own pace — even outside core business hours.

Given the objectives, the tech stack chosen included:

Experience Cloud for consumer applications and personalized offers
Sales Cloud for lead management, surfacing leads, and opportunities
Capture® for real-time data and stronger conversions
JD Powers for vehicle data, such as makes, models, and VIN
DecisionLender for real-time application decisions
Salesforce CRM for a single source of truth for information

To ensure a successful launch and smooth transition, LaunchPad Lab trained Ironhorse Funding’s Salesforce team to ensure they were confident in managing the platform.

The Solution

Launching A Secure Credit Application Portal Integrated with Salesforce

This newly designed application enables consumers to complete applications, upload documents, and review loan options easily and at their own pace.

The landing page features contextual guidance, tips on requested information, and a snapshot to track application progress.
Users can be pre-qualified without requiring a social security number or having their credit score affected.
The portal offers personalized loan offers, rates, and term length options, giving consumers a holistic view of how a shorter or longer term might affect their APR and monthly payments.
They can easily upload any required documentation from their computer or mobile device within the portal to complete the loan process. For example, an approved consumer can take a photo of their ID on their mobile device and upload it.
Lead and activity tracking features empower the marketing and sales teams to internally track and have a lead record in Salesforce for “abandoned applications.”

A new front-end application fully integrated with Salesforce supports the future expansion of the consumer experience.

Behind the Scenes

Tech Architecture

The Results

Delivering Streamlined Processes and Improved Consumer Experience with Salesforce

Fueled by a new secure credit application process and seamless Salesforce integration, the partnership yielded impressive results. The product delivered the anticipated outcome, giving consumers a better lending experience with actionable insights surfaced to the organization.

Fast pre-qualification responses

The pre-qualification process allowed applicants to receive swift responses on their loan eligibility, reducing the waiting period and enhancing customer satisfaction.
Accelerated sales cycle with higher conversion rates

By automating various steps in the lending process and providing quick access to multiple loan offers to guide applicants through their options faster and convert leads into customers more effectively.
Enhanced experience boosting consumer satisfaction

The self-service options enabled customers to manage their financing process independently, improving the overall experience and driving customer satisfaction.
Improved operational efficiency reducing manual workload

Automating soft credit pulls, data validation, and lead management reduced manual work for team members, enabling them to allocate their time more strategically.
Faster marketing and sales response

A clear view of abandoned applications and leads ensures a quicker response from both sales and marketing with focus on higher conversions.
By leveraging advanced technology, streamlined processes, and a user-centric approach, Ironhorse Funding strengthened its position as a leader in direct-to-consumer financing for motorcycles, powersports, watercraft, and RVs.