Natural Intelligence, a global leader in intent marketing that operates comparison websites, today announced its expansion into the United States with the opening of its Atlanta office. Founded in 2009 in Tel Aviv, more than 90 percent of the company’s customers in financial services are in the U.S. Leading brands including LendingTree, Shopkeep, and Lightstream use Natural Intelligence to tap into a growing pool of high-intent shoppers who haven’t demonstrated brand preference.
The company also announced the results of a new study about consumer behavior in online mortgage shopping. The report, “Online Mortgage Trends: How Mortgage Professionals Can Acquire Untapped Leads” is primarily based on data from Natural Intelligence’s proprietary data and search techniques.
Key findings from the study reveal that when it comes to searching online for mortgages, consumers have less allegiance to specific brands. Searches for non-branded keywords such as “best mortgage rates” have increased more than 200 percent while branded searches that include the name of a specific mortgage lender decreased by more than 60 percent.
As a result of this shift, the average cost of non-branded mortgage terms is now seven times higher than branded mortgage terms. Non-branded mortgage keywords are the third most expensive category in cost-per-click search engine marketing. Meanwhile, third-party reviews, recommendations, and comparison sites are the predominant path for high-intent borrowers looking for the best available mortgages.
With almost 50 percent of homebuyers now searching for and securing mortgages online, the entire process has become increasingly more digital. Driven by millennials, nearly all mortgage-related activities are now completed online – from searching for lenders and acquiring a mortgage to opting into recurring electronics payments.
“Consumers searching for mortgages are moving in lockstep with how they search for other products online,” said Brandon Schnitzer, finance industry general manager, Natural Intelligence. “Today’s consumers know what they want, search for it, and compare details and ratings of from multiple providers. They very rarely start by going directly to a website of a specific provider. To better compete, mortgage lenders have to adapt to this changing consumer behavior.”
About Natural Intelligence
Natural Intelligence is a global leader in intent marketing, operating comparison websites that drive high-value customer acquisition for leading brands.