It's fair to say that the last 18 months have been unlike any other time' both personally and in terms of business. And when you have uncertainty' the smallest of issues can have large repercussions. Especially when it comes to financing
Most of you reading this will be in business. You are likely to have customers. You are also likely to have had customers who can no longer afford your product or service. Some customers may even be falling behind on their payments.
It’s an unnerving time for you’ bearing in mind that you also have bills to pay yourself. And’ it’s an extremely worrying time for your customer.
Thankfully’ there is a way to help you AND your customers. IE Hub provides customers with the tools necessary to manage their finances’ and let’s face it’ anything which helps people control their financial situation can only be a good thing. Income and Expenditure is a juggling act which’ in an ideal situation’ sees Income exceeding Expenditure. Sadly’ that’s not always the case. For example’ recent research commissioned by Ofwat revealed that 41% of customers are worried about money. The last thing responsible businesses want to do is push customers further into debt’ however’ firms need to know what a customer’s financial situation is so that they can set payment arrangements. This is where IE Hub comes in.
“IE Hub connects customers with creditors in just a few clicks'” said Marketing Director Gemma Cryan. “The pandemic has taken a financial toll on people and families across the UK but accessing financial support isn’t easy. Most customers have to fill out multiple Income and Expenditure assessments (I&Es) before a payment plan can be set up’ while simultaneously’ creditors struggle to validate the information from customers’ various I&Es. On both sides’ the current system is inefficient and costly.”
Wouldn’t it be handy if all of the information was in one place which allowed the customer to contact all of their creditors in a digital format? That is precisely what IE Hub does. Customers log onto the IE Hub website www.iehub.co.uk and create their own completely free IE Hub account.
“We’ve ensured that the questions are carefully worded so that the customer only answers questions relevant to their circumstances'” adds Gemma. “Once they’ve completed the form’ all of the information is stored digitally which allows the customer to share their Income and Expenditure information with multiple companies. It’s simple’ it’s quick and it’s free to the customer. It also means that the creditors can instantly see a customer’s financial state and take the relevant action. If it’s obvious that a customer simply cannot afford what you are asking it means both parties can come to some sort of agreement and devise a payment plan. It also encourages the customer not to bury their head in the sand because the problem is not going to go away….it needs to be managed.”
Companies who would like to be part of the scheme pay a small fee per customer statement or take out a CRM licence with IE Hub.
In other words’ the customer and the business are both working from the same’ accurate set of figures. It gives the customer confidence that their difficult situation is being handled sympathetically’ and it prevents the company from having to spend time and money on repeated phone calls and letters. IE Hub…the financial toolbox that helps customers and companies work together.
