JR TOC Review

In today’s extremely competitive digital world, business analysts want information when they want it, the way they want it. Nowhere is this more evident than in the financial services sector, where the power of information helps risk and portfolio managers improve strategies and make better business decisions every day. With the introduction of IntelliView, never before have you had this amount of pertinent data at your disposal that can be categorized and evaluated according to specific needs. The tool can help you to optimize strategic planning, uncover new opportunities and improve decision making by having 24-7 online access to Experian’s aggregated quarterly consumer credit data. Data is available for seven lending categories including bankcard, retail card, automotive, first mortgage, second mortgage, home-equity lines of credit and personal loans. IntelliView data is sourced from the information that supports the Experian–Oliver Wyman Market Intelligence Reports and is easily accessed through an intuitive, online graphical user interface, which enables you to extract key findings from the data and integrate them into your business strategies. With today’s ever-changing market conditions and increased regulatory scrutiny, you require advanced tools for optimizing strategic planning and operational decision making. The reports available through IntelliView utilize aggregate credit data that has been predefined into the appropriate product and analytical groupings, taking the pressure off of your organization’s internal resources and allowing them more time for analysis. Learn more about IntelliView.

Experian, the leading global information services company, today announced that its vice president of public education, Maxine Sweet, was recognized by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) with its Making the Difference Award during the organization’s 47th Annual Leaders Conference in Charlotte, N.C., which took place Sept. 30–Oct. 3, 2012. Introduced in 2005, the NFCC’s Making the Difference Award honors individuals who have made significant contributions to assisting consumers with financial literacy, awareness and education, furthering the NFCC’s mission, vision and programs through a national presence. “Maxine Sweet personifies this award,” said Gail Cunningham, vice president of membership and public relations at the NFCC. “Her level of commitment, passion and knowledge combined with Experian’s financial education resources has made a remarkable impact on consumers’ lives.” “It is a true honor to receive an award with such great meaning,” Sweet said. “As a company, we strive to make a difference. Through the services we provide, the organizations we support and the communities we serve, we will continue to make financial education the heart of Experian.” The NFCC’s Annual Leaders Conference addresses relevant and timely topics affecting the credit counseling sector. Attendees convene to network and to learn more about the latest developments in the housing, bankruptcy, legislative and financial education sectors. Sweet and Rod Griffin, Experian director of public education, also conducted a Credit Ambassador workshop for NFCC educators and counselors at the conference. The workshop provided an overview on how to build or restore credit and what to do in case of fraud as well as discussed other consumer resources available from Experian.

Experian Marketing Services announced the appointment of industry leader Peter DeNunzio as general manager for Experian CheetahMail. DeNunzio assumes responsibility across all CheetahMail offices in the United States and reports to Matt Seeley, president of Experian Marketing Services. With more than 25 years of experience in marketing, branding and direct-to-consumer programs, DeNunzio has a proven track record of anticipating opportunity and delivering results in every organization he has led. “Peter is a recognized leader in our industry, and joins us with an exceptional background in interactive marketing, data and agency services,” said Matt Seeley, president of Experian Marketing Services. “Through his leadership and breadth of experience, Peter brings a strategic vision that is essential as we continue to invest in technology and innovative solutions that help our marquee clients deliver truly coordinated, relevant and response driven marketing programs.” DeNunzio joins CheetahMail from Aimia (formerly Carlson Marketing), where he was most recently the president of the U.S. Customer Loyalty business. At Aimia, DeNunzio was charged with leading the design and delivery of all U.S. loyalty programs directed toward consumer audiences. Prior to Aimia, DeNunzio was president of Draftfcb New York Earlier in his career, he spent more than 14 years with Ogilvy & Mather, including the global position of managing director EMEA for client IBM, during a period of significant growth in digital and database marketing for the brand. He was also the general manager for OgilvyOne New York and general manager, Global Clients. Commenting on his new role, DeNunzio said, “As the industry’s largest integrated email service provider, with a client base representing the world’s most recognized brands, CheetahMail has built a reputation for exceptional service and innovation. I’m thrilled to lead this team of talented marketers, and I’m especially excited about the future as CheetahMail accelerates its commitment to providing a fully integrated, interactive marketing platform that helps brands connect with customers in a true multi-channel environment. “ DeNunzio lives in Manhattan and serves on the board of the Columbia Business School Center for Global Brand Leadership and on the board of the Advertising Education Foundation.

The auto finance market is always a hot topic for discussion. After all, a vehicle loan is the second largest purchase that most consumers will ever make (the first being a home). Following the credit crunch, analysts and consumers alike watched the auto finance market with great interest to see how auto lending would be affected. The answer? Well, according to Experian Automotive’s Q3 State of the Automotive Finance Market analysis, subprime financing and leasing are continuing to make a strong comeback, which is good news for everyone. According to Melinda Zabritski, Experian Automotive’s director of credit, “Expanding loans to lower-risk tiers opens the market for more car shoppers, while an increase in leasing means it is easier for consumers to get more vehicle for a lower monthly payment. Both of these trends are positive signs of a strong and recovering auto finance market, which ultimately benefits the consumer and the entire auto industry.” Experian Automotive’s quarterly report looks at several areas of the automotive finance market to show how things have changed on a year-to-year basis. In Q3, market share for nonprime, subprime and deep-subprime automotive loans for new vehicles grew by 13.6 percent and new vehicle leasing grew by 7.53 percent year over year. The analysis also looked at the top makes that consumers financed. In Q3, Toyota grabbed top honors, claiming 14.09 percent of all new vehicles financed. Ford was second with 13.16 percent, and Chevrolet was third with 11.10 percent. Other areas covered in this quarter’s analysis include average consumer credit scores for new and used vehicle loans, average dollar amounts financed, 30- and 60-day delinquencies, repossessions, as well as which new vehicles had auto loans with the highest average consumer credit scores. For more information on this report and other automotive-related insights, please visit ExperianAutomotive.com or check out our press release.

There are two sides to every story. It’s one of those old clichés you hear time and time again. When I think about the collections process, this is the first thing that comes to mind. You have the consumer or debtor who enters into an agreement to pay for something and at some point, makes the decision not to pay. It could be a credit card bill or a car payment –or maybe they even forget to pay a library book fine (this actually happened to someone I know!). On the other side, you have the debt collector, who has the task day in and day out, of collecting on the debt the debtor has agreed to pay. This can be stressful, daunting and even unpleasant for both parties. The debt collector is concerned with finding the right party and working out a way to get the debt paid and they use a number of tools to help them do this, including skip tracing products. They definitely don’t want to spend time going down the wrong path wasting valuable time and resources. With Experian’s introduction of TrueTrace today, collectors now have a new industry-leading product that can improve the collections process. TrueTrace provides a very comprehensive and unique combination of data sources that can include everything from payday lending information to rental information through Experian’s RentBureau database. With increasing margin pressures in this industry, a product like TrueTrace offers the most up-to-date, comprehensive and accurate contact data to streamline their skip-tracing efforts. This process is part of the business, part of an agreement, but what strikes me as a pleasant surprise is the turn of events where many debt collectors are spending more time understanding consumer credit to better their understanding of the consumer. In turn, they can make themselves more effective and create a more positive experience for the consumer as well. This increase in knowledge can help the collector make better determinations about the consumer’s ability to pay and allow for a more meaningful conversation with the debtor. With the debt recovery industry focused so heavily on results, TrueTrace will surely play an important role, but combining this with education and professional development can really make for a winning combination for everyone. For more information about TrueTrace, you can read the news release here. Photo: Shutterstock

            Small businesses are getting a lot of attention right now. With the presidential election, Affordable Care Act and talk of the looming fiscal cliff, small business health and survival concerns have been widely discussed across the United States. Earlier this year, Experian’s Business Information Services and Moody’s Analytics, a leading independent provider of economic forecasting, joined forces to create a business index and detailed report that provides insight into the health of U.S. businesses. The Experian/Moody’s Analytics Small Business Credit Index is reported quarterly to show fluctuations in the market and discuss factors that are impacting the business economy. The recently released Small Business Credit Index for third quarter 2012 showed that small business credit quality began deteriorating in Q3 after four consecutive quarters of improvement. Findings from the report also indicated that severely delinquent account balances and slower consumer spending growth posed a significant challenge to small businesses that will likely continue throughout the rest of 2012 and most of 2013. Details from the analysis also highlighted several other areas affecting small business including job growth, payment trends, consumer spending, raising home prices and unemployment. To download a full copy of the report, please visit www.experian.com/SmallBusinessCreditIndex