The following article is part of AFSA's Business Partner Webinar Series. You can learn more during PayNearMe's webinar on Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 2 p.m. ET entitled Top Five Lending Trends for 2019. Registration is open now.

Next year is around the corner, and so is budgeting for 2019. Join us on Wednesday, October 17 at 2 p.m. ET to learn about key trends to watch in 2019, including trends in dealer operations, financial services, payments, and more.

Since 2017, sales in the auto lending industry have been declining, and are forecast to continue the downward trend through this year and possibly into 2019. Owners are keeping their cars longer, car sharing services dissuade city-dwellers from buying their own vehicles, and rising interest rates make customers wary of accumulating debt. All these factors lead to greater competition among lenders, so how can they best position them to stand out to potential customers?

This webinar looks at the Top 5 trends in auto lending for 2019. Moving to cloud-based payment platforms help with faster implementation, continuous service and new functions, up-to-date software, and the opportunity to initiate loans anywhere there is an internet connection. It looks at the use of predictive analytics to optimize your portfolio to gain additional insights such as detecting fraud, money laundering and more.

The webinar also goes on to examine how a richer user experience and expanded payment options are priorities for 2019 and beyond. As one of the fastest growing trends, mobile-first payment capabilities allow customers to access their accounts how they want from anywhere, anytime. Withdigital presentment, lenders can move away from paper. Doing presentment on mobile phones can accelerate more on-time payments. This will allow us to present the amount due on mobile – integrated with reminders

This webinar also examines the millennial buyer as prime audience for lenders. First, there are lot of them. Millennials are the nation’s largest living generation. There are more than 75 million millennials, and they spend $1.3 trillion annually. Lenders should cater to this population, since real-world vehicle registration data recorded that millennials accounted for all new vehicle sales growth in the North American auto industry in the first quarter of 2018.

Moving to fintech payment platforms that are mobile-friendly, accredited, compliant, trusted and secure, with anti-money laundering controls, ensures simplicity, convenience and peace of mind for customers making payments. The webinar also covers how it makes it easier for merchants to accept any form of payment – whether cash, debit, credit or bank account; using a complete solution with payment reminders and mobile wallet integration.

Learn how your company can easily adopt new mobile friendly payment solutions for your customers. This is an exciting possibility, providing your customers the flexibility to turn their phones into payment tools and making their overall experience in paying off their loans effortless and convenient!