StepEx for admissions and marketing
Prospects who can't pay upfront usually leave quietly: they don't enquire, or they accept and then don't enrol. StepEx gives them a regulated finance option they can see early and apply for on their own, so your team converts demand it currently never sees.
Where prospects drop out
- Before enquiry. They see the fee and assume the course isn't for them.
- Between offer and enrolment. The invoice arrives and the plan to "find the money" doesn't materialise.
- At the payment step. A card limit or a missing lump sum ends an enrolment that was otherwise done.
Finance that is visible at each of those points, from a lender the applicant can check on the FCA register, keeps more of them in the funnel.
What your team does, and doesn't
Your admissions and marketing staff place finance promotions that StepEx has created and approved, in the places you and StepEx agree, and point applicants to StepEx for finance questions. They don't describe terms in their own words, recommend borrowing, or help with an application. That keeps every statement about the finance accurate and consistent, and keeps your team out of conversations that belong with the lender. The staff guide
What the applicant experiences
- Sees a StepEx-approved promotion on your course or fees page, with the representative example the rules require.
- Opens your StepEx provider page, chooses the course and finance option, and applies online to StepEx.
- Completes identity, affordability and credit checks. The full cost is shown before signing. Approval is not guaranteed.
- Signs. The fee is settled through the StepEx agreement; StepEx collects the repayments and passes your share to you as they come in.
Managed Promotions
StepEx Core makes finance available. Managed Promotions makes it visible, supported and measurable, for providers who want StepEx to run the finance conversation rather than build that capability themselves. It is available for courses offering the payment plan.
What you get
- Approved promotions for your journey. StepEx writes and approves finance content for the high-intent places you choose: fee and funding pages, course pages, enrolment emails. You place it; StepEx is responsible for what it says.
- A named StepEx finance expert. Applicants request a callback or book a call from your StepEx page. The expert explains the finance and the application process. The expert never recommends borrowing or predicts an outcome.
- Follow-up for applicants who pause. Where an application sits at an actionable stage, StepEx offers help to resume. Applicants who don't complete can say why, and those planning a later intake can ask for one reminder.
- A conversion dashboard. Aggregate demand, progression, decision outcomes, drop-off reasons and performance over time. No applicant-level data.
Evidence so far. In the StepEx trial, application completion rose from 55% to 78%, a 23-percentage-point increase. Results vary by provider, course mix, cohort and placement, and this is evidence of potential, not a forecast.
Commercial terms. £1,000 a month plus £25 per originated agreement, in addition to the standard origination fee, on a two-month notice period while the service is new. Details
Frequently asked
Does this add work for admissions?
No. Your team's role is to place approved content and point applicants to StepEx. Finance questions go to StepEx, not to your staff.
Can we pilot on one course or intake?
Yes. Eligibility is set per course and intake.
Can we write our own finance messaging?
No. Every statement about StepEx finance is a financial promotion that StepEx must create and approve. You choose where it goes.
Will StepEx contact our applicants directly?
Yes, about their own application. Every applicant hears from StepEx about identity checks, the decision, the agreement and, once signed, their repayments. Under Managed Promotions, StepEx also returns the calls they request, offers help to resume an incomplete application, and sends a later-intake reminder only to applicants who asked for one. Messages about an applicant's own application are service messages, not marketing.