Nathan Rufty is a mortgage coach and trainer with Mortgage Marketing Pros, a company that works with loan
officers to develop marketing plans that increase leads and
closed loans. Mortgage Marketing Pros was created by a
producing loan officer and a master marketer to teach
mortgage professionals how to create their own businesses
without relying so much on one or two streams that can
dry up without warning. For more information, visit
mortgagemarketingpros.com. Reach Rufty at (909) 731-1218.
Break Out of Your Comfort Zone
Loan originators can benefit from a business-to-business relationship
By Nathan Rufty
Breaking out of the normal routine for getting and growing business leads can be uncomfortable. But uncomfortable is healthy. It is how we grow as humans and
loan originators. To sustain longevity in the mortgage
industry, originators must develop and maintain several reliable streams of business referrals.
In fact, successful originators maintain at least
four or five avenues that generate calls and loan
opportunities. Then, if one referral stream dries up,
the originator has another three or four to rely on. If
one stream dries up completely, however, it is vitally
important to develop a new source of leads. Choosing a replacement that peaks your interest can be
challenging and may force some originators out of
their comfort zones.
A path less taken
One less-travelled path for establishing a new revenue stream is developing relationships with local
brick-and-mortar businesses. Start by selecting a
small local business in your area that employs 25 to
50 employees, and reach out to the management to
offer your lending expertise to their company and
their employees.
Employees often look to work at companies that offer
a wide range of benefits. Offering a service where a
local mortgage professional will assist them on buying
a house by reviewing their income and credit or offering reduced fees or interest rates is a great employee
perk that originators can provide to local businesses.
You can offer to provide regular seminars, for example, on topics such as first-time homebuyer programs,
how to save for downpayments, ways to clean up credit
reports and the benefits of owning versus renting.
Think outside the box when coming up with benefits,
such as offering a credit back toward appraisals or
processing fees for all employees.
If the business donates time or money to a local charity, offer to donate a portion of your commission to that
charity for every loan you close with their employees or
volunteer hours of your time on behalf of the company.
Remember to stay in compliance with any offers you
make and speak with your tax adviser about any tax
ramifications.
Before you make initial contact, however, you need
to know your audience. Your offer of expertise will
differ if you are looking to start a relationship with a
warehouse company versus a hospital. Do your research and tailor your pitch to that particular industry.
Do your homework
To help tailor your offers, find out everything you
can about that company as soon as the owner, plant
manager or human resource director agrees to meet
with you. When was it founded? What is their mission
statement? What are their principle values? How many
people does the company employ? What is their
service area?
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