Telephone Sales
Oh, man we’ve hit an all time low. Telephone sales? Telemarketing? Is that what the mortgage broker must do to grow a business in this market?
(staring at the phone)
(staring at the phone number)
(staring at the phone again)
Maybe I’ll quit and get a regular job.
These are the thoughts that run through the minds of LO’s trying to generate business without an appropriate plan in today’s market. The name of the game in the mortgage industry today is survival and keeping expenses low. Telemarketing although anathema to some is an excellent means to lower expenses. I am aware of the fact that few-to-no youngsters raise their hand in grade school and say they want to be a telemarketer when they grow up. I am also aware of the fact that no one, including myself, wants to be solicited by strangers calling on the phone. The difference, my friends, is the approach taken as well as the style of this approach which of necessity must be the soft sell.
Millions of homes are for sale. Millions of homeowners are trying to sell those homes. A million realtors would love to list those homes. There is a larger pool of available buyers who can purchase these homes if the sales concessions and a knowledgeable mortgage broker are available. Homes that have not yet been listed on the MLS don’t have the same prohibitions against refinancing as those that do. Oh, and the average homeowner has a 700 score. This is a fine stew that when mixed together by the right chef, smells good for a change. It doesn’t have to be forced; like the hard sell – every ‘no’ is one ‘no’ closer to a ‘yes’. Forget about it; that’s the telemarketer that no one likes. The soft sell is the road to longevity in the mortgage business.
The catalyst to the soft sell is building a relationship. You’re not trying to close a potential client on the first phone call. As in the case of selling automobiles, give them the keys to the car, because you assume they’ll like the car. This will encourage mutual trust and lead to a purchase. But what if they’ve driven it and don’t like it? Then I don’t want them to buy it either. When you have a product or service that’s good, you don’t have to force it, but you do have to make the contacts. Again, the value of telemarketing is apparent.
I put three LO’s on the telephone this month calling homeowners. One hit the ground running. He had eleven homeowners tell him ‘yes’ in one day. The second one started a little slower, but she now is creating mutual relationships at a faster pace too. The third is making every excuse not to make the calls – or at least it seems that way to me. Remember we are practicing what we preach here and these calls as outlined above are easy calls to make. Friday was a slight improvement over the rest of the week for her and I’m hopeful this week further improvement will be noted. Either way, a fourth person starts today on the phone and the mortgage business marches on whether we as individuals march to it or not!
So, these are the ramblings of the owner of a mortgage company. May this be a profitable week for all where some lasting relationships are built with your clients and most importantly, may you all avoid ‘staring at the phone’.
(staring at the phone)
(staring at the phone number)
(staring at the phone again)
Maybe I’ll quit and get a regular job.
These are the thoughts that run through the minds of LO’s trying to generate business without an appropriate plan in today’s market. The name of the game in the mortgage industry today is survival and keeping expenses low. Telemarketing although anathema to some is an excellent means to lower expenses. I am aware of the fact that few-to-no youngsters raise their hand in grade school and say they want to be a telemarketer when they grow up. I am also aware of the fact that no one, including myself, wants to be solicited by strangers calling on the phone. The difference, my friends, is the approach taken as well as the style of this approach which of necessity must be the soft sell.
Millions of homes are for sale. Millions of homeowners are trying to sell those homes. A million realtors would love to list those homes. There is a larger pool of available buyers who can purchase these homes if the sales concessions and a knowledgeable mortgage broker are available. Homes that have not yet been listed on the MLS don’t have the same prohibitions against refinancing as those that do. Oh, and the average homeowner has a 700 score. This is a fine stew that when mixed together by the right chef, smells good for a change. It doesn’t have to be forced; like the hard sell – every ‘no’ is one ‘no’ closer to a ‘yes’. Forget about it; that’s the telemarketer that no one likes. The soft sell is the road to longevity in the mortgage business.
The catalyst to the soft sell is building a relationship. You’re not trying to close a potential client on the first phone call. As in the case of selling automobiles, give them the keys to the car, because you assume they’ll like the car. This will encourage mutual trust and lead to a purchase. But what if they’ve driven it and don’t like it? Then I don’t want them to buy it either. When you have a product or service that’s good, you don’t have to force it, but you do have to make the contacts. Again, the value of telemarketing is apparent.
I put three LO’s on the telephone this month calling homeowners. One hit the ground running. He had eleven homeowners tell him ‘yes’ in one day. The second one started a little slower, but she now is creating mutual relationships at a faster pace too. The third is making every excuse not to make the calls – or at least it seems that way to me. Remember we are practicing what we preach here and these calls as outlined above are easy calls to make. Friday was a slight improvement over the rest of the week for her and I’m hopeful this week further improvement will be noted. Either way, a fourth person starts today on the phone and the mortgage business marches on whether we as individuals march to it or not!
So, these are the ramblings of the owner of a mortgage company. May this be a profitable week for all where some lasting relationships are built with your clients and most importantly, may you all avoid ‘staring at the phone’.
Posted by Paul - Broken Credit
Labels: Mortgage_Leads, Paul
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