If someone asked you to name everyone you knew, chances are that the list would be pretty extensive. In fact, there would be hundreds of names, perhaps even thousands. These contacts would be in all walks of life, from plumbers and bus drivers to attorneys and accountants. When I work with a brand new loan officer or an experienced loan officer who has gotten away from the basics of sales, this is often our starting point: the list. We do not just come up with names to send letters to, but dig deep to form specific contact groups.
The first group we form is the "connectors." Connectors know lots of people, tend to gravitate toward groups, and love to recommend you to their favorite restaurant and favorite people. This list will not be long-- perhaps a dozen people. Our first act to build or rebuild our business is to contact our connectors by phone and set up a meeting. At that meeting, we ask one of the most powerful questions in the world, "How can I help you?" We want to find out how we can assist them in growing their business first. In turn, they will ask us. A new coaching client asked this question of a commercial real estate agent who had arranged the lease on his office space. Eventually, the real estate agent mentioned they were merging with a financial planning company and needed a mortgage source! Connect and stay connected with these valuable sources. Also ask them about specific people they know. Here are a few examples: Realtors and builders, CPAs, financial planners, sales professionals, corporate executives, attorneys, and co-workers.
Our next step is to look at our closest sphere of influence. These are people we have known for a long time and that truly like and trust us. We seldom leverage these contacts enough. We will ask the same questions that we used with the connectors and continue to gather more names for sources. In the modern world of sales, it is not about how many sales calls we can make, but about how broad we can expand our network of contacts. Eventually "luck" begins to work its magic! You see, the harder you work, the luckier you get! Nothing happens without face-to-face or phone-to-phone contact in the mortgage business. Marketing programs that will bring in business are built upon working in conjunction with good old fashion "relationship building."
After we have exhausted all our connectors and our sphere of influence, we set up a way to stay in contact with everyone we know. The great thing about the modern world is the Internet. I know, you did not get everyone's email address, right? One more reason to call everyone on your list to let them know you were updating your contact list and noticed you did not have their email address. Some will not be willing to share the information so just move on to those who will. We are only interested in the warm and friendly people who are willing to work with us. I recommend starting a simple electronic newsletter that helps educate your client base, similar to the one you are reading right now. Make sure it contains information that is targeted to a specific group. In this newsletter, for example, we are updating you on the economy, giving you sales tips to grow your business, and motivating you through an inspirational article. When we work with coaching clients, we set them up on a Realtor based newsletter and a consumer newsletter but the two are very different based upon what that audience wants to read.
You now have the basics to start creating and working your network. Is there more work to do? Absolutely, these are only the basics. However, do not be surprised when your first new loans happen! We must still create a plan for real estate agents, builders, CPAs, financial planners and attorneys, but that is a whole different article! Stay tuned!
