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Success with Subprime
by Brian
Sacks
Do you have a question for Mr. Sacks? E-mail
it to brian@loanofficersuccess.com.
Click here
for more articles by Mr. Sacks.
How to Have Clients Calling You To Do Business
Let's recap our journey, we have set realistic goals & created a plan for
implementing them.
We now know that we are selling a service not a price and that our reputation
is critical to our long term success. The next several issues will deal with the "journey" (trip to Kalamazoo)
itself.
Are you tired of driving (make cold calls) yet? Then why not put the car on cruise
control (Become the expert in a niche and let everyone know it)?
We've been talking about how important it is to establish and maintain a sterling
reputation if you want to be successful in the long run. Without a doubt, honesty, diligence, and trustworthiness
are essential attributes. However, there is another critical aspect of the image you need to develop in order to
be truly successful: You need to be knowledgeable. I'll even go further than that - people must perceive you as
the guru of your chosen niche, and you truly must be. You need to become - and become known as - the expert.
Why? What's so critical about developing expertise? Can't you "get by"
just being competent and dependable? Of course you can, but I doubt that you are reading this to learn how to just
"get by." If you did, I'm sorry but I don't have any pointer for you. We're aiming higher here. This
is all about developing your highest potential and teaching your ultimate goals. Becoming the expert is an important
step along the way.
In a way, the concept of becoming the expert ties back into the idea of providing
a service and not a commodity. You know, there's a world of difference between a salesperson and an advisor. If
you present yourself or allow yourself to be perceived as a salesperson, then people automatically presume that
you're pushing something, some commodity - and price is a legitimate issue.
If, on the other hand, you present yourself as the person with the answers, someone
who can solve problems, then the rate issue simply melts away - because they'll be after you and your knowledge,
your wisdom. In my offices we actually call our loan officers "mortgage counselors." It creates a total
shift in perspective and, consequently, expectations.
Most people who are looking for mortgage financing actually do need counseling
of sorts. They really do have a problem - they're looking to purchase a home, and they can't afford to pay cash.
This can be a sizable financial problem - with potentially dire financial consequences if something goes wrong.
Think about what you do if you have a specific health problem. Do you go to just
any old doctor for help? Do you shop around to find the cheapest? Not on your life! You want to find a doctor with
special knowledge of your condition and how to treat it. Simply put, if you have a sore toe, you don't go to your
dentist.
Why should financing a mortgage be any different? We're talking about financial
health here. The tag line we chose for our company, "Solutions for Today's Homebuyer," has helped people
perceive us as the specialists who can solve mortgage financing problems.
People often need this kind of help, someone with expertise to help them navigate
the waters, and they will seek you out to get answers to their questions, to get solutions to their problems -
if you are recognized as the expert.
The Other Side of the Coin
Doesn't this sound like a salesperson's dream - having potential clients seeking
you, and not the other way around? Obviously this is the primary advantage of being an expert - what I call the
invisible marketing effect. It really is a two-sided issue, however. If people come to you for your expertise and
decide to give you their business, then you have to deliver. You are then obligated to be the expert - you can't
betray their trust.
In this respect, it is your duty to know your niche inside and out, forward and
backward, so you can provide your clients with the best service possible. Becoming the expert, then, is an ideal
way to "kill two birds with one stone." It greatly enhances your marketing efforts, which helps bring
in the business, and it also gives you the tools you need to serve your clients well, which helps you maintain
the business you already have.
Next article will show you how to become the expert.
Click here
for more articles by Mr. Sacks.
Visit Brian Sacks's web site at www.loanofficersuccess.com.
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