Interbay.com facelift attracting brokers to small commercialMatt CascarinoInterBay, Web site, small commercial lending
Early last year, InterBay
Funding's Web site went under the knife in order to become more
interactive and user-friendly for mortgage brokers. Several nips
and tucks later, www.interbay.com has become as
integral to the commercial loan process as a 1003 and credit
report. In the past, small commercial Web sites were simply a place
to check out the latest rates and download application forms. But
mortgage brokers are demanding more from their lenders and want
marketing tools to help generate leads. They want sales guidance to
turn those prospects into applications. Sometimes, they just want
to learn what others are doing to become more successful. InterBay
knows this, which is why www.interbay.com arms mortgage
brokers with everything they need to build their small commercial
business.
Driving the business
In residential, we've recently been through a period where making
huge sums of money required little more than a working phone line
and a pulse. But small commercial is different. Borrowers are not
lighting up the switchboards because many simply don't know where
to go for financing. That's why brokers must actively market for
small commercial deals. Interbay.com provides all of the marketing
tools that brokers need to build a pipeline with their free "Small
Commercial Lending Marketing Guide."
Whether you're canvassing a small business district, or
launching a direct mail campaign, InterBay's marketing guide
contains customizable collateral material for virtually any
audience. It's one thing to slip your business card into a generic
brochure, but having your contact information printed directly onto
your marketing material speaks much more loudly. That's exactly
what the marketing guide is designed to help you do: Get their
attention! Compelling visuals and copy positions brokers as the
source for small business owners and commercial property investors
who are looking for financing. The marketing guide also takes your
promotional material beyond the brochure with postcards, direct
mail letters, presentations and more ... all customizable for your
business. Of course none of it holds any value if you don't know
your target market. That's why InterBay offers options for
purchasing qualified lead lists. These list providers enable
mortgage brokers to mail, canvass and telemarket small business
owners. Even if you don't have time to manage a full-scale direct
mail campaign, there is an all-inclusive marketing package
available that contains a lead list, postcards, mailing services
and outbound telemarketing. So whether you're starting small with
grassroots efforts or are employing more advanced marketing
methods, www.interbay.com can
help you drive in more small commercial business.
Selling the deal
It doesn't matter if you are new to small commercial or a seasoned
professional, selling the deal to prospective borrowers can be
challenging. Perhaps the most difficult obstacle to overcome is the
fact that many commercial borrowers expect to experience the same
loan process when they bought or refinanced their home. What they
don't know is that they have as much chance of paying for a quality
commercial appraisal with a few hundred dollars as they do with a
handful of magic beans. InterBay.com can help you sell
the commercial loan process with the EasyCash Pre-Approval Package.
This feature gets its name from the EasyCash Loan Program, a brand
created by InterBay that enables mortgage brokers to sell their
stated-income/asset loan programs without mentioning InterBay by
name. The pre-approval package is designed to assist brokers with
selling the often foreign and complex terms and conditions of a
commercial loan in common, everyday language. Brokers create the
package on www.interbay.com
by entering loan data from their InterBay Conditional Loan
Pre-Approval. In just a few clicks, the system generates all the
paperwork necessary to educate the borrower, collect the check for
the appraisal, and keep the deal moving through the pipeline. Not
only does the pre-approval package have a clean, professional look
and feel, but statistics show that a significantly higher
percentage of deals are being sold with the package than without
it.
Hitting the blog
The newest enhancement on Interbay.com is the InterBay Blog. For
those of you who are still getting the hang of e-mail, a blog is a
forum where people communicate and share their thoughts on various
topics. InterBay's blog enables brokers to comment on
InterBay-related items and read contributions from their peers in
the mortgage industry. So whether you want to suggest a program
enhancement or declare a recent small commercial victory, Interbay.com is the place to let
your voice be heard.
With everything you need to succeed in small commercial lending,
www.interbay.com can give your business a whole new look too.
However, the phone won't ring unless you take action. The first
step is logging on and taking a look around. You'll quickly find
what thousands of mortgage brokers are using to become more
successful every day. Of course, if you're feeling nostalgic,
Interbay.com has current rates too.
Matt Cascarino is a marketing manager for Fort Washington,
Pa.-based InterBay Funding
LLC. He consults with mortgage brokers in the United States and
Canada on their small commercial sales and marketing efforts. He
may be reached by e-mail at
[email protected].
