Selling mortgages is not rocket science: A call you cannot afford to missDave HershmanMortgage marketing
For our marketing initiatives to be consistent and successful,
we must combine pipeline management with our marketing activities.
They should never be separate, and there are key calls we all need
to make in order to successfully service our business and open up
future marketing opportunities.
Without exception, this call should take place anywhere from
three to 10 days after settlement, and there are three points that
need to be addressed:
†I want to thank you again for allowing me to serve
you.
†I also wanted to make sure that there was not something else
that I could do for you at this time.
†I also would like some feedback as to anything we could have
done to make the process better from your perspective.
Note the purpose of this call is to find out if you can do
something for them. You are not looking for a referral. This call
is dedicated to the customer, letting you know that you care about
how they feel and you would like to help them even further, if
possible.
Let's examine these three things. First, you need to start the
conversation by thanking them again. We say that great customer
service indicates that we exceed our customers' expectations, and
we believe that the average vendor does not say thank you enough.
So, this call represents another chance to differentiate yourself
from your competition by being appreciative. Remember, customers
buy from people they trust, and we trust those who are sincere and
nice. The number one goal of marketing is to achieve a response by
differentiating yourself from your competition.
If the response to the first question is, "Yes, you can do
something for me," then you must take action. Mortgage brokers
always talk about great customer service as delivering additional
value, and something as simple as completing a task after closing
could do just that, especially since the average salesperson will
drop the ball. How many times have you purchased a major product
where the salesperson virtually disappeared after the deal was
consummated? Once again, you are differentiating yourself from your
competition.
What if the response to the last question is less than pleasing?
Most of us do not hear enough complaints from our customers, but
it's not necessarily because we deliver on time, every time.
Rather, it's because we do not ask for honest feedback. The call
you just made is an opportunity to solidify the relationship (or
rescue it) by taking positive, affirmative action. It is said that
no relationship is solidified until something goes wrong, so at
this point, we ask you to listen, empathize, apologize and take
action. You won't be able reverse every complaint, but you can show
that you care.
So, now that we have made the call, what have we done? Ask any
salesperson for the objective of marketing, they'll tell say,
"Leads." However, the true goal of marketing is to provide the most
effective referrals. We do that by differentiating ourselves from
our competition.
For those who are somewhat dissatisfied, we have demonstrated
that we do care. The problem with most marketing plans is that they
preach the value of new prospects rather than focus on the
all-important follow-up call. We can't leave follow-ups to surveys
... with a simple phone call, we can position ourselves to obtain
referrals as well as testimonials.
Dave Hershman is a leading author and a top speaker for the
mortgage industry with eight books and several hundred articles to
his credit. He is also head of the OriginationPro Mortgage School.
For more articles by Dave Hershman, free marketing materials and a
schedule of events, visit www.originationpro.com. He
may be contacted by phone at (703) 222-6456 or by e-mail at
[email protected].
