Quit stalking agents by constantly inviting them to parties they don’t want to go to, checking them out on LinkedIn, and sending emails about how you want to grab a cup of coffee to talk about your new loan program that can turn them into a Top Producer. We know your tactics!
Instead, focus on creating value for them. What can you do to help them in their business instead of helping yours? This is the first step towards changing the dynamic between Realtors and yourself.
Being a loan officer is harder than being an agent many times…
The mortgage business is a constant hustle. You are always on the move making calls to current clients while trying to wine and dine as many real estate agents as possible.
Let’s face it, when a deal goes south you are the first to get blamed by everybody. The buyer calls you up at 11:46 P.M. freaking out about the .00000001% hike in the interest rate and how it’s affecting their payment by $0.76 a month.
The Realtor calls you upset about their client being upset. You’re freaking out because you fear you might lose them as a referral source, but it was your processor’s fault. She didn’t get the appraisal back on time. The Realtor forgot to send in the commission statement 7 days in advance and due to the new TRID guidelines, the clear to close and the closing has been delayed.
Oh yea…
The buyer’s interest rate expired and the rate is going up a lot more than .00000001 %.
Even the title company will get out there and say something about how you mishandled the deal in some way. Your job is hard enough as it is, so I’m going to try to give you some good news.
What if I told you there was a way to build an army of REFERRING Realtors that would have them chasing you down in a parking lot and not the other way around?
Food, drinks, and loan programs?
Any agent who is doing decent business typically hates the cold calls. The pitch is always the same:
“I’d love to show you my new program that can help out with a lot of your first-time buyers etc…blah blah blah”
Agents hate this because the truth is that mortgage professionals, more or less, all have the same product. It’s similar to how we all have access to the MLS. Sure, once in a while a new mortgage product will come along that will peak some interest, but it’s not what develops a strong relationship with them.
We come across hot pocket listings too that are not on the MLS. It’s the same thing!
The “program” might get your foot in the door, but what do you do to turn that meeting into a relationship that prints you referrals?
Realtors will refer you their clients when you develop a relationship with them.
You need something to stand out from the crowd to get that appointment.
What if you focused your efforts on helping them build their business instead of building yours?
Anytime you help anyone do anything, they will naturally feel obliged to give back to you. Agents do not want more gifts, drinks, or pointless coffee meetings. They want help getting to the next level.
We want to take on more clients, sell more houses, and increase our bottom line. Take the focus off your loan programs and make it all about them. Helping them with their business is how you develop a referral relationship with them. I’m not talking about paying for their expensive Zillow zip codes either.
Here is the formula for attracting and retaining an army of Realtor referrals. READY?
- Identify Realtor problems.
- Create the solution.
- Continue to serve them and build your relationship.
6 Problems Realtors Have RIGHT NOW That Their Broker Is Not Solving For Them!
Training – Agents like training and staying afloat of what’s going on, but many of them do not have the money to invest. The real estate business is not what is difficult. It’s getting the business that separates top producers from the average agents. Are you hosting consistent marketing training events for your referral partners? What if you could provide valuable training for them and re-launch the same training once a quarter to bring in new blood?
Referral Marketing System – Nearly 61% of agent business is directly attributed to referrals and repeat business. Unfortunately, most agents have never been taught how to market their real estate business for referrals. Taking advantage of what their brokers are NOT DOING can be a HUGE opportunity for you. How many agents do you think would like to meet you for coffee if you showed them how to consistently generate referrals with minimum time invested? For more information on this CLICK HERE.
Listing Marketing System – Have you ever asked a Realtor what their value proposition is for their seller clients? Why should any seller hire them over Billy Bob from ABC Realty? Try it out and tell me what you learn.
Sellers expect their agents to provide more exposure for their property. Unfortunately, the status quo for Realtors has become popping a sign in the yard and listing the house on the MLS. That is not a marketing plan!
What if you were able to show them a REAL marketing plan to enhance their value proposition for their seller clients?
Video Services – It’s the year 2016 and video is here to stay. All agents should all be accustomed to using video. The problem is that videos can be expensive unless you have your own video dude in-house. Talk about an attraction! What if you had a video guy that could do property videos for your agents? Do you think you could get some more introductions?
No, you are not paying for their videos either. All you have to do is make the introduction!
Advanced Marketing Services – What do you think your coffee appointment setting rate will be when you have an in-house marketing department? I’m not talking about someone who creates fliers and rate sheets. I’m talking about someone who can run an advanced Facebook Ads campaign, an advanced content marketing strategy, and even automate direct mail funnel campaigns for their agents.
What if you worked with agents on advanced marketing campaigns? You could be fishing for loans and they can be fishing for buyers. Creating business for Realtors is the #1 draw!
CRM – A CRM should only accomplish 3 tasks. It needs to keep an agent organized, maintain a database, and set reminders. What if you were able to offer a tool like this for agents branded to you? This is pretty powerful stuff.
Please take note how all of these things focus around providing value to your agents. Keep the focus on serving your largest source of business and things will start happening.
You are probably thinking that this sounds like a ton of work. You are damn right because it was. Good news is that all of this is done and took me two years to build and you can offer all of this to your agents if you like.
The real estate market has changed and the truth is that Realtors are going to be forced to become better marketers so they can compete with Zillow, other agents, and flat fee brokerages. There is a HUGE opportunity here to build tons of agent relationships as the market continues to adjust by helping them with what they need most: marketing skills, tools, and training. The question is will you adapt or be late to the party?