Classes In Real Estate

Many people use case studies in their business, but few loan officers use case studies as part of their loan officer marketing materials. If you are looking for a way to differentiate yourself from your competition, a case study may be the perfect answer.

A case study accomplishes three things: it identifies a problem; it shows the solution; and it documents your performance. You offer proof of performance with a case study and sway skeptical agents.

Effective case studies are structured using a common formula.

Three Section Case Study

The first section of your case study describes a very specific problem. This section has to draw the reader in, it has to be something that the agent can relate to, a problem they’ve experienced.

Be careful not to offer solutions in this section. This entire first section is about developing a complete understanding of the problem. This is where most loan officer marketing materials go wrong: they don’t describe problems, instead just focus on solutions.

Solution focused marketing is sent out in the masses to Realtors. You will not capture their attention with materials that look just like every other loan officers.

The second section of the case study describes exactly how this specific problem was solved. It implies (but doesn’t directly say) that by using your services, you could solve the problem for them too. In this section, you want to be specific in your solution and very personal, written in first person (I, me, mine, etc.)

The last section describes the results of the action. These results must be very specific, they need to be tangible and measurable. It’s one thing to say you saved a client thousands of dollars, it’s another to say you saved the client $3,000, or that you closed the loan 4 days ahead of the original closing date.

If you aren’t specific, your solution will not be taking seriously.

Focus on Benefits

Focus your case study on how your service addressed a specific issue. This issue is the backbone of your case study. You don’t want to bring in descriptions of other problems because it dilutes the message.

Incorporate statistics, charts, tables and figures to reinforce where appropriate.

Detail your Return on Investment. Explain how your service pays for itself. For instance, client referrals doubled in 2 months.

Contain Costs. Show how working with you keeps costs contained. This is especially important to those agents that are spending way to much money on their marketing efforts and are frustrated with the cost of acquiring new leads and clients. Explain how your service helped other agents reduce their fees, such as reducing their marketing spending.

Reduce barriers. Showing your solution to problems will improve operations. Give examples of how it can fit into their already existing business process. For instance, you provide the agent with up to date information or status checks through weekly emails, etc.

Create Visual Appeal

In all your loan officer marketing materials, create a graphically appealing format. You want something that is easy for the reader to scan through, something that doesn’t overwhelm, and something short and to the point, about 300 to 500 words.

With a little creativity and attention to detail, you can create a case study that solves problems and brings Realtors knocking at your door.

Jeff Nelson helps loan officers increase loan originations by attracting quality relationships with real estate agents from the development of customized relationship-building strategies.

Click here to get a free copy of the Marketing Planning Guide, a 20-page workbook designed to help you outline a strategy to become an Agent Magnet.

Visit us at http://www.loan-officer-marketing.com

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Are you tired of putting time, energy and money into mortgage broker marketing just to end up with an agent that never seems to follow through? Let us say you meet with an agent and feel like you have made a connection. But weeks go by without hearing from that agent. You make follow up calls, it all sounds good, but the agent still does not call, return your calls, or send you clients. What is going on?

It sounds like you have just encountered the passive Realtor. A passive Realtor can be incredibly frustrating. But rather than giving up on them, or throwing your valuable time and energy away, by understanding their behavior style, you can develop a positive relationship.

Why They Seem Passive

When you encounter an agent that seems passive, you are really meeting someone who struggles with change. They want to have a stable environment with few or no problems. They perceive any change to be stressful, so they are often willing to continue to work with someone who offers inferior service, simply because they are uncomfortable with working with someone new.

These agents are especially uncomfortable with confrontation. They will go to great lengths to avoid it. They appear to buy in to working with you, but you may not be uncovering their true objection because they go along with anything.

Realtors that are passive also avoid fast decision making. They want to take time to evaluate decisions and mull them over for days or months. When you are working at your mortgage broker marketing, this can be frustrating. It feels like you are investing your time without receiving a timely pay out.

Misunderstanding Passive Realtors

One of the chief problems with working with passive agents is that you take their passivity, their desire to avoid confrontation and general friendliness, as a buy in. You may think you are making progress, when in reality you are not getting anywhere or the agent needs time to process.

Be realistic in your expectations when working with these clients. If they already have a strong relationship with a mortgage broker, chances are they will not jump into another relationship with a broker immediately. It may be a long courtship before you gain their loyalty.

On the positive side, passive agents are great to work with when it comes to unexpected glitches. They can easily empathize with problems that happen and are not likely to go ballistic. And, once you establish a relationship with them, you can count on them to remain loyal.

Communicating More Effectively

When focusing your mortgage broker marketing on this type of real estate agent, you need to pursue your relationship differently from other agents. It is best to incorporate a slow, friendly strategy, with lots of small talk and focus on feelings.

You are more likely to get their attention when you present information gently and then use a questioning technique to draw out their feelings or problems. Passive agents seek out a relationship; they want a feeling of personal attention, problem solving and excellent customer service. They also want proof of your performance, which can be supported by customer testimonial.

The Good News

While wooing a passive agent can feel like a lengthy process, on the positive side, they are great team players. They expend effort to make their client relationships positive. They are the agents that are willing to go the extra mile for clients. These positive relationships trickle over to your business, resulting in a repeats and referrals.

When you understand how to create a positive environment that is not threatening to the Realtor, you establish a productive and positive relationship. Tailoring your mortgage broker marketing to these Realtors result in a loyal partnership with big pay offs.

Jeff Nelson helps loan officers increase loan originations by attracting quality relationships with real estate agents from the development of customized relationship-building strategies.

Click here to get a free copy of the Marketing Planning Guide, a 20-page workbook designed to help you outline a strategy to become an Agent Magnet.

Visit us at http://www.loan-officer-marketing.com

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You invest a lot of time and money in developing a loan officer marketing brochure that will get results. But maybe your materials are starting to have the same look and feel as your competition. What can you do to solve this problem?

First, think about why it is a problem. Maybe consumers are not as focused on differentiating loan officers, but Realtors certainly are. If you focus on building a thriving business (one that relies on them), materials that make you look just like everyone else brings it to a dead stop.

Most loan officer marketing brochures have three common mistakes:

Feature Focused Messages

Most basic sales training programs focus on delivering features and benefits as a standard part of the sales process. But this is a huge mistake when developing your brochures for mortgages.

Imagine writing a brochure that focuses on: quality of service, loan rates, refinance plans, origination, points, APR, mortgage insurance, etc. Developing a list of features does not tell the reader anything. In fact, it may only confuse them.

Basically, you are in the service industry. But the service you provide is hard to quantify. To get the reader to pay attention, you need to talk about problems. And even more importantly, you need to tell the reader how you have solved those problems.

Messages with Jargon

Jargon is such a part of our everyday language that we rarely give it any thought. But many readers lack familiarity with much of the jargon used in loan officer marketing materials. To them, brochures filled with jargon come across as pretentious. If they do not understand, they certainly would not be encouraged to ask questions.

The use of jargon also makes it harder for the reader to focus on your true message. They stop or slow down to try to analyze the buzz words. Your goal is to engage the reader and encourage them to read on.

When you incorporate elements into the brochure such as pictures, graphics, charts and quotes, you make the materials come alive for the reader.

Copy Cat Messages

Have you ever seen your competitions brochure and thought you should copy the work to make your own materials more compelling? Guess what, so have a lot of other loan officers. We all do it, using someone else creativity starts us thinking about how we can incorporate their ideas into ours.

But this simple act does the one thing you want to avoid. It makes you seem just like every other guy. In this instance, it is true. You are just like everyone else or at least, the person you used for inspiration.

It may be more challenging to be unique, but that is what will set you apart in a field crowded with loan officers.

A good brochure is a lot like a favorite movie. It has a storyline that keeps the reader going. It shapes perception and makes the reader think. Just as important, it makes you memorable. It will not be long before you stand out from the crowd with your loan officer marketing brochure.

Jeff Nelson helps loan officers increase loan originations by attracting quality relationships with real estate agents from the development of customized relationship-building strategies.

Click here to get a free copy of the Marketing Planning Guide, a 20-page workbook designed to help you outline a strategy to become an Agent Magnet.

Visit us at http://www.loan-officer-marketing.com

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