Real estate prices remain ridiculously high in much of the country, 
and that might increase the appeal of a two-for-one deal offered by Deborah Hale. She's asking $600,00 for her house in a trendy part of Denver. Deborah Hale says if the buyer is a compatible man, she comes along with the house. Of course, $600,000 is a lot of money. 
So far, Hale says she's had interest from men who say they want her, but not the house.

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7 Ways To Generate More Leads

To be a successful mortgage originator, you must have client leads. 
No mortgage leads, no business, it’s that simple. You may feel that your job is to close loans, and it is if you have mortgage leads. It may be helpful to think of yourself as a lead generator first and mortgage originator second. Qualified leads are what will help you grow your business and keep you in business.

During the refi boom, most originators had more business than they could handle. The phone rang off the hook and actively cultivating mortgage leads wasn’t required. With the refi boom a distant memory, waiting for the phone to ring is no longer an option.

Use the following techniques to fill your pipeline with qualified leads:

1. Set a “loans closed” goal to determine the number of leads you need to generate. If you want to close 50 loans a year (a modest number), you need to average 4 closings a month. The number of mortgage leads you need to generate depends on the following - the lead quality and your conversion to sale ability. If your lead is of reasonable quality, you can expect to convert at least 2 of every 12 leads into a sale. That means you need at least 24 leads a month to close 4 loans. The 12:2 ratio is based on a database size of 300 and is your warm list. This is your referrals and repeat business list. Your conversion rate may vary depending on your database size, experience and sales ability. To help you market more effectively, track your mortgage leads and identify where the lead came from. By doing this you will be able to determine which marketing tactics are the most dollar productive.
   
2. Know your profession. This seems obvious. But, knowing your profession is about more than just knowing loan programs. The mortgage profession is complex and constantly changing. Knowledge of industry trends, acting as a trusted advisor and sales ability is required. Converting leads into sales requires a good foundation in sales techniques. It won’t matter how many leads you get if you can’t convert them into closed loans.
   
3. Identify and construct your databases. To generate a large quantity of mortgage leads, you will likely want to market to different target markets. These markets can include:
   
   • Warm list (personal sphere) - friends, family and past clients. This group will provide you referrals (if you ask) and repeat business. To receive referrals from this group stay in contact on a frequent and consistent basis.
   • Cold list - geographic or demographic farm. This group will provide leads once they get to know you, which takes time (12-36 months). To build trust with this group contact them at regular intervals and provide something of value such as an informative brochure, educational seminar, useful homeowner tips etc.
   • Professionals list - Realtors, CPAs, insurance agents, and builders. To obtain referrals from this group offer something that will assist them in building their business. This may be in the form of referrals or some value-added service you can offer. For example, you may conduct training seminars and invite one or more professionals to co-present with you. This gives them the opportunity to meet potential clients and add these prospects to their database.
   • Your databases are the gold in your business. It is important to keep it up to date so that you have a powerful referral and repeat business generator. The number of closed loans you generate is in direct proportion to the size and quality of your databases.
   • Choose how you want to contact your warm, cold and professionals list. Although you may choose different marketing methods for each list type, some methods work for all contacts. Common marketing methods include: Newsletter, Email, Imprinted give-aways, Letters, Postcards, Seminars and Personal Brochures In addition to the common methods listed, you may choose to use some of the database specific marketing ideas provided below.
     • Warm list marketing ideas - phone calls, handwritten notes, lunches and parties. Because this group knows you, plan on contacting them 24 or more times a year. By contacting this group on a frequent and consistent basis, you are keeping your name fresh in their minds. When they are asked if they know of a mortgage consultant, your name will be top of mind.
     • Cold list marketing ideas - shopping cart ads, bus bench ads, newspaper ads and providing housing and financial information. Because this group doesn’t know you, plan to consistently contact them and provide something of value. Contact this group at least 12 times a year. For every 50 people you market to each month for 12 months, you can reasonably expect to generate one sale. If you plan to generate 50 sales from this group, you need to market to approximately 2,500 people. If you cannot afford to market to this large a group, reduce the size of your target. This will also reduce the number of leads you can expect to generate.
     • Professional list marketing ideas - leads, phone calls, open houses, trade shows and co-presenting seminar opportunities. Just as you are in the business of generating leads, so are these professionals. Use some of these ideas to generate leads:
       • Present seminars on a regular basis. Invite one or more professionals with whom you want to do business to co-present with you.
       • Provide mortgage industry news every week.
       • Volunteer to attend open houses with Realtors. Bring treats and your computer. Show prospective buyers how they can afford to purchase this home.
       • “Swap” database lists and co-market to the databases. This increases your exposure and the professional you want to work with.
       • Co-exhibit at trade shows. Most major cities hold a remodeling show, bridal show and home and garden show each year. If marketing to a specific demographic, exhibit at a show that caters to this demographic.
   
   When you decide on what methods to use, follow up systematically to ensure that you achieve your desired results.
   
   
4. Educate, ask for referrals and reward your warm list. 
   Each time you contact your warm list, reiterate that:
   • you’re in the business of loan origination,
   • you’re good at what you do and
   • you prefer to work on a referral basis.
   
   Ask for referrals by requesting that your warm list contacts you if they know of someone who needs your services. When people refer you to someone, reward that behavior immediately. The key to rewarding referrals - reward the referral, not the loan closing. Remember… your warm list’s job is to send referrals, not qualify clients. That’s your job.
    
5. Brand “you” and make yourself known in the community. 
   All of your marketing materials must have a consistent look and feel. Include your photo with all marketing pieces - you want people to be able to recognize you, and it always helps to put a name with a face. Include your email, web address and direct phone number on all marketing materials.
   
   When marketing to a farm, be visible in the community. Sponsor a youth athletic team, present talks at local civic group luncheons, join the local chamber of commerce or advertise in the community newspaper.
   
6. Be systematic. To generate a high quantity of leads, you will enjoy the greatest response if you have a plan and are systematic in the way you execute that plan. For example, when working a farm, choose a direct mail piece that has 12 cards. Get set up on an automatic mailing program so that these pieces go out the same time each month and you do nothing. To maintain consistent and frequent contact with your warm list, block time out in your daily planner and identify the type of contact you will be making. Then, complete that contact task each and every time. A consistent and systematic approach will result in more leads and more closed loans.

Most originators tend to market heavily for a short time to increase business. Marketing is then halted to handle the resulting business increase. When business slows marketing is started again only to halt when business increases. Sound familiar? This roller coaster ride creates the “rich man, poor man” effect and the crazy busy, bored silly phenomenon that many originators experience. To break the roller coaster ride effect, create a plan. Choose both high touch and high tech marketing pieces. Determine which marketing pieces can be automated so that you don’t have to do all the work yourself. Carve out time each week and devote yourself to the business of generating leads. It takes discipline and time to generate leads. With a plan in place and the willingness to do the work, you can build your business and be successful no matter the market.

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