The point of marketing is to build trust with potential clients so that they do business with you. That is rather obvious.
And trust is one of the major issues that mortgage originators need to confront. In fact, Debra Still, the new chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association said at the group’s annual convention in Chicago that the industry needs to
Randall Craig, a social media marketing expert and president of Pinetree Advisors in Toronto, said there is a “trust hierarchy of marketing strategies. The higher the trust, the more likely they will transact."
At this point, he introduces the concept of content marketing.
He explained content marketing should rank high as a priority of investment. There are four assumptions the marketer needs to keep in mind when using this method:
1) The content holds value in the eye of the reader. If not, it can have the opposite effect.
2) Demonstrating expertise is more powerful than claiming it.
3) Making it available for free–and particularly by encouraging propagation on the social web–will reach more prospects.
4) Trust will increase as more content is consumed, eventually leading to a transaction or a referral.
Craig’s examples of content marketing include certain types of blog posts, white papers, how-to videos, and books.
He added an important benefit of content marketing is that each piece of content, once created, has an incredibly long shelf life. The cumulative impact grows exponentially over time, and can become a strategic differentiator.
"If you want people to think that you or your organization is great, then show it—don't just tell people how great you are,” said Craig.
