“I would never stoop so low as to spy on my competition,” one loan officer said to me recently. Why not? Don’t think for a minute that they don’t know what you are up to.
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Yeah, you might hear comments about your competition from the real estate agents you work with. Your clients might reveal a thing or two about their encounter with “the other loan officer down the street." But how can you ever know what your competition is really doing, unless you do your own research.
Many loan officers miss this critical step—especially when launching a new marketing campaign. Some assume they know what’s going on with their competitors. Others just take someone else’s word for it.
The first step in launching a successful campaign or improve your selling skills, is to find out exactly how you stack up against your competition.
Here are seven ways to do your research so you are never blind-sided again.
1. Ask for something. Call them on the phone. Ask for a good faith estimate. Ask them to explain a loan program. Ask for a copy of their free report to be sent to you. Take note of what they say, how they say it, how long it took you to get what you requested. How they follow up. Compare it to your own process and learn how you can improve your own business.
2. Visit your competition. Send a trusted “friend” to visit your competitor. Provide them with a series of questions you would like to have answers to. Ask them to take notes during their meeting. Visit their website and take notes on every single detail that is better than yours. Remember, it’s the little details that win prospects over to doing business with you.
3. Phone your competition. Listen intently to the attitude and personality of the person who answers the phone. How long were you on hold. What did their “on hold” message say? How long did it take to get you transferred to the right person?
4. Compare everything. Compare your service, rates, programs, brochures, website, people, and personality, follow up, signs, business cards, scripts, quick response times and attitude to you and your internal operation. Determine where you are superior and which areas need work.
5. Buy something. No, I don’t mean a house or a mortgage. If your competition is publicly traded, buy one share of stock. I had Countrywide, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and other mortgage company stocks (yes I sold way before the meltdown) so I could get quarterly updates and a copy of their annual reports to see which direction the company way headed.
6. Spy on yourself. Again, ask a “co-spy” to call your office, ask for information, ask for something to be sent in them mail. Ask them to take notes about their experience with you and your company. Don’t become defensive if they point out problems with your operation. Thank them and make the improvements.
7. Do your research on a regular basis. Continue your research on a regular basis. If they are truly your competition, they have the same goals as you—to up-grade and modify their business plans; to provide a better experience for their prospects and clients.
Just think about the research steps mentioned above. Unless want to remain oblivious to what’s going on in your neck of the wood, this process is one of the things you must do to insure continuous, self-improvement.
