Origination Fundamentals

Technology seems to have driven a wedge between people and their ability to interact. Face-to-face meetings and sales visits, once a staple of our profession, have been replaced by phone calls. The phone calls we used to make are now e-mails, and e-mails have evolved into text messages. It seems as we become more socially networked we are less "social" than ever before. A few days ago I conducted a workshop entitled "Relationship Selling" with 26 mortgage loan officers. Their year-to-date results ran the gamut from a couple of multi-million dollar originators to many in the group closing as few as two or three transactions a month. The sales manager invited me in to address their need for better month-to-month results and a push for purchase loan business. As a starting point, I wanted to test how well this group was "connected" to the business opportunities out there. After handing out four colored index cards to each participant (and swearing them to honesty) I asked them to answer four simple questions. Then I collected the cards and we talked about the results. Here's what we found: Question 1: How many face-to-face sales calls and visits have you made on Realtors, builders and other referral partners so far this week? Answers: Since the workshop was on a Friday morning, the group considered the previous four days. The average was zero. Yes, all 26 cards read "zero." Not one of the 26 had been out for a single sales call or client visit all week. Question 2: How many referral client appointments have you arranged for next week? Answers: Three cards said "two," four cards said "one," and the remainder said "zero." Question 3: In the past month, how many community or industry events have you attended? Answers: There were 10 cards which read "one" and 16 cards read "zero." Question 4: What percent of your loan applications are taken face-to-face with your borrowers? Answers: The high card was 90%; the low card was 20%. Some quick number crunching showed the group average right at 50%. The message of this exercise was clear; this group's results were suffering because they had lost the connection between human interaction and business opportunities. "Selling" to them was reading and typing emails and working on loan files. Instead of visiting Realtors, they were e-blasting mortgage market updates. Instead of meeting new borrowers, they were asking people to complete their own application online. Rather than going to a builder association function or community event, they were -- well -- I don't really know what they were doing. One thing was certain: If this group was to improve their production and their purchase loan numbers, they needed to get back on the streets and back in the game of interactive selling -- fast. There's no question that technology is an enabler; it allows us to do business in a faster and more precise way. Technology, however, has also proven to be a hindrance to some. More and more originators are spending more and more time in the office and away from the customers. Some have lost their edge, their presentation skills have grown weak, and their talent for interpersonal communication has rusted. They can text message 100 miles an hour, but they can't carry on an engaging five-minute conversation with another human being. And this isn't a "Gen X" or "Gen Y" problem either. This problem is getting worse with experienced, seasoned loan originators who have chosen not the best way to do business, but the easiest way to do business. An e-mail may be quicker than a phone call, but that doesn't mean it is more effective. Getting better connected doesn't mean throwing your cell phone or laptop or Blackberry in the trash can; it just means using your technology tools to support your sales efforts, not replace them. Alongside all this technology we have in the 21st Century, people are still doing business with other people. Referrals of good lenders are still passed along from friend to friend. Real estate agents continue to entrust their reputations and paychecks to lenders that they trust, like, respect and most importantly, lenders that they know. Borrowers come back to loan officers with whom they feel comfortable. The closer you get to people, the more effectively you can sell them that you are the right solution they are looking for. Yes, even today with all this technology, mortgage loan origination remains a people business. The best place to validate this claim is to look at our industry's top producers. They got to where they are, closing $50 million to $500 million a year, through strong and long relationships with people and by staying closely connected to their borrowers and referral partners. These superstars continue to thrive through good times and slow times as a result of their personal connections. They visit their clients. They meet their borrowers. They get up close and personal with their contacts. Just ask them. They'll tell you that people are the lifeblood of this business and that relationships are everything if you plan to be a success. The "people who know people who know people" have always prospered in this industry, and will continue to do so. Take time now to evaluate your sales efforts and your ability and willingness to stay connected to people. Ask yourself those same four questions I asked that group: Question 1: How many face-to-face sales calls and visits have you made on Realtors, builders and other referral partners so far this week? Question 2: How many referral client appointments have you arranged for next week? Question 3: In the past month, how many community or industry events have you attended? Question 4: What percent of your loan applications are taken face-to-face with your borrowers? If the answers are not what you want, now is the time to make some positive changes in your business strategy and in how you look at your job as a loan originator. Open up more connections and relationships and you'll open up more business opportunities, more contacts, more prospects, more referrals, and more loans.