I know a lot of people blog out there.  Heck, if you're reading this, chances are you're doing some sort of blogging. 

If you're in the mortgage business and you're blogging, chances are you're attempting to get business from it, which is great!

Join me as I interview my very special guest, the world renowned WordPress Wizard, Cathy Perkins.

We'll be discussing Blogging with WordPress in a Web 2.0 World.  You won't wanna miss this one!

I will tell you this much, it will NOT be focused on the mortgage business, but blogging in general, for just about any kind of business.  Hey, it's a free teleseminar, why not learn how to do it from one of the best?

It all happens Tues August 19th at 9:00 est. Here's the link:

http://www.instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=3958194

Mark your calendars as this is gonna be HUGE!

I recently got an email from a person saying their biggest fear is being rejected. 

Now, what I'll write about today may shock some of you because it may be a bit contradictory from what I've previously wrote.  BUT, I'll ask you to stick with it till the end before you make a judgment.  

I've always said that your biggest job as a Loan Officer is not to sell the mortgage product, but to sell YOU.  Your clients are already coming to you to get what you're selling (a mortgage), you just need to sell you to the clients. 

So, that being said, when someone tells you "no", there may be a self esteem issue going on.   

Traditionally, folks will tell you that when someone is saying "no", they are not directing that to you, it's the product or the "opportunity".   I'm here to tell you, in the mortgage business, they are saying "no" to you.

Now, don't freak out, you need to understand this concept before you get bent out of shape.  

In this business, everyone sells the same type of products, mortgages!  Some Loan Officers claim they have lower rates than the others, some claim they have lower closing costs than the others.  We all have our opinions whether this is true or not, so that issue will not be discussed. 

If everyone has, basically, the same "stuff" to market, what else is there?  It's the company your work for or it's you.   Using that logic, it's safe to say that yes, YOU are being rejected when someone says "no" to you.  

Instead of having the "oh woe is me" feeling, you need to develop the "who's next" attitude. 

Think of it this way, have you ever went to a store to buy something and the feeling you had wasn't exactly positive?   Then you went to another store to buy the exact same thing and it "felt right"?  Believe it or not, everyone has experience that feeling at least once in their life and that could be what went on in your situation. 

The bottom line is, you can't please everyone all the time, so don't feel like you have to.  Just because someone doesn't get a mortgage from you shouldn't get you down.  At least you know your marketing efforts worked because that person came to you.   Feel good about that because now you know you can attract folks, which is what we're wanting to do to begin with.  Eventually, you'll attract the right folks and your business will grow.

Mortgage Mailbag subscriber Doug's biggest fear is finding loans that will close!

Doug, when I read this comment, the one thing that stands out in my mind is that you're throwing a
blanket over the entire borrowing world and hoping to get someone caught in your net and then hope
they qualify for any program you offer.

That's fine, if you understand that's what you're doing.  I believe if you target a particular
market, the chances of getting more closeable deals will be greater in the long run.

If you want to be all things to everyone, then you have to accept that you'll lose potential borrowers because they won't pay attention to your advertising, whatever that would be.

Let me explain, when you hear ads saying "we're the cheapest" or "we have the lowest closing cost"
over and over, they tend to run together and not one really stands out, right? 

The same goes for when you are asking for referrals.  Most Loan Officers say "If you know anyone looking for a mortgage, send them my way."  That usually doesn't register with the person you're talking to
right away because it's not specific enough.

But, if you say something like, "I'm doing a program with people that drive BMW's.  Do you know of anyone that may fit that category?"  All the sudden, that person can focus better as to what you're target audience is, so you're more likely to get some kind of response, as long as you have a good
report going with that person to begin with?

Make sense? 

If you're in a slump, do something completely out of the ordinary and see what you come up. 
Targeting a specific group just might do the trick!

Just something to think about.

A loan officer who assumes eveyone wants a 30 year fixed mortgage won't last long in the mortgage business.   Is a 30 year fixed the most popular loan out there right now?  I don't know the exact figures, but I would imagine it's up near the top.

My point is, why does every LO feel that quoting the rates for a 30 year is what every borrower is looking for?  Because it's the way we were first trained.  I'm here to tell you to STOP THINKING THAT WAY! 

Is it easier to quote a 30 year mortgage rate and move on to the next borrower?  Sure it is, that's exactly what a lot of Loan Officers in the last several years thought as well, but where are they now?   I'm not saying that was the cause of the current mortgage situation, but I am saying that if you a Mortgage Professional don't learn how to ask the proper questions to your borrowers to begin with, you value in this business isn't that great and you could be replaced fairly quickly.  Is that what you want?  

Have you ever asked a borrower what's the purposed of the refinance?  What about this, "What's more important to you, rate or payment?"   Few Loan Officers ask their borrowers how long they plan on staying in their home.

Do you think any of these questions would help conclude which type of mortgage product is better suited for the borrower?  Oh, you can still offer a 30 year mortgage, it's always available, but why only offer one product?  If the answers to the above questions merrit other mortgage product options, why not present those options?  

So what if the borrower doesn't take the options, that's not your decision anyway.  BUT, it does make the borrowers perception of you greater because instead of just quoting a rate and moving one, you cared about them and what they wanted.   Which is always good for future referals.  

Have you ever or are you currently sending some sort of mailing to your past clients?  I know some Mortgage folks that send out a quarterly newsletter.  It's all printed up and glossy and has several pages of mortgage stuff on it.

I'm going to give you something to think about when it comes to this kind of mailing.  First, I want to make something perfectly clear, I have NO PROBLEM with sending this kind of newsletter.  It serves it's purpose, it's good to do.  If you're currently doing it, keep it up!

BUT, let me ask you this, how affective do you think it is?  How many people do you feel read all the mortgage stuff on the newsletter?  Does this newslettercontain something of "interest" for your readers?  Such as recipes, home owner tips, ect?   Most every newsletter of this kind does contains a "special section" for non mortgage items. 

I'm told the reason for including these items is because people like this sort of stuff.  It gets their attention.  So that brings me to this...

If you feel you need to add something non-mortgage related to your newsletter to get people's attention, why not do mini version of your news letter on amonthly basis without all the mortgage stuff?

If you can physically "touch" your past clients on a monthly basis with something interesting, do you think the likelihood of them remembering you would bebetter or worse?  The purpose of the quarterly newsletter of to keep your name in front of people, right?  Why not do it every month?  Just a one page note, memo, or letter with something interesting written.  Maybe chronicle you and your family's life.  Talk about your kids, your hobby, your favorite restaurant...anything.  

The point is, give people a reason to open the letter (notice I didn't say email), give them something physical to touch and remember you by.  The more they remember you for being a PERSON and a FRIEND, the better the chances of them referring you to someone, which is the purpose of the whole newsletter thing to begin with, right?

If you were doing business with someone for a financial transaction as important as a mortgage, wouldn't you want the person you're dealing with to have some sort of pride in how he/she presents himself/herself in public?  

My belief is if a person doesn't have pride in themselves in public, what kind of job will they do for me in private?  Now, I'm sure there are people in the world that have no pride in themselves what so ever and do excellent work. I can think of a carpenter who did work for my parents.  The way he presented himself was hideous, but the work he did I would match against anyone in the country.  Matter of fact, my mother wouldn't let the guy in the house the first time she saw him at her door.  That's how unimpressed she was with him. 

My point..just think of how much more business this guy could possibly have if he didn't turn so many people off with the way he carried himself around town?

I'm saying the same thing to you.  Have pride in yourself.  No, don't go walking around in a 3 piece suit everyday.  (I go out all the time in jeans and nice shirt and cowboy boots and I feel great about it) No, don't go buy a fancy new sports car and drive around.   But do present yourself in a positive and professional manner. 

If you're in an area where you can possibly run into your past and present clients, be presentable.  Think of it as if you were talking to a current client and a friend of theirs came up to you and got introduced.  Do you think it would be to your benefit if after you walked away your client had to say "you could never tell by the way he's dressed or by the shape of his car, but that guy does great work."

Sure, you get a good review for your work, but why would a client have to "explain" your appearance?  Maybe this example is extreme, but I'm sure you get my point.

Here's a test, if you go to the mall parking lot and your car isn't as clean as 50% of the other cars, go wash the darn thing.   If you're out in public and feel you have to change cloths to visit your lawyer's office, maybe you shouldn't be wearing what you're wearing in public. 

 Are you feeling me here?  Have pride in yourself.  You're in business, a legitimate professional, cut throat business.  The little bit of pride in the way you present yourself may be the advantage you need to gain a few extra closing per year. 

 Just something to think about.

OK, time for you to get your thinking caps on.  I'll present a question that may seem like a simple answer at first, but there is a LOT deeper meaning in the long run.  Will it help you with your business?  Only you can decided, but it will give you a better understanding of the mindset of different people and then maybe you can have a better understanding as to how to deal with it.

What is the ONE thing that EVERY car has in common after it's driven off the lot?  Chances are that car lost value.  People accept it because they didn't buy the car to be an investment.  {Yes, some people do, but we're talking generalities}

Now let's look at the Real Estate market.   Why do most people buy a house?  To live in, right?  These folks also wants their house value to go up every year (who doesn't) and if it doesn't, they get upset....but they still live in the house!  The point, if the person plans on living in the house, they shouldn't get upset if it goes down in value.  If they aren't selling it, they haven't "lost" anything.  If they continue to live in that house, is it safe to assume their "loss" is less and less as time goes on?  Unlike a car, a house always has the potential of going back up in value.  

{note: we are NOT talking about investors, we are talking about the average home buyer}

That same person who has no problem buying a new car every 3 years and KNOWS it loses value as soon as they drive it off the lot could be the same person that loses sleep because their house hasn't gained value, even though they have no intention of selling it.

My point: Loan Officers need to understand the mindset of "my house lost money", because they can then relate more to the mindset and therefore look more like the expert when talking to the borrower. Relay to your borrower that their house is for enjoyment and living at the present moment so focus on that.  Make them feel good about buying or refinancing, if you can master this, you're WAY ahead of the competition

A big Loan Officer concern is "Lack Of Production"

At some point in time, this is something most of us have to come to grips with in our careers, where is our next application coming from.

There are two methods of thought for this concern:
1) keep doing what you're doing, it will eventually work out.
2) What you're doing isn't working, go do something different

Each of these thoughts has their good side and their bad side.  The neat part is, one question can be asked of both of these thought processes:  "When do I know when to stop one and go to the other?"

That's a question that can only be answered by you.  See, if you've applied the same principles to one of those thought processes for an extended period of time and the results aren't coming, then it may be a good idea to go to the other.  If you've been doing the same thing over and over and no results, maybe it's time to switch up.  If you've been doing something different every week, maybe you should stop and keep doing one thing for several weeks.  OR, do a combination of both! 

You should NEVER only have one marketing method working for you, it should be multiple methods.  With that, then you can test the various methods and see which one brings in the most business.  If nothing is brining in business, than guess what....maybe you should go after something different all together.   

Keep track of what you're doing.  What works, what needs some tweaking, what can be refined and you'll see what can come of it.  Just go out there and do something!

I have a question for everyone reading this:  How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?   

Right away you're wondering what  am I talking about.  Well, I was recently listening to a seminar and the speaker asked that question?  Actually, it was quite an informative seminar, a lot of good stuff.

The premise of this seminar was how we, as a society, seem to complicate things way too much.  That's when I put it together and realized that we, as Mortgage Professionals, have a tendency to over-complicate things as well.  Here's an example...

A borrower comes into an office for an appointment and the LO goes into the whole financial planning seminar, you know the one, where the borrower gets told if they free up this much cash each month they can invest it here or there and become a gazillionare in 3 days.  This is all done before the borrower even says what they are wanting to do with their current mortgage situation! 

You may be chuckling, but I've seen it done and believe me, it ain't pretty. 

If we can somehow learn to keep things simple, this place we call the mortgage world may just get a bit easier for us all. 

Learn to find out what your borrowers wants to do or what they are looking for.  After that has been cleared up, then go into a presentation of whatever you would like AS LONG as it fits into their plan as well.   Yes, we are the leaders in the borrower/broker scenario, but we also want to make sure we come across as a person who listens to what they want. 

More often than not, if we listen to what's being asked of us, keeping our presentations about mortgage stuff simple is all it will take to get the sale. Don't over-complicate things and you'll see how much easier this business can be.

Now back to the original question, How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?  (Remember, this is an exercise in keeping things simple) 

The answer:  Just open the refrigerator door and put the giraffe in.  

See, simple!

One of the biggest fears of a Loan Officer is not know what they are doing.  This is really nothing new.  Anyone who's ever been in the mortgage business had a time where they didn't know what they were doing.  The important thing is to keep doing SOMETHING!  Whether you feel it's right or not, keep doing something.

Why is this?  Because it's the only way you'll ever get anything done.  If you're constantly doing something, your Inner Game "persona" is constantly analyzing what you're doing. It doesn't know if it's right or wrong, it's just analyzing.

Now to get a bit in depth with this Inner Game concept and how a basic understanding can give you a better feeling about "not knowing what to do".  Look at it as two different parts inside of you: 

Part 1 is knowing what you want the outcome to be.  

Part 2 is analyzing what you're doing to achieve the results from Part 1. 

To make a LONG explanation short, Part 2 wants Part 1 to succeed so doing what needs to be done to achieve Part 1's outcome is the ONLY job Part 2 has.  

So, it's constantly analyzing what's being done and will constantly morph itself to achieve success.  The only way it can do it is if YOU ARE DOING SOMETHING!Bottom line, not knowing what you're doing is a great thing as long as you do something.  

Don't let the not knowing discourage you.  Keep up the great work!

Bonus:  Think of it like this; Don't think, just do.