The world of mortgage broking is a competitive one. Staying ahead of the competition and keeping top of your client’s mind is key to being remembered when it comes time for your prospects to purchase a property.
It’s not enough to only send an email to your customers. You need to get creative and stand out from other mortgage brokers.
When I purchased my first home I became a raving fan of my mortgage broker. I was thrilled that he helped me to simplify the process and get through all of the red tape. Initially, I was going to go directly to my bank. I never knew what a broker did but after being introduced to him and the whole process, I was happy to work with him. And naturally, after having such a positive experience I proceeded to tell everyone I knew about him.
However, after sending him thank you cards, and about 10 referrals I never heard so much as “boo” from him. So after a couple of years of silence, I started to feel like my business, and referrals were not appreciated. Especially because I told so many people about him. It left a bad taste in my mouth when it came to giving more referrals. I started to regret sending so much business his way.
I never got so much as a thank you phone call, or even card at Christmas. I didn’t even get a “congratulations” when I purchased my first home. When we decided to refinance a few years later I chose to use someone else because I wanted to take my business elsewhere, and not feel obligated to work with someone who didn’t appreciate my business.
Here are 3 things that I think mortgage brokers can do to build a better relationship with their customers:
1) Send them a Congratulations when they’ve purchased a home with you.
It will make them feel amazing. As you are the only other person who knows their personal struggles, the details of their finances and many other private things it is a relationship that can be a very long-lasting one if nurtured from the start.
2) Thank them for their business – make your client feel appreciated.
Even if they’ve made a really small purchase, make them feel like they’re a million dollar client, because one day they just might be and you’ll be hoping that they’ll buy that million dollar property with you, not someone else.
3) Thank customers for their referrals.
Just because someone has referred business to you doesn’t mean that you deserve it, and don’t need to be grateful for it. Thank that referee because odds are, they’ll send more referrals to you if they feel like you appreciate them. Send them gift cards, brownies, cookies, send them anything so that they WANT to send you more referrals. You’d be crazy not to!
Relationships are everything in business. Nurture them, and make people feel appreciated. You’ll be happy that you did and so will your customers!