Developing a System to track Mortgage Leads
“Timing is everything.” That phrase applies to many fields, including mortgage leads. Mortgage professionals will act on leads at the earliest opportunity, whether those leads are generated in-house or purchased from an outside mortgage lead supplier.
However, leads don’t always pay dividends on the first contact. A significant part of your sales depends on the effectiveness of your follow-up strategy in terms of both tracking and nurturing. Without a solid, well-developed, nurturing strategy, you won’t be there at the right time — when the borrower is ready to make a move – and potentially useful leads will wither away or gravitate towards competitors.
Follow-Ups Lead to Sales
Studies have shown that proper follow-up techniques lead to increased sales. A multi-pronged strategy with both follow-up calls and e-mails typically produces results – but only if applied promptly and with the right frequency. You must maintain a delicate balance. Delay your follow-up too long and you may lose a potential lead; follow-up too frequently and potential leads may become annoyed and look elsewhere.
In tough times and competitive markets, your follow-up strategy becomes even more crucial. Fewer mortgage lenders are willing to give up on leads, and more lenders may try to encroach on your leads – especially if you have purchased non-exclusive leads from a mortgage lead supplier.
Have a System, Check It Periodically
How do you decide when to follow up on your mortgage leads? Gut instinct may work for a few very talented people, but the rest of us need a system. Without a mortgage sales process to guide and track follow-up procedures and times, you might as well be flipping a coin or using a dartboard.
Categorize your mortgage leads in order of importance, and set up your rules for the initial call, how long to wait for follow-up contact, and how many contacts you make. After some time, analyze your success rate and all feedback that you receive, from both successful and failed attempts – and then make adjustments based on that feedback.
Be metrics-driven. Learn the industry standards, set KPIs, and then do what you can to achieve them. Even when you hit your goals, there’s always room for improvement. Give yourself increasing goals. There’s no room for complacency in sales.
Decide what to do with cold leads as well. How often do you reach back to investigate them, and how do you decide which ones to revisit? Different systems may work for different situations, so it’s important to find the one that works for your mortgage business.
Be on the Same Page
For smaller lenders, it’s fairly simple to assess the success of a follow-up strategy and make adjustments. Larger organizations with more layers of management may have difficulty making changes – or establishing a functioning lead follow-up system in the first place.
It’s important that sales and marketing efforts are coordinated, and that management understands the follow-up system, believes in it – and enforces it whenever necessary. Effective communication is just as important within your organization as it is between you and your leads.
Learn and Adapt
Every mortgage lead has potential. Don’t squander that potential through a poor follow-up strategy. If you find that your current strategy is not producing the desired results, don’t be afraid to make adjustments. In the mortgage business, just like most aspects of life, it’s acceptable to make mistakes – but it’s unacceptable not to learn from them.
Even when you succeed, think about maintaining their business after you close. In sales, you’re ultimately inspiring a person to make a move or change. You’re influencing a person to make the best decision to solve a problem or fulfill a need. Be that person for them. And if you can — and more than just once — they’ll stay loyal to you.
