TNR - February 2011

Issue 043

February 2011

TheNicheReport.com

Internet Mortgage LeadsA revolution that needs a solution.

10 Bringing Up The RearTom Deutsch, Executive Director, American Securitization Forum.

543020 Tips for Originators to Generate More Leads

FEATURE ARTICLE! Wall Street Reform and Protection ActTitle X: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

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6 February 2011

NICHE REPORTSCONTENTS Issue 043 February 2011

FOUNDER & PRESIDENT Robert Pegg [email protected]

CO-FOUNDER & PRESIDENT David Pegg [email protected]

MANAGING EDITOR Stewart Mednick [email protected]

EDITORIAL / CONTENT MANAGER Kristen Moser [email protected]

ACCOUNTING MANAGER Shawna Ingram [email protected]

ADvERTISING DIRECTOR Jessica Grizzle [email protected]

ADvERTISING SALES Heather Bopp [email protected]

PRODUCTION MANAGER Henry Suchman [email protected]

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Dawn Exner [email protected]

COLUMNISTS & CONTRIbUTING AUTHORS Martin Andelman LaKrishia Armour Justine Assal Cathy Blaszyk Tim Davis Karen Deis Rocky Foroutan Peter Hébert Bill McKnight Stewart Mednick Rick Roque

Internet Mortgage LeadsROCky FOROUTANCeO, Lender411

A revolution that needs a solution.

10

Take My LeadJUSTINE ASSALCertified MOrtgage COnsuLtant

16

Tips for Originators to Generate More LeadsCATHy bLASzykViCe President Of Lender serViCesCLOsingCOrP

30

Seven New Ideas for Winning Agent ReferralsLakRISHIA ARMOURMarketing COntent sPeCiaLista La MOde

34

Characteristics of Top Producing Loan OfficersTIM DAvISMOrtgage Marketing and saLes COaChWhere do you stand?

14 DEPARTMENTS

09 EDITOR'S FORwARD

41 APPRAISER SOUND OFF

37 TECHSPOT

43 wHAT'S yOUR MORTGAGE IQ?

54 bRINGING UP THE REAR

50 LENDER & RESOURCE DIRECTORy

AGENCy & FHA pg 45

HARD MONEy & NON-PRIME pg 45

COMMERCIAL pg 46

CONSTRUCTION pg 46

JUMbO pg 46

SERvICE PROvIDERS pg 47

20 Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection ActTitle X: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

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CommunityMarketingLeads

If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.

This seems to be a saying that has held much merit over the years. In today’s economic envi-ronment, it seems to have some relevance as well. However, I want to put a bit of a different spin on this mindset. When I was in the Navy, I served under an officer that had an “open-door” policy. Basically, if you wanted to ask, tell, or otherwise speak to him, just knock on the door. I did that once. The first time I did, I had a complaint about an operational procedure. The complaint was well received by the officer. Instead of praise or validation, I was rebutted with a statement that blind-sided me.

“So, Petty Officer Mednick, what is your suggested remedy to the problem?” “Sir?”“Are you suggesting that you can just come into my office with a problem and expect me to remedy it for you or anyone else? I should allocate resources to perform a task that you are already well-versed and knowledgeable and you can just as easily provide a recommendation or action plan?”“I just wanted to bring it to your attention, Sir.” “Well, you have, now bring to my attention a plan of action to resolve this issue. And moving forward, don’t ever come to me with a problem unless you have also a recommended solution….”

Wow. A life lesson learned. So, to this day, should an issue in life ever cross my path that I feel warrants resolution, I will have a suggestion for resolution to follow. Now, The Niche Report receives many letters from the readership, and many are complaints about a myriad of things in the national spotlight, local to the reader, articles in the magazine, etc.

Here is my challenge for all you wonderful readers for 2011: complain ‘til your heart is content, then suggest a solution. In any facet of your life, whether it is business, raising the kids, or talking to the significant other, suggest a solution to a problem about which you initiated the conversation. You may find a new perspective to the problem when you attempt to figure out a solution.

And that is what this issue is about: solutions. The theme for this month is lead generation, but that is a solution to the problem of lack of business, right? Rocky Foroutan is the CEO of Lender411.com and has a fine article about solutions to generating great internet leads. Bill McKnight writes an excellent column about the problems with the new appraisal laws and how his ethics may be a solution. Tim Davis offers seven characteristics of a top performing loan officer as a solution to poor performance. Peter Hebert continues his exploration into Wall Street reform as a solution to the debacle of the last three years. Lead generation, technology, and the new laws are also topics of articles by our usual suspects of columnists and columns. So roll up your sleeves and let’s get cracking!

Cheers!

Stewart MednickManaging Editor

EDITOR'S FORwARD

9TheNicheReport.com

MEMBEROfficial

10 February 2011

Leads are the life blood of the mortgage industry. We all know it. Leads are what

facilitate the connection between bor-rowers and lenders, and without the right information, you have got noth-ing… a few word-of-mouth referrals, maybe, but no dependable flow of fresh business.

In my years as an internet marketer, I have seen a massive shift occur in the way prospecting is pursued in the mortgage industry. Postcards and cold calls were the name of the game twenty years ago, but these tools do not cut it on their own anymore. A full 85 percent of mortgage originations start with an internet search; with a borrower shopping online for the right mortgage. Marketers have spent the last decade and a half developing websites and online tools to enable consumers to match with lenders on the web. This was the genesis of the internet lead industry, and today, internet leads have become a standard asset; a necessary part of any lender’s marketing arsenal.

However, as internet leads grew in popularity, more and more marketing companies tried to dip into the pot. As is the case in every rapidly growing market, fly-by-night operations spurred up, trying to take advantage of this increasing demand and started focusing on one thing only: generating more and more revenue. In some cases, it was no longer about connecting borrowers with the right

lenders. Dubious practices artificially inflated the lead pool with phony information and scammers, and good leads were oversold. Lead quality, overall, plummeted.

I talk to a lot of mortgage professionals in my line of work, and I hear much the same story from a lot of them, “Internet leads are a waste of time,” they say. “Internet leads are spam. They don’t convert.” I have come across three recurring reasons for the majority of this skepticism.

• Greedyvendors.Leadsaresoldtoomanytimes.By the time you, the lender, contacts the lead, fifteen other lenders have already called.

• Poorquality.Consumersareincentedtofillout lead forms for all kinds of silly reasons (e.g. contests, sweepstakes, ...) and in some cases the forms have nothing to do with mortgages.

• Iftheleadhasdisconnectedhisorherphonebythetime you call or has given false information out of suspicion—which is well warranted these days—refund is unlikely from the company you bought the lead.

I spent some time working with a few of my mortgage friends to brainstorm and develop solutions to each of these problems. The answers we discovered are not necessarily revolutionary or brilliant. They just make sense. And we think they might change the ways leads are bought and sold on the internet.

In order to be effective, leads must be generated and sold through a platform built on three principles—transparency, quality, and support.

by ROCky FOROUTAN

INTERNET MORTGAGE LEADS A Revolution that Needs a Solution

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TNR - February 2011

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