Another branch manager that I hadn’t seen or spoke to in a few years called me up the other day.

“Carl, who turned off the “more loans” switch?” he asked me in a panic.

First of all, we have to have clarity of the current situation.  Here’s the truth:

2022 is expected to be the best year ever for purchase mortgage business.

Yepper, you heard that right… 2022 the purchase business is expected to be $1.739 TRILLION.  Just for comparison, 2021 was $1.646 Trillion in purchase mortgage business (2^nd only to this year’s projections).

So what in the heck is everybody worried about?  This is going to be the best year EVER for purchase mortgage business (just in case you forgot I said that just 1 minute ago).

Ahhhhhhh, oh, I see, some LOs haven’t been doing our referral partner marketing as part of their weekly routine.

Ok, here’s the thing, It’s not your fault, I see this kind of thing all the time.  Many of our mentors just shared what worked for them way back, and it did work for them way back.

No big deal, it’s going to be ok, we just need to map out how to get agents to refer to us, and it’s not buying Zillow or online leads and dumping those things that will never close on their desk like a pile of rotting fish.

The reason I focus on referral partner marketing is the CLV (client lifetime value) is soooo much higher with them.  You see, with each dollar invested and with each hour invested, the return on investment is so much higher with referral partners than consumer direct.

Focusing on “consumer direct” is like trying to fill an empty lake by buying buckets of water.  It would cost a fortune and likely evaporate faster than you could fill it that way.

If we want to fill a lake, we need to dig a well, and then run a hose from that well to the lake.  In short order, we will be ready to enjoy the fruits of our smart (and wayyyy easier) activity.

While I do some consumer direct, for market research purposes for ongoing loan officer training that I offer and for research for my own mortgage branch, I can tell you that the referral partner marketing is what has made my branch one of the most successful in the entire United States industry… and without overly exerting myself.

So that’s where you and I together want to spend the majority of our time.  When we do, all the stress of “what am I going to do” all goes away. ☺

As the famous hockey player said, “Go to where the hockey puck is going, not where it’s currently at..”

It’s a purchase game, and the next two years are slated to be the best purchase market ever, let’s just go there together. ☺

Focus on referral partner marketing and the good news is, we just have to put into place a simple, easy to implement, predictable process to make that happen.

Talk soon.

Carl White

There’s an old saying, “When the tide goes out, we can see who has been swimming naked”. 

What that means is, when business goes from having a tailwind of 50mph and loans come in from friends and family members like seagulls going after French fries on the beach, and that changes…

… well, we find out who has been working a PROVEN & SERIOUS business plan, and who has been, well, swimming naked. 

Definition of “swimming naked”: Working on activities, strategies, plans, or shenanigans that aren’t proven, not tested, no real measurable results, and often suggested by somebody that is either a low producer, or even some that have no actual loan experience at all… resulting in the loan officer worried about how much their commission checks have decreased.

..and understand, it’s not the LOs fault that they have been lulled into these “no real results” and “struggle bunny” activities.  Oftentimes it’s just a simple matter of trusting advice from somebody that is just simply giving bad advice.

Lord knows I’ve been prey to people giving bad advice in the past too.

So here’s the thing, in this changing market, we have to make sure that each activity that we do, each dollar that we invest, goes towards something that will actually help us close more loans… to get actual measurable results.

That’s always been the case, but when the market changes, well, that’s when we can see who’s been swimming naked.

Truth be known, we really haven’t changed our “loan getting” activities in my mortgage branch from last year to this year.

Our prospecting strategies, the Daily Success Plan, gave us record breaking loans closings per month (measured in the hundreds per month) last year, and those same activities continue to bring us in hundreds and hundreds of REFERRED leads each month this year, along with hundreds of actual loan closings.

It’s really interesting, when I talk to LOs across the country.  They are seeing the same results too.  Those that work the Success Plan, well, seems they are doing very well.

Those that haven’t made the pivot, well, it’s going to be a very hard time.  

Business advice alert:  Don’t be one of the ones that haven’t made the pivot..

Focus on the activities that are 

1. Taught by people actually in the mortgage business

2. Proven by actual loan officers and / or branch managers

3. Measurable in actual closed loans via REFERRED leads

Oh, and don’t be caught swimming naked next time… 😉

Want to see my Daily Success Plan, go here and I’ll hook you up.

I’ve shown literally thousands of LOs across the country how to get loans from it, it’s your turn now 

See ya in the inside,

Carl White

I just heard some breaking news from Fannie Mae that may be fantastic news for those of us that don’t work for the 3 “Big Banks”.

Watch quick recording here

I normally don’t talk so much about rates, because I have found with the right strategies and conversations, my success or lack thereof is not dependent on what “the market” is doing… my actions (or lack of action) is what dictates my volume.

However, when Kevin Gillespie gave me this breaking news, I hit the recorder so I could share with you this morning.

It could be good news… very good news.
For more strategies, set up a totally free coaching call here.

Carl White

This one simple little form has produced me and other LOs that I’ve shared it with, pages and pages of referred leads (you know the kind that actually close) all for free.

Just Go Here and you can have instant access to it, no charge, no opt-in and you have my full permission to swipe and deploy.  Just take my name and company off and put yours on.

It’s pretty self-explanatory.  If you have any questions, just reply to this email and let me know.

Just put your info in every place that has the yellow highlight thingy.
I’ve also used this simple little golden nugget to start getting referrals from agents that I previously didn’t know.

I think the reason it works so well is its simplicity and virtually zero effort for either you or the agent to make it work.

Simply tell the agent that they will drastically increase their buyers and listings that convert to clients when both them and you are calling their leads.

The best part is, the leads are actually expecting you to call.  So, when I first started in the mortgage business, this really helped me with the call reluctance thing (yep, I deal with that too), and connect up with referring agents that I didn’t know the week before.

When I first started doing this, around 20 years ago, I would also get the agent to put in their last 90 days of “dropped leads” (leads that they forgot to call or just hadn’t had a chance to get back with). 

That alone was HUGE for me getting my first “15 loans closed this month” somewhere around my 6^th month in the business.  And it just went up higher from there going forward.

Get the lead getting tool here, and if you have any questions, just click here, and we’ll walk you through it, again, no charge or anything uncool like that – at all.

We’ve all got to work together during changing times.  I got your back ☺

Your homie

Carl White

When people struggle with lead conversion, or “closing leads into loans”, it’s often because of one simple mistake…
The loan officer doesn’t actually have a “true” lead.
You see, there is a major difference between an internet “lead” and a true REFERRED lead… Huge difference.

See, 98% of the time (literally), an internet lead that the LO either buys for themselves, or worse, buys and gives to an agent thinking they are “bringing something of value”, they are actually making their life and their agent business worse… worse with useless clutter.

It’s totally not their fault, but…
…Beginning and low producing LOs fall into the trap thinking that in time they will actually convert the internet leads into closings…

But the reality is…
There’s practically nothing you can do to convince anybody of anything… unless they already want it, and 98% of the time, internet leads don’t “want it”.

You can’t wrestle your leads down until they give in, can you?
The only thing you CAN do is to find out who already wants what you have.
In other words…

You can’t turn someone into a 5-star prospect, but you can discover who already IS one.

And you can do this simply by using the following five-step criteria…

Number 1: They’re willing to engage in a dialogue…
Number 2: They’re friendly and cooperative when you talk with them…
Number 3: They know what they want…
Number 4: They know when they want it…
And number 5: They want YOU to help them.

Which is much much much more likely with referred leads than with internet leads.

But here’s the thing…
All five of these steps have to be true in order for you to be working with an ideal client.
You can’t skip ahead. And you can’t artificially speed the process up.
So instead of being focused on short-term results of trying to convert internet leads… 
Think of it as a long-term investment. Something you’re willing to spend your time on…

… Which is getting REFERRED Leads

You patiently educate and motivate prospective referral partners… week after week…
Until they convince themselves that referring to you is the right thing to do.
And make no mistake. It’s always until THEY convince THEMSELVES.
Because you can’t wrestle anyone into using you as their lender.
So…

Step 1:  Focus on getting to know people who are already talking to your ideal client. 

Step 2:  Have conversations with those people and simply ask for referrals.

The end.

(Everything else is clutter and unnecessary work that is designed to keep you “busy” but not productive)

When you are ready to copy how we epically and successfully do Step 1 and Step 2…

Meet me here and I’ll give you the same exact demo that our top producers get in the Loan Officer Freedom Club.

Talk soon.

Carl White

Many thanks for my friend, Dean Jackson who taught me this simple message 15 years ago.