Prospecting is more difficult than ever because of all the filtering devices that exist. Yet salespeople still must prospect for new customers if they want to be successful in the long run. Unfortunately, originators who use phone calls or emails to prospect are experiencing record low response rates. Can you blame people for not answering […]
In today’s volatile financial marketplace, lenders and their originators must position themselves as different from their competitors if they want to be successful. This reality is challenging everyone to abolish a “being average mindset” in delivering their services from prospecting to closing. Not doing so is a ticket to becoming irrelevant. Obviously, differentiating yourself […]
In a recent conversation with a veteran mortgage banking trainer, he commented that invariably in every class, there are adopters of the new selling techniques and those who plainly reject what is being taught. In my consulting practice I’ve seen this time and again. I find that top originators are more than willing to learn […]
In recent conversations with originators, the complaint I hear most often is that they are working harder than ever and seeing less results. They attribute their lower production to an ultra-competitive environment where they conduct pre-approvals only to have the customer go with another lender with better pricing. In many cases, this feedback is coming […]
Last week, scientists announced the discovery of an extraordinary, “supermassive” black hole at the center of Messier 87, a gigantic galaxy about 55 million light years away in the constellation Virgo. The image was produced by the Event Horizon Telescope, a network of 10 radio telescopes spread across the planet that functioned as if it […]
In a recent conversation, a mortgage coach told me she was asked to coach an experienced originator who was considered high potential for a sales team. When the coach met with the originator, she found out the individual was only producing two units a month and only worked four days a week. It was clear […]
A recent Washington Post article highlighted George Mason University’s new program where Starship Technologies installed robots on the campus to deliver food to students. The article mentioned how successful the robots were in driving students to eat breakfast, a meal that is usually skipped 88% of the time by undergraduates. In my view, the most […]
For those unfamiliar with the Dunning-Kruger Effect (DKE), it is a psychological phenomenon where certain individuals have a cognitive bias that prompts them to over-estimate their abilities because they can’t grasp what they don’t know. In simple terms, these people think they are smarter than they really are. In mortgage banking, DKE individuals can be […]
After speaking at a conference last week on hiring and recruiting, my general impression of the mood in mortgage banking is that it is subdued and apprehensive. Attendees raised concerns about a number of issues from coping with low revenue and volume to productivity challenges to selecting good originators. Most said that this year will […]
I just watched the Oscar and BAFTA award-winning documentary “Free Solo” which follows Alex Honnold as he climbs Yosemite’s El Capitan, a 3,000-foot granite monolith, without ropes. This is an incredible story as Honnold becomes the first person ever to accomplish the feat. The film is breathtaking and gives viewers the feeling that you are […]