The life of a loan officer involves many nos…
“No, I don’t need a mortgage at this time.”
“No, I don’t have any clients to refer to you.”
“No, I’m not interested in refinancing.”
“No, your borrower does not qualify for a loan.”
So, how do you keep showing up when all you hear is no? One of the most helpful loan officer tips and tricks involves just this subject.
Perseverance isn’t just a helpful trait to being a successful loan officer, it’s a requirement. But how do you make perseverance part of your daily routine? Like anything that you’d like to grow in, this requires a combination of patience, creative thinking, and practice.
Whether you’re wanting to grow your volume, earn more referrals, or expand your professional network, it’s important to learn how to get a no, and then keep trying for a yes.
Here’s what we’ll cover in this Loan Officer Tips & Tricks article:
Have the Right Perspective
There’s a reason that being a loan officer requires persistence: your entire job is based around waiting. Waiting for a borrower to be ready to apply for a mortgage. Waiting for documents or waiting for a loan to close.
Because of this, it’s important to be realistic about the industry, and recognize that it does require patience. Keeping this in mind will help you not get discouraged by the waiting.
Although this is more of a mental exercise than a to-do, it can be a game changer for how you approach your business. Additionally, keeping patience and perseverance in mind will help you execute the rest of the strategies in this article successfully.
Show Your Value
If you’re having trouble growing your business, or are looking to expand your partnership network, one way to make your name in the industry is to show your value. There are many ways that this could be implemented, from the digital to the face-to-face.
Share Your Knowledge Online
It’s no secret that the internet drives much of modern business. With this in mind, cultivating a robust online presence is a great way to show your value to potential borrowers and partners. If you have a website (if you don’t, you should!), you could consider blogging about relevant mortgage industry topics. This can be a great way to drive traffic to your site. It will also show how knowledgeable you are about the industry.
Utilize Social Media
You can also build up your social media presence. If you don’t already have a professional social media presence, it’s not too late to start!
Start off by creating a profile that includes your business and contact information, and of course, your website info. Then, add a brief bio about what makes you stand out in the industry.
The next step is to post some great content! Don’t worry if you don’t have too much to post at first—you can start slow and go from there.
If you want some inspiration about what types of posts you could share with your audience, check out this post.
Think Ahead
One way to show your value as a loan officer is by thinking ahead. Consider what your borrowers and referral partners will want and need, before they even realize they need it.
For example, offer to provide no commitment pre-approval letters to possible borrowers. Not only will they appreciate the thought, it will encourage them to choose you as their loan officer.
When it comes to patiently building relationships with realtor partners, think of their pain points and try to solve them. For instance, did you meet a real estate agent who shared information about a property they have an open house for? You could create an open house flyer for them using PrintPub, and send it to them as a helpful gesture.
Show Up – Every Day
This may be the simplest, but the most difficult strategy. After all, you already have a busy schedule and plenty of commitments. However, just keep showing up should be a loan officer’s mantra. Even in the rise of the digital loan process, face-to-face meetings are still incredibly valuable.
If you’re struggling to implement the just show up mentality, think about how you can do one thing this week to get your name out there. Even if it’s just a small effort, such as giving your business card to 5 new people you meet, it will make a difference in your business over time.
Professional networking events are another great way to persevere in your pursuit of success. Shaking hands with potential professional partners, and putting names to faces in your local market will benefit you in the long-term.
Focus on the Behind the Scenes
Perseverance on paper sounds very sexy, but in reality it is not very flashy. Sticking to, and pursuing a goal as a loan officer requires putting in a lot of time behind the scenes.
Implement Your Software Stack
In today’s digitally driven world, it’s difficult to avoid software. If you do embrace technology fully, you’ll be way ahead of the curve, and have a leg up on your competition. Considering how competitive the mortgage industry is, standing out is a huge factor to success.
One way to stand out is by choosing to implement software in an active way. Fully using software tools will save you time and close more loans for you.
A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is one such platform. Not only does it provide you with a digital, cloud-based database, it also gives you a follow-up system to take you from lead to close.
Implementing software, however, is not always easy. In order to see the results you’d like from your new technology, you need to be patient as you learn, and consistent in your application of the system.
Commit to Continuing Your Education
Another way to do behind the scenes work that will ultimately benefit you and your business on the front-end is to commit to your education. This may feel like a bit of a misnomer, after all, it’s probably been years since you were in school. However, prioritizing your education is important no matter your age.
There are many ways that you could choose to pursue professional education. For instance, you could enroll in a certification course or coaching program, or you could make a commitment to investing a certain amount of time per week to reading industry-related news.
If you want more resources for loan officers, check out our post on the topic.
Bottom Line
When it comes down to it, being a top producing loan officer isn’t a short-term goal. It requires a lot of patience and perseverance to find the incredible success that is available to you in the industry. Keep showing up, and success is in your future.
Although some of these loan officer tips and tricks are more mental exercises than physical business strategies, implementing them in your every day can drastically change your future.
