I am good at lead generation.
Really good. I can do it on the cheap, with a budget, whatever, however, I’m damn good at it. Always have been, and I’m not saying that to brag. You’ll see why in a minute. I have 25 cheap ways I can get leads:
- Blogging
- Lunch and Learns
- Door Knocking
- Cold Calling
- Engaging Schools Through My School Rewards Program
- Calling my past clients
- Working with New Realtors
- Working with Existing Realtors
- Working with attorneys
- Working with Financial Planners.
- Rocking Craig’s List Ads.
- Engaging Non Profits
- Engaging Human Resource Departments.
- Using google alarts to eaves drop on people.
- Issuing Press Releases
- Calling Credit Unions for Turn Downs.
- Working dead files at the office.
- Targeted Marketing
- Using Facebook
- Using Linkedin/Myspace Etc.
- Builder Turndowns
- Working residential construction permits.
- Working Yahoo Answers
- All 20 or so periphrial social networking sites.
- Email marketing/follow up.
I could go on for another 15-20 easily, and probably stretch it to 50 discrete ways of generating mortgage leads. It’s not that hard. I love that part of the game. I love hunting and finding people that need—or could benefit from the service. I say with pride that I’ve never closed a bought lead (though Bill Rice has removed some scales from my eyes).
I’m even above average at lead conversion. I get someone, and I get their documents and usually an application fee early in the process and consistently. Sometimes I get the referrals.
My Confession: Where the Wheels Fall Off.
I could care less about what happens next! I mean, I care as much as I can, but the details are intensely boing to me. I don’t honor the work I’ve done, and I just want the damn thing over with.
Since leads are abundant, I undervalue them. I don’t work hard enough to get the next lead because I am aware that I can get 5 new leads in any day I wanna. I’ve gotten what I need out of the transaction, an enthusiastic client. I’ve connected with someone new. I’m energized, my ego has been fed, and to me, the transaction is OVER. I don’t have a passion for processing. I’ve said it.
Does that make me a liability? Hell no. I want to be a hunter, not a secretary. I only deliver grudgingly. No bit of self talk has ever gotten me to embrace paperwork enthusiastically. Maybe the closest I came was 11/06, then all my deals got restipped, and a part of my soul died. Had a great month, but couldn’t care less.
I want to do the stuff that pays, and that’s finding people. I want someone else to grind out deals. Always have. It’s not wrong; grinding deals is $30/hour work. Finding ‘em is $100/hour work. I want out of the details, utterly and completely out. I want to send leads off and get some return ad infinitum. That’s my dream job in the industry—I can prove that I’m world class at getting leads. I’m slightly better than the ultra-low-industry standard at the rest of the process, and far below my peers.
When the business got harder, say in April of 07 (one of the three dates, November 06, April and August 07), I got a lot less interested in grinding out deals. It felt too much like work. Sure, I had an assistant, and was still willing to bang out volume, but really, the stuff I wanted to be doing is finding people and getting deals started. Having a system to finish ‘em was important. I had no willingness to get endless LOXes for people.
Most loan officers are opposite of me. Most quality people don’t have my skill at generating leads, but are better at preserving the leads that they have. My abundance mentality hurts in this vein.
I’m trying to design a solution around it.
