Bliss Sawyer's Marketing Blog

I'm jumping on the bandwagon!

I'm giving everyone headsup that I am starting to Facebook and Twitter.  Not sure exactly the process will take... especially since I'm a bit slow when it comes to technology. 

Hopefully the learning curve isn't too steep and I can get things up and running quickly.  You'll have access to my calendar of events, my daily musings on all things marketing along with other great tips and resources!

Twitter:  @blisssawyer

Facebook:  bliss@blisssawyer.com

LinkedIn:  bliss@blisssawyer.com

I'm guessing you sign up that way... like I said, I'm a novice!!  Feel free to comment below if you have any suggestions or questions on all this social media stuff.

Interesting article on this topic from Jeffrey Gitomer:  What's so social about social media?

Stay tuned for a few guest posts from Paul Chaney, The Social Media Handyman.

Monday's Coach

Week 7 - Sales Plan 2010

Now that you have your date and location set for your 2010 planning, it's time to get prepared so you will be able to use that time as effectively as possible. 

Here are a few of the things you need to get ready PRIOR to the planning session.

1. Collect your data from 2009.  Number of loans closed, total production and gross income.  This will help you to set 2010 goals.
   
2. Gather all marketing ideas and materials that you have in your office.  One of the tasks you'll be doing during your off-site time is to read (or re-read) the marketing ideas you have and decide on what NEW activities you will be doing in 2010.
   
3. Review this Sales Plan and be pondering what your 6 marketing targets will be and what activities you will be doing for each target.
   
   
4. Make sure you have access to your calendar during your planning.  One of the best things you can do during your planning session is to actually schedule your marketing time for the next year.
   
   

Here are some of the things you need to be doing DURING your planning session.

1. Read through all marketing materials and choose any new activities you want to implement in 2010. 
   
   
2. Brainstorm other marketing ideas that you can begin or ways you can improve current marketing ideas.  And I mean REALLY brainstorm.  Get everything down on paper.  Even those wild and crazy ideas... you never know what will turn into something great!
   
   
3. Complete the Sales Plan.  Feel free to personalize and modify to make this form work for you.
   
   
4. Make a list of daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly activities you want to be doing in 2010 and then schedule them into your calender.
   
   
5. Schedule a "Sales Plan Review" once a month.
   
   
6. Review your file process and look for ways to improve it.  Come up with suggestions to talk with your staff about.  Remember to ask for their input as well.  Consider schedule an off-site meeting with your staff to work on improving the file process.
   
   
7. Review your staff incentives and look for ways to improve this system so everyone one feels more connected to the goal of greater production.

If you are headed away for your planning session, you might want a good book to help you get motivated (and break up all that planning)  Here are a few suggestions:

• Focal Point by Brian Tracy
• The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes
• Little Black Book of Connections by Jeffrey Gitomer
• Little Red Book of Sales by Jeffrey Gitomer

Other ideas:

• Listen to a Webinar replay like Getting Your Phone to Ring.
• If you start feeling a bit overwhelmed, or out of ideas; go for a walk or do something active to rejuvenate yourself.
• Call up a loan officer friend and ask them to brainstorm with you.
• Eat chocolate.

These are just a few suggestions.  Print this list off and add your ideas to it so you are as prepared as possible for your planning session.

 p.s.  Did you get your planning event scheduled?  Click here to see all Monday's Coach Posts.

Stupid article.....

This has got to be one of the most ridiculous articles I have ever read regarding mortgages, and I've seen some doozies over the years.

Read it here:  Five words to never say to your lender

You've seriously got to be kidding me.  I linked to this article from CNNMoney.  A little bit disapointing, I must say.

What are you going to do over the next 30 day?

The month between Thanksgiving and Christmas is often wasted by those in sales.  The excuses range from "It's the Holidays" to "Things are always slow this time of year" to "No one is really working right now".

I have a suggestion... why not reverse that way of thinking and use the next 30 days to BOOST your business?  Here are some ideas for your 30 day challenge:

• Clean and organize your work space.
• Spruce it up a bit.  Coat of paint, new pictures/decorations.
• Get that holiday touch out to your database.  Something by mail and email for greater effect.
• Drop-in to ALL your referral partners with a holiday basket.
• Take a Realtor to lunch each week.
• Have a holiday open house and invite all your referral partners.
• Have your 2010 planning/goal setting session.
• Clean up your computer files.
• New professional photo for your website and business cards.  (How many years HAS it been?)
• Get caught up on industry reading.  Make sure you are aware of all the changes happening and look for ways to inform Realtors.
• Schedule your marketing for next year.  Daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly tasks.  Get them out of your head and on a calendar.

I'm sure there's more... but I've drained as much out of my turkey-stuffed brain as I can. 

What else will you be doing over the next month to grow your business?

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am grateful for....

• Family.  Yes - I'm even grateful for the cranky teenagers.
• Friends.  Especially the kind who are there during the tough times.
• My job.  I have the best of all worlds and love what I do!
• You.  Thanks to my readers for all the great feedback and ideas you share!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

What the Dog Saw

I am a big fan of Malcolm Gladwell and recently finished his newest book, What the Dog Saw.  This book is a sampling of Gladwell's work from the The New Yorker and is interesting and entertaining as it explores a variety of subjects and people.  From mustard and ketchup to the inventor of birth control to the collapse of Enron; I was fascinated (as usual) by Gladwell's unique combination of facts and story-telling.

My favorite Gladwell book is The Tipping Point.  If you haven't read this one, I strongly recommend it (good reading for a holiday weekend :)  And if you already own The Tipping Point, take a few minutes to re-read section two, The Law of the Few:  Connectors, Maven, and Salesmen.  The implications of this to your business are amazing. 

In my training, I often talk about the importance of having "Connectors" in your sphere of influence.  You can build a strong referral-based business with just a few strong connectors.  Top producing loan officers, on the other hand, are often a combination of Salesman, Mavens (means someone who accumulates knowledge) and Connectors.  I found great insight into these characteristics in the book and recommend loan officers work to improve in all areas.

Do you need help in 2010?

2010 has the potential to be a fantastic year for the loan officer willing to work through the upcoming changes and ramp up their visibility and dedication to marketing. 

We all know there are less originators to compete against.  My question to you is this: 

Are you positioned to take your share of the market?

Personal coaching might be your answer to creating a top producing year in 2010.  Being accountable to someone that is going to encourage and offer marketing tools will give you the advantage you need.  I will have a few slots open starting in January for new coaching clients. 

 

The great news is that if you sign up PRIOR to January 1, you will receive $100 off your first month.  Check out more details on my personal coaching here.  You can also contact me by email (bliss@blisssawyer.com) or by phone (806-577-3937) with any questions or to get started.

 

Here's what one of my clients has to say:

 

I have been working with Bliss Sawyer since the beginning of 2009.  I have never had a coach before, but began looking about 6 months prior to committing to Bliss.  I spoke with several companies/coaches, but was unable to find exactly what I was looking for.  Bliss has done a wonderful job in helping me to stay focused as well as giving me very creative ways to increase my business.  Accountability is extremely important to helping me keep my eye on the prize.  With Bliss' help, I am having the most successful year I have ever had in a difficult market.  Erik Gross, Cendera Funding

Monday's Coach

Week 6 - Plan to plan

Since it is Thanksgiving, I figure a short task for a short week is appropriate to keep you moving forward and motivated.  So this weeks task is very simple.  All you have to do is decide when and where you are going to do your 2010 planning. 

• Your 2010 planning is best done AWAY from the office.  I personally prefer the mountains, a bit of snow, steaks on the grill and a fire going.  But that's just me.
• This planning can be individual or with other originators.  I used to go every January with my office to do our planning and goal setting and loved what we would accomplish. If you do this, have some individual time as well as group time.  Assign each person something to cover such as Realtor marketing, networking, database ideas etc.
• Pick a date, location and amount of time you will spend.
• Feel free to add in some fun after the planning is done.  Have family or friends meet up with you for some skiing, a nice dinner or other relaxing activity.  Plan on rewarding yourself for a day well spent.

Don't take this lightly.  Decide now on the day and location for your 2010 planning session and get it on your calendar.  Next week I will go more in depth as to WHAT you will be doing with your planning time and how to structure your goals for 2010.

Here's a great article on Mastering Your Money with a Financial Health Day that is very similar to what I recommend for yearly planning.  You may even want to combine the two activities. 

p.s.  How did you do on last week's database assignments?  Click here to see all Monday's Coach Posts.

Developing Your Success Plan for 2010 - Webinar

 
Join David Bush next Tuesday for this great Webinar.

Do you have a complete life, business, and time plan to help you achieve extraordinary success in 2010?

If you would like expert coaching on how to create an extraordinary success plan then you don’t want to miss this private webinar event with David Bush. During this webinar, you will learn about David's proven success planning system as he walks you through his simple planning steps to accelerate your life and business.

Learn how to:
    - Gain a clear vision of the future and keep your focus.
    - Prioritize for maximum life balance and peak performance.
    - Increase your effectiveness and efficiency by keeping your plan simple and top of mind.
    - Get more from each day, month and quarter with innovative time management tips and tactics.

SPECIAL NOTE: David will be providing all registered participants exclusive access to his member only coaching tools at no cost but only those individuals who attend the live event will receive the bonus tools and resources.

Title: Developing Your Success Plan for 2010
Date: Tuesday, Nov 24, 2009
Time: 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM Eastern Time (9am Pacific)

 

This webinar is available at no charge, courtesy of Velma.com!

My top three picks....

I recently spoke to a group of loan officers in Houston and was asked to focus on the areas where I felt LO's needed to excel at in order to succeed in this difficult time.  (I didn't realize I would be speaking AFTER underwriting reviewed the new GFE... talk about a rotten form!  But that's a subject for another post)

So here are my top three picks for what it takes to be successful in ANY market:

1. Knowledge
2. Likeability
3. Visibility

I actually mention these three things quite often on this blog and in the near future will be expanding on each of them.  My question for you is this:  How do you rank on all three of these? 

Self-analysis is not always accurate so enlist the help of those around you.  Ask them to rank you on a scale of 1-10 and then ask "What can I do to bring my number up to a 10?"  Make sure you let them know you want complete honesty and be willing to take their suggestions.

Tax Credit Marketing Idea

You have a fantastic opportunity to offer valuable information to accountants regarding the new Homebuyer Tax Credit.  Very simply, they most likely have clients that can benefit by taking advantage of this program, but may not have thought to spread the word. 

To make things even sweeter, parents can still co-sign with their kids (FHA kiddie-condo loans) and as long as they do not claim them as dependents the kids qualify for the tax credit.

This is one of those things that is best done quickly to (hopefully) be the first to provide them with detailed information.  You will also be more successful if you contact the CPA's in a variety of ways.  Email, phone, mail and in person.  Offer to do a first time homebuyer seminar or send a flier to out to their database by mail or email.

The best part of all this... you will naturally increase your sphere of influence and your reputation as an expert!

BTW - Here is another great source for information on the Homebuyer Tax Credit.  (Thanks, Greg!)

Which one will you do?

My friend, Sandra Scott recently gave me a great piece of advice to pass along...

You can make excuses

and you can make money,

but you can't make both.

I'd say that is a very productive way to look at your marketing.  Are you making money or excuses?

Holiday Charity Drive

Erik Gross of Cendera Funding decided to do something a little different this year for the holidays.  He is collecting toys for the Toys For Tots organization.  It isn't too late for you to do something similar!  Here's a breakdown of what he's doing:

• Mass email went out to 300 Realtors this week.  (one agent that doesn't currently work with Erik already called and has sent a referral - now that's immediate gratification for you)
• The top 30 Realtors will receive a personal email from Erik next week.
• Same top 30 will get a phone call reminding them about the toy drive and an offer to pick up the toys at their office.
• Toys will be picked up during the week of December 7
• Erik will head back out the week of December 14 with "thank you" bottles of wine for all that donated.

  Here are a few of my suggestions as well:

• Don't limit it to Realtors.  Send an email out to your entire database, including other business partners such as title, appraisers, insurance agents etc. 
• If you are in a large busines complex, take fliers around to your busines neighbors.
• Have a place to gather the gifts in your reception area, make it fun and festive looking.
• Take a picture of all the donations to put with your thank you card to those that donated.
• Put pictures and a write up on your website, blog etc.

Monday's Coach

Week 5 - Database Work

This week you have two assignments - both relating to your database.   (If you need more help with Database Marketing click here)

Assignment #1 - Clean up your database.  If you haven't gone through your database in the last six months, it's definitely time to do it!  Make sure you have your database as clean as possible and add in any recent clients, new prospects, Realtors and all other contacts you have met recently. 

Divide your list into an ABC list.  A clients are your top 10-20% and refer you the most business.  B clients are the largest group, they know you and like you but perhaps don't realize that you work on referrals or don't take the time to send referrals your way.  C clients aren't as familiar with you and need to be educated as to what you do and how GREAT you are at doing loans.

Assignment #2 - Decide what you are doing for each group for the holidays.  The A group should receive something of value from you since they are a driving force in your business.  This could be gift basket, gift certificate or other token of your appreciation.  The B group should receive a nice Holiday card or other correspondence that is personalized (I personally hate the Christmas cards that are pre-done with the company name and no signature or other personal touch).  Send an email our less-expensive card to the C group.

p.s.  Keep working on your Realtor Contact Sheet from last week.  Click here to see all Monday's Coach Posts.

Getting more out of your reading

There is so much information out there that often, the difficult part is narrowing it down into "actionable items"  This goes for what you read online, in print magazines and in books.  Here are my suggestions for getting the most out of your reading:

Online materials:

• Organize your favorites into categories so you can easily go back and find an idea or suggestion you want to implement.  This also works well for underwriting guidelines.  Ever had to spend time searching for the same information more than once? 
• Print out interesting articles that you haven't had time to read and keep a "to-read" file folder.  When you have a few minutes for dr. appts, waiting on kids, etc take a few to read.

Print materials:

• For magazines, I keep a highlighter and post-it pad handy to mark the ideas that seem relevent to me.  Anything that has potential I make a note of. 
• I will also tear out pages if it is something I want to work on in the near future and put in my to-do file folder.  I utilize this folder as my idea-storing place.  I then go through it about once a month to pull out things I want to start implementing or working on.
• I enjoy reading, but a few years ago I found that when I would read business/marketing/motivation books I wasn't doing much with the information once I was done with the book.  There were always good ideas, sometimes great ideas, that could potentially have a positive influence on my business, yet I wasn't actually implementing anything.  This is when I changed the way I read this type of book.
• As I am reading, I keep short notes at the beginning of the book.  I put a STAR next to the good ideas and BOX around those things that I want to immediately implement.  This has helped me to easily see what influenced me as I read the book, even years later when I reference back.  Over the years, I've come up with my own system and recommend you do the same.  Do whatever works for you... it's all in the DOING! 

Photo of my notes on Ready for Anything by David Allen

Ready for Anything

I am a big fan of David Allen's Getting Things Done so when I saw Ready for Anything, (52 Productivity Principles for Getting Things Done) I decided to see if I could pick up a few more ideas on productivity that would help me, both in my business and personal life.  Because really, who can't benefit from being just a bit more productive??

If you haven't read Getting Things Done, then I recommend that before this book.  Ready for anything has a few valuable nuggets and some great reminders, but the material is better represented in Allen's GTD.  Here's what I took from Ready for Anything:

• Manage your workflow (collect, process, organize, review and do)  I've found that my life runs better when I actively follow this.
  
• Capturing.  Ever had a great idea or realized you had something very important to do and then forgot it?  Allen suggest always keeping a notebook handy to capture those thoughts, to-do's and ideas.
  
• Mind mapping.  I actually discovered this a few years ago when my daughter was taking college english her senior year of high school.  It was tough and we worked on this project together which also taught me the concept.  It works!  Google mind mapping for more ideas on how to do this.
  
• I have always encouraged my coaching clients to ask themselves "What is the best use of my time right now."  Allen suggests this as well, but then goes on to say "After you ask the question, listen to the answer and then DO."  Being successful is all about the actions you take each day.

Love this industry!

Do you feel like you're bashing your head against a brick wall at times? 

Underwriting changes.
Appraisal changes.
Credit score changes.
Staff changes.

And to keep us on our toes and feeling eternally happy, those changes are going to keep on happening. 

Just my opinion of course.

Here's a new mantra for you.  Repeat three times.  Every hour. Tape it to your computer.  Right in the middle of the screen.

I love my job.  I love my job. I love my job!

Let me know how that works for you. 
Have a great day!

 

Loan Swap

No, it's not a new reality show...

Loan Swap is a great program available through LenderLister as a resource for Loan Originators to swap loans they can't do, for loans they can with other Loan Originators.  Here's some of the details: 

Trade any live mortgage lead that you are unable to do because of state licensing issues, or niche loan types such as FHA, reverse, agricultural, commercial, construction, veterans, manufactured, condotel, Coop, business lines of credit, all loan types except land for now. You will receive a live loan lead in the order of which you submit a successful live loan lead.

We all know what a successful live loan lead is. It's that deal you get that is perfect, except you aren't allowed to do it, or you just don't do them. The honor system insures quality and success. Your membership profile is a filter that insures that you only receive the types of loans you are able to close.

It is against the law to collect a commission on a loan you refer to another Mortgage Broker. With a Loan Swap membership you're setting up a mediated referral system that is run by 3rd. party human beings. Loan Swap employee's manages fair, and quality live mortgage lead rotation among all loan originations platforms in the USA. 

Tough Times Bring The Best Innovation.
Sign Up For Your FREE 30 Day Trial Membership Today!

What blogs do you read?

I've had a few emails lately asking what blogs I read that help me professionally.  As I considered the different blogs I peruse, I noticed that most were from authors I had recommended on here.  It seems to me that if you like a person's writing style and message in a published book, you will most likely enjoy their blogs and daily "musings"

Here's my short list:

Sanders Says - I enjoy reading this blog about "business, culture and spirit".  Tim Sanders wrote The Likeablity Factor and Love the Killer App which are two books I love!  I just noticed one I haven't read, Saving the Worldat Work, I'm going to have to check this one out.

Seth Godin's Blog- The king of 21st Century marketing.  Click here to see a list of his books.

http://www.jonathanfields.com/blog/.  "Tips, strategies and conversations at the crossroads of life, work, entrepreneurship and play."  I'm not even sure how I stumbled across this blog, but enjoy his take on business and life.

Zen Habitsby Leo Babauta.  I discovered this blog while reading Babauta's The Power of Less.  I am always looking to keep a balance between work, family and my interests and I find this blog to be a great resource.

The Simple Dollar by Trent Hamm is somewhat of a personal finance blog and covers a huge array of subjects. I really enjoy his book reviews and writing in general.

What blogs do you read that help with your life/business??  Feel free to comment below...

Monday's Coach

Week 4 - Developing your core group of Realtors

This is one of my favorite techniques for helping loan officers keep focused on their Realtor Marketing.  This is very simple and easy to use.  Simply print it out each Monday and work diligently to have as many contacts as possible as you go through the week.

This week, take the time to determine which Realtors you want on your list and gather all their contact information and birthdays.  Your list should include agents you currently work with as well as those you want to develop a relationship with.  Deciding on which agents to target can be difficult.  Here are a few suggestions: 

• Your manager - he may be aware of who would fit well with your personality.
• Title officers or title company staff
• Friends/family – find out Realtors they personally know or have used in the past as this may open doors for you.
• Realtors you currently know or work with – ask if they would recommend any agents in their office that you could successfully target for future business.
• New Realtors – 80% may quit by year 2, but you may find a superstar!

Your list is not set in stone – be flexible with the names placed on this list.  Over time, you will get a feel for prospects that are worth your time and effort and those that are not helping your business grow.   A Realtor may be the nicest person you know, but if they are unwilling or unable to send referrals your way, it is best to replace them with another name.  An interesting thing will happen as you start this marketing program, the Realtors that receive your marketing pieces will be so impressed that they will start talking about you to others in their office.  You may even find Realtors not on your list calling you!  This will give you the opportunity to adjust or expand your list.

p.s.  How did your "Marketing Past and Future" assignment go last week?  Click here to see all Monday's Coach Posts.