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Perhaps you are new to the business of sales. Perhaps also you have been at this awhile. Either way you have no doubt experienced "the thrill of the hunt" for new business partners. Nothing is more exhilarating in sales as landing a new client and reaping the rewards of your efforts. If it's been months (or years) since you've felt this way, it's time to rejunenate your attitude with a new challenge! All this refinance business is financially rewarding, but hardly exhilarating. Even if you anc land just one new referral client over the next month, you'll feel different about the business and renewed about your career.
ARE YOU READY FOR SOME EXCITEMENT? Are you prepared to brush off your selling skills and find what you are made of? Then let's get going! There are five steps to bringing on board new business partners: 1. Prospecting
2. Targeting
3. Developing
4. Growing
5. Maintaining With a clear plan for your adventure it will be easier to achieve your goal (and a lot more fun too!) Here we go… - Prospecting
You must start your hunt with one or more people in mind. Your objective here is to get real names of good potential referral partners. For example, if you are a retail originator looking for a new real estate partner, consider scanning real estate ads in newspapers, magazines or the Real Estate Cable TV channel. Look for names on yard signs. Attend real estate events. It's easy to discover prospects when you are looking for them.
- Targeting
Step two is to contact the prospects by letter, phone, email or personal visit (or a combination of these.) The goal is to get some "face time" with the prospects, learn as much as you can, present your solutions to his or her needs, and see if there is an interest in working together. You may find that your target is completely satisfied with his or her current lender relationship or that the target is a low-producing or non-producing source of business. You may also discover that there is both an interest and a good opportunity into a referral relationship.
- Developing
Now that you have a new prospect, the key is to convert him or her into a "client" quickly. This will involve multiple contacts over a period of time. The most common examples are sales visits, phone calls, emails, faxes and letters. In this phase, the client is warming up to you. Learning more about what you can do, establishing a feeling of trust. Be diligent! A few weeks of consistent effort can pay off in the form of a new client, new business and added income!
- Growing
Once you have succeeded n earning that first piece of business, the next step is to grow the number of leads, loans and referrals. This is earned by 1) Performing well on opportunities you are given and 2) Continuing your regular contact. Don't get lazy and sit back, assuming you have this client in your hip pocket. Leverage your good fortune into more.
- Maintaining
At some point, you'll get just about all the business and referrals this client can or is willing to give you. Now your job is to maintain the relationship. Some people say referral clients aren't loyal, yet many times we are not loyal to the relationship. Keep your contacts consistent and the relationship (and the friendship) fresh and alive. Birthday cards, outings, lunches, golf, tennis, happy hours and strategy breakfasts can serve you well in maintaining a great client relationship which will last for years to come. And what a fun and profitable adventure that will be!
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