Cold Calling Tips for Mortgage Brokers

I work with a lot of mortgage brokers most of whom are looking for appointments or prospects looking to refinance. Recently, I had the pleasure of working with a small brokerage firm here in the Bay area and was inspired to share some of the finer points to setting quality appointments and generating leads with my readers in the mortgage community. Here are a few tips to consider"?¦.

ï?? Obtaining a list of prospects from a title company is easy but it doesn´t guarantee quality appointments. The mistake that most brokers make is that a good list naturally guarantees good appointments, but nothing could be further from the truth. Leads, regardless of the industry need to be cultivated. It´s a slow process and takes a lot of phone calls and patience to get it right. This can in fact take weeks to find the hidden gem. Think of it this way. If you´re beginning a cold calling program, you´ve probably purchased at least 500 leads. Now let´s assume you have a telemarketer making cold calls 14 hours a week. Out of those 14 hours the telemarketer makes about 200 dials and speaks with maybe 100 people (the rest are voice mail, disconnected prospects. Out of those 100 people the cold caller may get 25 not interested parties,25 call backs and the rest want literature sent which leaves about 75+ prospects not including the numbers leading to voice mail hell. Now the trick (otherwise known as looking for a needle in a haystack) is to find the prospects that are A) Looking for a broker within 1-3 months, B) Have a budget for your services C) and are looking to make a decision within 1-3 month. If the prospects don´t meet these criteria I generally won´t set an appointment. If they won´t be making a decision for 6 months I simply send literature and follow up. And speaking of which"?¦

ï?? Following up on prospects is key. You must follow up on all prospects within a reasonable amount of time and as may times as possible, within a reasonable period of time. Which means waiting weeks before following up with a prospect is a big no-no.This sounds simple I know but you´d be amazed at the number of brokers that don´t follow up when a prospect says "I want a quote". This also means calling a prospect that has expressed interest once or twice and leaving a message isn´t going to get the job done either. The mortgage industry is a pretty fickle and the prospect is probably entertaining quotes from at least 5 different brokers. The longer you wait to get in the game the harder it will be to play.

ï?? If the prospect wants literature, send it to them. You can´t expect to keep your name in front of the prospect if they don´t remember who you are.

ï?? Mortgage brokers require a social security number to run a credit report on a prospect. Don´t be disappointed if the prospect won´t give it to the telemarketer over the phone. They may have to set the appointment without it. No worries, if the prospect is truly interested in a quote they will give it to you at the meeting.

ï?? Don´t overlook the smaller, less pricey homes. These can often turn into long term accounts. Larger isn´t always better. And after all, somebody is going to have to services them.

Tony Wilkins is the owner of Telemarketing Consulting Services and author of "Telemarketing Success for Small and Mid-sized Firms´ available in most bookstores and online at www.amazon.com and www.xlibris.com you may also find out about his workshops and services at

https://stores.ebay.com/telemarketing-success via e: mail at awil267487@aol.com or phone 415-267-4872 .If you´d like to be notified of a new posting for this column, please contact Tony Wilkins at awil267487@aol.com