The Best Marketing Tool to Get Referral Leads From Agents

There are all kinds of marketing tools out there that loan officers can use. How do you know which ones work best? If you’re looking to drive traffic to your website and get more likes and followers for your content, you can focus on lead generation. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s no substitution for making personal connections.

It’s well worth the effort to capture leads who are primed and ready to work with you. Some of these leads will turn into relationships that last the lifetime of your career. Instead of looking for shortcuts and automated lead generation, look to yourself as your business’s best marketing tool. 

Build Relationships with Real Estate Agents

A shortsighted focus on getting the borrower to say yes will only lead to one-and-done deals. These transactional relationships don’t build your business, because they are almost over as soon as the project begins. Instead, it is important to focus on where your clients come from to create a sustainable business. 

For a loan officer, that business comes from closing loans. And who has a better pool of people looking to close a home loan than your local real estate agents? If you are truly looking to take your loan officer career to the next level, talking to real estate agents is key.

So, how do you get more realtor referral partners? You get them by building relationships with the agents in your area. I’m talking about genuine and true relationships here. I’m not talking about being salesy, about using people for what you can get from them. This is about real, true, mutually beneficial partnerships built on trust.

Make It Personal

Engage with them genuinely by having real conversations about their business, passions, and projects. Get personal. Don’t talk about yourself and bring up your own program offerings; focus on them. 

• Find out where they’re at in their business. 
• Ask how you can serve their specific needs. 
• Demonstrate both your knowledge and care for their success. 

Your offerings and services will come up in the conversation naturally. You’re both in the same industry, after all. That’s when you can share. 

Don’t try to connect with an entire agency. This can lead to feeling scattered and overwhelmed. Instead, remember the 80/20 rule which says that 20% of producers draw 80% of the business. When you focus on the 20%, you deliver exceptional service and foster relationships with qualified agents who are invested in mutual success. 

Allow people the opportunity to get to know what you do and why and how you do it. Keep in contact via text messages, by stopping into the office to say hi, or sending a note of care during the holidays.

Anyone Can Become a Client

Want to know how to get even more home loan leads? Let this friendliness and care spill over into all aspects of your life. If the cable installer comes to your house to hook something up, engage in conversation with him while he’s working. Just everyday talk. As he’s about to leave, hand him a card and say something like, “Hey man, here’s my card. If you know anyone looking to buy a house soon, I would love to help them get the loan they need.”  

People who are friendly with each other want to help each other. The next time that cable installer hears one of his buddies talking about buying a house, you’ll come to mind.  

You don’t need to chase business. Allow leads to come to you through natural conversation and genuine connection. As a loan officer, it is your role to help people achieve their dream of buying a house. You don’t need to deliver any special loan officer scripts or performances. Instead, be friendly and conversational. Be an advocate for your business and create lasting relationships in the process. 

If conversations and relationships don’t come naturally to you, don’t worry! This is something you can learn and get better at. If you’d like some advice on where and how to start, I’d love to chat with you. Sharing loan officer tips is one of my favorite things to do. Schedule a FREE no-strings-attached strategy call with me TODAY.