Maximize your impact as a mortgage broker from the first "hello". This guide offers techniques for effective introductions, tailored to the mortgage industry, ensuring memorable and positive client interactions.
In the world of real estate and mortgages, an increasing number of interactions is being done online. From perusing listings to applying for mobile mortgages, it’s easier for a mortgage loan officer to find new clients through online contact than any other way.
That’s why a mortgage email marketing campaign might be the best way to increase interest in your mortgage services and promote your business. Besides meeting potential clients in the place they spend the vast majority of their time, successful email list campaigns also have a higher ROI (return on investment) than traditional direct mail campaigns.
While the benefits of email marketing for mortgage brokers are clear, and the results of effective email campaigns are proven time and again, mortgage lenders often don’t use this form of marketing. If you’re ready to change that, here are some best practices and ideas on how to create and run a successful email marketing campaign for your mortgage business.
Email marketing guide
As a mortgage professional, you are held by different rules, regulations, and laws when it comes to what information you can send over email and what information must be included. As such, you will need to make sure first and foremost that you and your team have a clear understanding of what can be and what must be said to make sure you are compliant with the CFPB or the FTC.
Follow the Rules
Some of the guidelines to follow to protect yourself include:
- Make sure the language you are using isn’t misleading the potential client.
- Don’t make promises of rates and terms that your potential client may not qualify for.
- Don’t make promises of rates and terms that you can’t deliver.
- Don’t lure them in with misleading offers, free trials, or headlines.
In short, know what you can say and know what you should say before drafting the email sequence you’ll send out.
Steer clear of buying lists of email addresses. Focus email marketing on people that have agreed to receive emails from you, either on your website, a lead source, or in-person.
Stay in the client’s mind with a marketing newsletter
While potential clients you target in your campaign may not need a mortgage right at that very moment, chances are good that they will need the services of loan officers eventually. When they find themselves in need, there are ways you can use email to ensure you are still in their mind and they will check out what services you can offer.
Mortgage marketing newsletters are a great way to get this done. Sending regular email newsletters that detail industry insights, the latest mortgage information, market updates, and news about you as a mortgage business help establish relationships and show you as an expert in the field.
The key here is “regular.” In the world of mortgage finance, a daily newsletter is not necessary. In fact, make sure you’re not sending them so regularly that you annoy them and make them hit the “unsubscribe” button.
Instead, shoot for somewhere between once per week and once per month. Write them ahead of time and schedule them to be sent out at regular intervals so your audience can know when to expect more exclusive information.
Keep in mind that this kind of regularly scheduled email is different from marketing automation: these are campaigns which are triggered when a hot lead enters your pipeline. Aidium Mortgage CRM executes these automated email and SMS text messaging campaigns automatically based on user behavior. When a new lead comes in, either directly to your site or from a lead source such as Zillow or LendingTree, Aidium CRM immediately starts the process of sending emails and text marketing messages to the lead.
Bring People Back to Your Main CTA and Other Channels
All of your mortgage email marketing should tie into any other online marketing you conduct to promote your services. That means your emails should complement and drive people back to all other channels you use to communicate your message with potential customers.
Make a special effort to send prospects to the most direct channel through which they can start the process of doing business with you. That can be a landing page on your website or it can simply be a conspicuous invitation to hit the reply button and email you back. It’s important that these calls-to-action are the easiest piece of information on the email to see. The readers’ eyes should immediately be drawn to it when they open the email. Use colors, bolding, italics, and/or underlining so that the call-to-action is prominent.
The overwhelming majority of your email recipients won’t necessarily be quite ready to start an application or pre-qualification.
So, in addition to a strong call-to-action, you want your email to also include links to your social media accounts and website (ideally a well-written blog post).
If any media outlets have written about you or your business, you might want to include a link to that positive press.
Make sure your email information also takes them to places they can get to know your business better or get more information such as your website and social media accounts. Your potential clients should have multiple ways to access information about why you’re the loan officer to trust, and email marketing is the perfect way to point them in that direction.
Think Outside of Your Usual Recipients
While former clients, real estate agents, and friends and family may be your go-to audience for your email marketing, think outside the box as well. Brainstorm what other people may be interested in your services or be in a position to refer them to someone else.
For example, sending emails to credit counselors, financial planners and people who work in real estate themselves may help your pipeline of potential clients grow and increase your network. Making these unconventional contacts could very well pay off big down the road if you stay in the forefront of their minds as well.
Email marketing is a powerful tool to use when looking to step up your mortgage marketing efforts. By sending regular, helpful, and informative emails to a wide range of recipients, you can help grow your mortgage business with every new referral.
