Scale Your Mortgage Business to 7 Figures and Beyond with These 7 Steps

Growing a sustainable business as a mortgage professional is a challenge that takes determination and persistence. From fluctuating interest rates to evolving regulations, the hurdles we face can often seem insurmountable. If you’ve ever wished for clear directions or a roadmap on how to reach success, these proven 7 steps or “pillars” for mortgage business growth will change your business forever. In this blog, we’ll dive into a few key tips for each one of the seven strategies.

Challenges in the Mortgage Industry

As loan originators, you have undoubtedly faced many hurdles and roadblocks while starting a business, many of which may be keeping you from reaching your most ambitious goals.

A few of the biggest challenges these success strategies aim to combat include how to ride the wave of a volatile housing market, how to create and nurture referral partner relationships, how to stand out amongst strong competition, how to adopt a winning mindset despite external factors, and even how to balance your work with your life and relationships with family and friends.

7 Steps to Scale Your Business

Step 1- Discover Your Why & Greatest Strengths

In order to build a business that increases both your profits and your personal vitality and well-being, it’s important to gain a better understanding of what motivates you on a deeper level.

Get clear on your unique value, why you’re in the business, and how your unique skillset can serve your clients. Playing to your strengths not only will help you feel more confident and be able to produce more but will attract others to you that recognize your value.

Next, use your strengths to efficiently maximize the time in your day. Focus your energy on income generating activities that you excel at instead of busy work.

Time is money, and success sometimes comes in the form of increased time freedom just as much as increased monetary income.

Step 2 – How to Build Your Referral Partner Network

Realtors and referral partners provide a much faster way for you to reach your target market and build a bigger network of clients. Just a few key referral partners can truly catapult your mortgage business to a whole new level of success.

While there are many excellent strategies for connecting with and growing your referral partner network, here a few key tips:

Identify the Right Partners: Realtors, builders, financial advisors, and listing agents can be excellent referral sources. Ensure that their values and commitment to client satisfaction align with yours.
Build Trust and Relationships: Take the time to get to know your potential partners personally. Attend industry events, meetups, and networking functions to build genuine relationships.
Offer Value First: Share your expertise, provide valuable market insights, and help them with any mortgage-related questions they or their clients may have.
Lead Mastermind Groups or Lunch & Learns: Organize informative workshops or webinars for your referral partners to educate them about mortgage trends, changes in regulations, and other relevant topics. This positions you as an expert and strengthens your relationship.
Stay Top-of-Mind: Regularly engage with your referral partners through emails, newsletters, or even handwritten notes. Share success stories, market updates, and relevant content that keeps you top-of-mind.

Step 3 – Connection to Referral Partner Conversion

At the core of building referrals, what we’re really talking about is the importance of building and maintaining relationships and authentic connections. The key is to develop and maintain authentic human connections that can serve both you and your referral partners in many ways.

When first creating referral relationships, find a way to connect and relate with each person on an individual, human level such as relating on being a parent who owns a business. Next, deliver plenty of value to them before ever asking for a favor in return. Genuine motives and caring for the other person’s goals and priorities are what will make you stand out.

Make sure you go into each meeting with a clear purpose and an awareness of the outcome you want to attain. Express gratitude after every interaction. A simple thank-

you note or a small token of appreciation can go a long way in building and maintaining strong relationships.

Step 4 – How to Create a High Impact Team

Where most people go wrong in this step is that they hire from a place of desperation, and this leads them to make hasty decisions. Take the time to get clear on what kind of support you need and most importantly, don’t forget to hire to your weaknesses. When searching for talent to hire, try to bring together individuals with various skills, backgrounds, and perspectives. Foster open communication, ensuring that team members can freely express ideas and concerns. Provide clear goals and expectations, so that everyone knows the direction and purpose of their work. Make sure to recognize and celebrate achievements along the way, creating a positive team culture.

When you’re clear on your strengths and where you want to focus your time and energy, it becomes much easier to identify and encourage the type of support that will help you thrive.

Step 5 – Master Your Systems, Processes & Productivity

Having systems and processes in place make it easier for you (and your team) to take consistent action and consistency is KEY to building a successful business. It also frees up your precious time and energy so you can focus on the income generating activities that only YOU can do. Start by identifying the energy drainers in your day. Pinpoint where your time is being used LEAST efficiently and begin to create a process (or perhaps hire a new team member) to minimize this drain. Get clear around the processes in your business such as lead tracking, referral partner tracking, and pipeline management that can become more streamlined.

You may need to consider a new CRM system, using call scripts, creating a communication plan, or even simply scheduling an extra, uninterrupted “growth hour” in your day to improve focus and productivity.

Step 6 – Design Your Annual Marketing Plan

Having a clear mortgage marketing plan is essential for increasing exposure, maintaining an online presence, creating brand awareness, attracting leads, and ultimately increasing the amount of loans you close. A well-rounded marketing plan must be coupled with an effective strategy that you execute daily to create the results you desire. Here are few tips for your marketing plan:

Create a strategy for your online digital marketing. Pick 1-3 social media sites where your audience spends their time and that you can post consistently on. Create bulk content ideas to easily film, photograph, and post.
Create 1-2 compelling guides such as “First Time Home Buyer Secrets” that you can give as a free download to grow your email list.
Consider utilizing newspapers, radio spots, or television ads to target your local community.

Marketing in a few different areas helps to develop your brand and increases familiarity with your audience. Consistency is key, so start with a few manageable strategies to keep up with regular content production.

Step 7 – Create a Total Mortgage Success Blueprint

With a marketing plan in place as well as ideas for generating leads and working with referral partners, your last step is to create a 90-day goal plan. Taking your year (or few year) goals and breaking them down into smaller, easier to execute tasks will help you prioritize and stay on track. Consider organizing your goals into sections such as marketing, referral partnerships, client relationships, and team management. Create overarching goals for each section then break it down into smaller tasks.

Conclusion: 7 Steps to 7 Figure Mortgage Success

Use these steps and few tips as a guide to navigating the ever-evolving mortgage landscape. From building a robust referral partner network to mastering digital tools and adapting to market fluctuations, these tools and strategies are necessary to flourish in this dynamic field. If you’re looking for further tips as well as full guides, call scripts, and informational exercises for each of these steps, learn more about my full 7 Steps to 7 Figure Success online program. The 7 Steps to 7 Figure Mortgage Success program is a compilation of the strategies and tactics that I’ve personally used throughout my 25-plus-year career as a top producing originating Branch Manager and they’re responsible for the success I was able to generate throughout the years. By the end of the program, you will have clarity on your goals and have an actionable plan with the support to help you get there.