One of the biggest challenges originators face can be advertising and maintaining a company profile -- and that's where Integrity Mortgage Group can help.
You’re offering the same product to the same demographic as everyone else. So why are your competitors scooping up all the clients?
One of the biggest challenges originators face can be advertising and maintaining a company profile – but that costs money, and the advertising message has to be on point.
Josh Moore, marketing manager for Integrity Mortgage Group, says that’s a problem that many of its branches face – and one that the group takes an active hand in solving in order to turn frustration into future clients.
“We try to do our marketing different from the big retail mortgage companies,” Moore says. “Our branches can call me any time if they have a specific project in mind. I will not only offer advice and ideas, but will roll my sleeves up and work with them through the whole process until it’s ready to go live.”
Moore cites an example of a branch that wanted to partner with a real estate agency to target a specific apartment complex in their community.
“The branch manager found a direct-mail company to work with and sent the most generic postcard I’ve ever seen for me to review. I immediately called him and said, ‘This mailer is so generic the audience receiving this would only know you’re a mortgage company because of the logo,’” Moore says. “’Let me personally design something for you. I can call the company get the specifications and submit the artwork.’ His first response was, ‘How much will this cost?’ I told him that it will cost two extra days of wait time while I put it together. Other than that the design work is always free.”
That’s how Moore wants the marketing to be different.
“I don’t want to tell our branches, ‘You should do this this and that to boost your visibility,’” he says. “I want to be a part of their marketing efforts. I want to teach them why specific marketing actually works and be in the trenches with them, so to say, through the whole process.”
Moore adds that IMG’s marketing department is always current on the latest marketing trends and technology.
“We are in the computer age, and online advertising is a great asset – but also scares a lot of professionals in this business. Many don’t know where to start and internet marketing is very intimidating,” he says. “At Integrity Mortgage Group I like to tell our branches the sky is the literal limit when it comes to our marketing department. We have expertise in traditional marketing – which
includes all of your print, products, publications, and signs – to online marketing, which includes your email, social media, search engine optimization, analytics, keyword advertising and online display ads. They will have the guidance they need.”
And local branches are definitely feeling the impact of this strategy of individual, tailored advertising and marketing, Moore says.
“They tell us that they’ve never had a marketing department in the past that would actually help them get their ideas off the ground,” he says. “If a branch has an idea as to how they want to reach customers, we want to be a part of transforming that idea to reality.”
Moore says that he’s even had loan officers apologize for calling him, but quickly lets them know that there is no need to apologize.
“They can call me anytime. That’s what I’m here for,” he says. “It takes some of our new branches time to get over this shell shock of having this type of access and support. But once they do, they come to love it here at IMG.”
