For individuals who have had credit problems, shopping for a mortgage on one’s own has traditionally been a challenge. It used to be that those with “bruised credit” could only obtain a mortgage with a significant down payment along with double digit interest rates and significant fees.
Today’s mortgage market provides many opportunities for borrowers with a poor credit history, and an Invis mortgage professional can advise you on a wide range of home finance options now available. He or she has access to lenders who offer mortgages to people with credit issues.
These mortgage products allow borrowers to get access to funds today and after a period of time when their credit issues are behind them, they can move to the prime lenders with better rates and terms.
An MortgageDirect2u Invis mortgage professional will look at your individual circumstances and find financing that fits your needs. Access your options today.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Sunday, July 5, 2009
The Sucessful Realtor - Making your Marketing Dollars Work for You!
Marketing – it’s a key requirement of the real estate business and it’s expensive. But are you sure your money is being well spent? If you’re like most realtors, you’re probably not. It’s a common, yet critical mistake. In order to gain exposure, agents often advertise blindly without monitoring which advertising is working and which is not.
If the idea of wasting thousands of dollars on useless advertising bothers you, it’s time to start tracking the effectiveness of your marketing materials. Fortunately, it’s simple to do.
The easiest way, is of course, to ask every prospect that calls to tell you where they heard about you and when. You might be surprised, but the majority will be able to tell you right away. Only a small number won’t remember.
If you place several ads, you need to identify exactly which ad a prospect is calling about. The simplest method is to include an ad number or some other distinguishing feature in each ad, and ask prospects for that information when they call.
You can even try enticing callers to respond to your ads by offering a free gift. Include the phrase, “Mention this ad for a free gift” and you can be sure callers will be anxious to tell you which ad they’ve seen. The gift can be anything you’d like, from a free magnet to a free report on housing conditions.
All in all, analyzing the effectiveness of your advertising is no different than monitoring the responses you receive from yard signs. If you really want to get the most bang for your marketing buck, it’s imperative you track the source for all your calls. Only then can you tell which ads to continue and which to abandon. Remember - dumping unresponsive ads frees up money to try other forms of marketing.
Don’t be left in the dark about your marketing dollar. Start tracking your ads today.
If the idea of wasting thousands of dollars on useless advertising bothers you, it’s time to start tracking the effectiveness of your marketing materials. Fortunately, it’s simple to do.
The easiest way, is of course, to ask every prospect that calls to tell you where they heard about you and when. You might be surprised, but the majority will be able to tell you right away. Only a small number won’t remember.
If you place several ads, you need to identify exactly which ad a prospect is calling about. The simplest method is to include an ad number or some other distinguishing feature in each ad, and ask prospects for that information when they call.
You can even try enticing callers to respond to your ads by offering a free gift. Include the phrase, “Mention this ad for a free gift” and you can be sure callers will be anxious to tell you which ad they’ve seen. The gift can be anything you’d like, from a free magnet to a free report on housing conditions.
All in all, analyzing the effectiveness of your advertising is no different than monitoring the responses you receive from yard signs. If you really want to get the most bang for your marketing buck, it’s imperative you track the source for all your calls. Only then can you tell which ads to continue and which to abandon. Remember - dumping unresponsive ads frees up money to try other forms of marketing.
Don’t be left in the dark about your marketing dollar. Start tracking your ads today.
The Successful Realtor - How Much is Your Time Worth?
To be truly successful, realtors need to work hard, long hours. Let’s face it – you’re not working a 9 to 5 Monday to Friday job … but have you ever stopped to consider if you’re spending those hours wisely? To know for sure, you need to first figure out how much you earn per hour.
Start by determining how many hours you work each week, on average. Multiply that figure by the number of weeks you work in a year. Then divide last year’s income by that amount.
For example: Last year you earned $60,000. You work 65 hours per week and 50 weeks a year. Therefore: $60,000 ¸ (65 x 50) = $18.18 per hour.
Now ask yourself this: How many hours do you spend each week on tasks you could pay someone less than $18 per hour to do for you? Do you prepare your own mailings? Send out follow-up postcards and emails? Post yard signs? Act as a courier to deliver contracts and paperwork? If you do these things yourself, you’re losing money. Consider outsourcing them for less money and spending your time on productive tasks that will build your business.
Craig Proctor, one of the top Remax agents in the world, concentrates his efforts on “rainmaker activities”. This man sold over $100 million in real estate last year, but you can be sure he didn’t do it all himself. He put systems in place. He automated tasks where possible. He focused his attention on things that would make his business better. And he let his assistants take care of the rest.
Craig credits Michael Gerber’s book The E-Myth for providing the inspiration. In his book, Gerber explains that most small business owners fail because they spend too much time in the business instead of on the business. They spend each day putting out small fires instead of charting their future plans.
So what should you, as a small business owner, be focusing on? That’s easy … lead generation. Your number one priority as a realtor is to be constantly generating leads. And that means that you need to dedicate a large portion of your time to marketing your business.
Other rainmaker activities include:
- Listing appointments
- Buyer appointments
- Accounting
Everything else can be delegated. As Craig became more successful, he even began to delegate listing and buyer appointments. Now, all he does is marketing.
Even if you don’t have the money to hire an army of assistants right away, you can still apply these principles to make your business more successful. Start today - list all the things you do that can be delegated or automated and work on letting them go. Then commit to doing one task each day to build your business. Do one lead generation activity everyday, such as calling previous customers, placing ads in the newspaper, etc. These simple steps will not only make you more productive, they’ll automatically increase your business.
Start by determining how many hours you work each week, on average. Multiply that figure by the number of weeks you work in a year. Then divide last year’s income by that amount.
For example: Last year you earned $60,000. You work 65 hours per week and 50 weeks a year. Therefore: $60,000 ¸ (65 x 50) = $18.18 per hour.
Now ask yourself this: How many hours do you spend each week on tasks you could pay someone less than $18 per hour to do for you? Do you prepare your own mailings? Send out follow-up postcards and emails? Post yard signs? Act as a courier to deliver contracts and paperwork? If you do these things yourself, you’re losing money. Consider outsourcing them for less money and spending your time on productive tasks that will build your business.
Craig Proctor, one of the top Remax agents in the world, concentrates his efforts on “rainmaker activities”. This man sold over $100 million in real estate last year, but you can be sure he didn’t do it all himself. He put systems in place. He automated tasks where possible. He focused his attention on things that would make his business better. And he let his assistants take care of the rest.
Craig credits Michael Gerber’s book The E-Myth for providing the inspiration. In his book, Gerber explains that most small business owners fail because they spend too much time in the business instead of on the business. They spend each day putting out small fires instead of charting their future plans.
So what should you, as a small business owner, be focusing on? That’s easy … lead generation. Your number one priority as a realtor is to be constantly generating leads. And that means that you need to dedicate a large portion of your time to marketing your business.
Other rainmaker activities include:
- Listing appointments
- Buyer appointments
- Accounting
Everything else can be delegated. As Craig became more successful, he even began to delegate listing and buyer appointments. Now, all he does is marketing.
Even if you don’t have the money to hire an army of assistants right away, you can still apply these principles to make your business more successful. Start today - list all the things you do that can be delegated or automated and work on letting them go. Then commit to doing one task each day to build your business. Do one lead generation activity everyday, such as calling previous customers, placing ads in the newspaper, etc. These simple steps will not only make you more productive, they’ll automatically increase your business.
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