Usherpa for Loan Officers


Brought to you by Becca Green

	BUSINESS TIPS PHONE ETIQUETTE TIPS FOR REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONALS
	Effective communications are vital in real estate for establishing and maintaining relationships with clients and partners, closing deals, and building a professional reputation. A significant part of our communications occurs over the phone, which is why good phone etiquette is important. Your phone manner can leave a lasting impression that helps you develop trust or lose it and can play a big role in how clients regard you. Here are five steps to developing a winning phone manner, and some advice on video calls. Prepare for the call. Research the person or firm you’re calling to find out all you can about their background and needs. Review client files, property preferences and budget, listings that may be relevant, and prior communications. Set a clear purpose for the call and create an agenda in your mind if not on paper, including the points you want to discuss, and goals you want to reach. Make your call in a quiet environment with a good phone connection. Try not to make calls while driving or in a noisy restaurant or coffee shop. Pay attention to how you begin. This sets the tone for the whole conversation. Always begin with a polite greeting and tell them your name. Then listen carefully to their response to get a feeling for their mood and state of mind. If this is your first contact, confirm that you’re talking to the right person. You don’t want to bring up personal information or financial topics with the wrong individual. Keep the conversation professional. Your tone should be friendly yet professional. Speak clearly and not too quickly. Let them know you’re listening by interjecting comments, such as, “OK,” “I see,” and “makes sense to me.” But don’t interrupt. Let the other person finish before you respond. Unless you know the other person well, stay away from overly casual language or slang. Skip the industry jargon unless you’re sure the person gets it. Keep your voice clear and talk at a moderate pace. If the situation gets difficult, or the conversation becomes challenging, stay calm and composed. End the call by making a positive final impression. Review the main points talked about and any agreed-upon action items. Thank the other person for their time, and close with a polite “goodbye,” or “have a nice day,” and wait for them to hang up first. Follow up. Within 24 hours, email the other person a summary of the call, pointing up any next steps or appointments. A note on video calls. Also pay attention to phone etiquette during virtual calls on platforms, such as Zoom, FaceTime, and Teams. In addition, make sure your internet connection is stable and your face is well-lit. Mute yourself when not speaking to avoid background noise. Keep your background neutral, with no distractions, such as a window with outside activity, or a spinning ceiling fan, or just use a professional virtual background. If you’re giving a presentation, have a PDF of your graphics available to send in case your power or Wi-Fi goes out. Then send a follow-up email to see if there are questions or concerns.

	TECHNOLOGY A GUIDE TO SETTING UP YOUR DIGITAL PROFILES
	Prospective clients, friends-of-clients and strangers who have been referred to you first meet you online. That first impression can make a big difference when someone is choosing the person they will trust to help them make one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives. Here’s how to set up your digital profiles so they’re working best for you. Google yourself. If you are referred to someone, the first thing that person will do is Google you. So do it yourself now. Note what you should update, clean up, or build out. Optimize LinkedIn. LinkedIn is one of the first things that will come up on your Google search. So, make sure your profile is up to date, with a recent professional headshot, a headline that says more than “real estate agent,” and update your About section with recent accomplishments and links to your website and other social media profiles. LinkedIn can be especially important with both prospects who are relocating and professionals whose home base is LinkedIn rather than Instagram. Optimize Instagram. For all those people who do live on Instagram, check that your bio includes your full name, what you do, who you help, and where you live and work. Also put in how to contact you, either by your website link, phone number, or a DM-friendly CTA. Straighten up Facebook. Make sure your personal Facebook profile looks the way you want it to. Update your profile picture; in the About section, add your business and tag your brokerage or Facebook business page; and adjust privacy settings if you don’t want some posts to be public. You could also pin a post or update your cover photo with info about your real estate business. Claim or update your Google Business Profile. This helps you show up in local searches and builds trust among people looking for an agent nearby. So, claim your profile, or ask your brokerage if they have a Google Business Profile you can be added to. Then, make sure to: add your professional headshot; fill out contact details; share a short bio about your work; start gathering reviews. Check your email signature. This is important, since it’s on every email you send. It should have your full name and title, phone number, email address, website link, and social media icons and links for the platforms you use. Make your first posts about branding. Before you start posting listings, post a short intro covering who you are and who you help. You could post a selfie with a caption about why you got into real estate; or post about your local market specialty and how to contact you; or post a fun personal and professional “5 Things About Me.” This positions you in the market from Day 1, and sets the tone for how people think about you. Build local authority. Post like you live in the community. This profiles you as the go-to source for all the things going on in your town. Feature local events, small businesses, coffee shops, parks, restaurants, etc. Offer real estate tips for your market, and celebrate clients with their permission. Review and adjust monthly. Set aside 30 minutes a month on your calendar for online housekeeping. Google yourself to make sure nothing strange appears, update bios if you shift your focus, and add new photos and content.

	MARKET TIP OVERLOOKED NICHES IN THE REAL ESTATE MARKET
	Most real estate agents chase the same types of clients such as move-up sellers and buyers, first-time buyers, luxury listings, investors, and so on. But there’s a big opportunity to serve people in overlooked niches of the market. Here are six niches you could own. Teachers, nurses, and first responders. These are busy people whose schedules can be all over the place, so you have to be flexible. Multigenerational households. More families are moving in together like families with adult children still living at home; aging parents moving in with adult children. The needs are for homes with in-law suites, finished basements, multiple kitchens, ADUs, or renovation potential. Families with special needs. Families with children or adults with physical or developmental challenges can require specific features, such as single-level layouts, quiet neighborhoods, wheelchair accessibility, or proximity to care facilities. Veterans and active military. You need to be knowledgeable about military benefits, VA loan requirements, and PCS orders. Also be ready to deal with frequent relocations, tight timelines, long-distance closings, and quick turnarounds. Probate and estate sales. These often require dealing with out-of-town heirs, collaborating with estate attorneys, and people who don’t know the process. These also can include vacant homes and deferred maintenance. Divorcing couples. The situation usually involves emotion, tension, legal processes and a home that needs to be sold. If you can become a neutral, calming expert who can navigate conflict with compassion, you can do well. You’ll want a network of mediators and attorneys to work with, and systems to manage separate communications. To be honest, these niches may require some extra knowledge and work. But when you master them, you’ll stand out as an expert, becoming the go-to resource. You won’t just win listings, you’ll earn referrals, trust, and long-term relationships. And when the market is flooded with competition, the agents who specialize are the ones who thrive.
	Thank you for the business-building opportunities your partnership provides — we love providing the same to you!

		Becca Green Branch Manager MLO NMLS ID 314385 NMLS# 3274 9065 S. Pecos Ave, Suite 120 Henderson, NV 89074 Office: 702-851-4321 [email protected] https://thebeccagreenteam.com/

	This e-mail is an advertisement for Becca Green. The material provided is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment and/or mortgage advice, or a commitment to lend. Although the material is deemed to be accurate and reliable, there is no guarantee of its accuracy. The material contained in this message is the property of Guild Mortgage Company and cannot be reproduced for any use without prior written consent. Guild Mortgage Company LLC, NMLS #3274. The material provided is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment and/or mortgage advice, or a commitment to lend. The material does not represent the opinion of the company. Although the material is deemed accurate and reliable, there is no guarantee of its accuracy. Licensed by the Department of Business Oversight under the California Residential Mortgage Lending Act; NV Banker #1076/Broker #1141. I lend in NV, AZ, UT, CA, FL, CO, MO, MT, TN and TX. MLO NMLS ID 314385.