Mortgage Marketing & Lead Generation Blog

By JC Kiadii, Mortgage Internet Marketing Specialist^SM

For several years now, research has shown that over 70% of new buyers begin their search on the Internet. Blogs have a proven traffic record of attracting Internet traffic.

When I talk to mortgage professionals about blogging benefits, I meet some resistance. They usually mention: (1) they don’t have time to blog, and (2) they’re not sure which topics to use. If you are stymied for ideas for your mortgage blog, try this one. While it won’t work for everyone, it may work for you.

Job searching and career development topics are hot, especially during the current graduation season. Forbes.com has just released their list of the Top College Towns for Jobs. As the title suggests, the article lists 20 college towns with the best employment prospects. If one of these towns happens to be in your target market, use this information in your mortgage blog.

Write a post highlighting the fact that your town made the list, making sure to, of course, give credit to Forbes.com. Don’t forget to include the name of your town in the title of your post, ex., “Athens makes Forbes’ List of College Towns with Best Employment Opportunities.” Add information about hot industries in your town, or the top hirers.

As a tie-in to your business or a call to action, include a paragraph about the mortgage programs your company offers that are suited to people just launching their careers. Will your mortgage program credit college time towards employment history? Do you offer gift programs? All of these items are great ways to use this post to market your services.

If you decide to use this tip, I would love to read your blog post. Please include a link to it in the comments section.

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GroupOn offers coupons (at least 50% off) on all types of products and services in your local area.

When I checked for my area (Atlanta), for example, deals on the following services:

• Oil change and tire rotation
• American Adventures
• Dining
• Dental cleaning and exams
• Spa treatments
• Manicures & Pedicures
• Paintball
• Wine appreciation classes

It’s free to sign-up (http://www.groupon.com/r/uu538762). You get a daily email with the deal of the day. If you like the deal, you purchase it.  Once sign up, you can refer people to the site and earn $10 Groupon bucks for each sign-up. The link is my affiliate link.

Happy Saving

JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and Internet Marketing Services . 770-469-7385.
Atlanta-based MS Software Trainer (Access, Excel, Project, Word, Outlook, etc)

Did
you know about this MS
Office 2007 add-on?

JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and
Internet Marketing
Services . 770-469-7385.

I teach a “What’s New with Office 2007″ course, to help people
transitioning from Office 2003 to 2007. One of the features students
(even those who’ve already worked with Office 2007) are surprised to
learn about is the free add-on that allows you to create PDF files.

It’s available from Microsoft at no cost. To download
the PDF Writer, click here.

Once the PDF Writer is  installed on your system, using it is
a snap. Simply click the Office Button, select Save As, then PDF or
XPS.

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JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and
Internet Marketing
Services . 770-469-7385. Are
you reaching out to the 87%
of new buyers who start their search online?
Our team provides
results-driven mortgage
Internet marketing services.
Visit our website and sign up for the More Closings
email
newsletter to receive the report 6
Steps to More Referrals.

One
of my favorite sources for multi-syllabic words is the BBC. I can
always look
forward to hearing a new word, or one I haven’t heard in a long time.

The word of the week is – ignominious.

Ignominious,
an adjective, is defined as “marked by or attended with ignominy;
discreditable; humiliating: an
ignominious retreat.” Source:
dictionary.com

Can you use the word ignominious in a sentence?
 

JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and
Internet Marketing
Services .
770-469-7385. 

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Business Organization for the Mortgage Broker – A $0.75 Productivity Tool

I am always on the lookout for tips mortgage professionals can use to simply and organize their business. The more affordable these tools are, the better.

Here’s a business productivity tool I use, and it only costs 75 cents – it’s the post-it note.

Yes, I admit it. The idea that a post-it note can help you be more organized seems odd. In most time management and goal setting classes, we are encouraged to stop using post-it notes as to-do lists, and instead organize our to-do-lists in one place. I wholeheartedly agree with that advice.

I use post-it notes in other ways.

1. To create processes and systems.

   When I am working on documenting or systematizing a particular part of my business, I find that writing the steps on post-it notes makes the process easier and more efficient. I don’t have to focus on which step comes first, etc., all I do is write each step on a post-it note. I post the notes on a clean surface (ex., a whiteboard). Once I’m done, I can organize the notes, discard the ones that don’t fit, and then enter the steps into my computer. Using post-it notes easily cuts the time I spend documenting processes in half.

   Here are 2 ways I’ve used post-it notes to create systems.

   To create the step-by-step system to use to help my mortgage clients improve their search engine optimization results.

   For my annual business brain dump. When I launched my business over 8 years ago, I participated in an excellent, in-depth entrepreneurial training program.  This program included a “brain dump” exercise, where we were supposed to write down every thing involved in running a business. This exercise had a two-fold purpose: (1) to come up with an accurate estimate of how much time you need to spend in and on your business and (b) to start thinking of tasks you can outsource. 

2. To tag my notebooks.

   I use a hybrid system of Outlook tasks and a spiral bound notebook. All of my to-do items go into tasks, and my daily notes go into my spiral bound notebook. Each notebook, then, is a record of my activities during a particular time period. Occasionally, I’ll jot something in my notebook when I don’t have the time to type it into my computer.

So, give this mortgage productivity tool a good look.

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JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and Internet Marketing Services . 770-469-7385. Are you reaching out to the 87% of new buyers who start their search online? Our team provides results-driven mortgage Internet marketing services. Visit our website and sign up for the More Closings email newsletter to receive the report 6 Steps to More Referrals.

The word of the week, in keeping with the Thanksgiving spirit, is gratitude.

Gratitude is: “the quality or feeling of being grateful or thankful” (source: dictionary.com).

Gratitude is good for you. Some studies show that gratitude strengthens your immune system. 

Gratefulness is the key to a happy life that we hold in our hands, because if we are not grateful, then no matter how much we have we will not be happy — because we will always want to have something else or something more.
Brother David Steindl-Rast

In her excellent ezine, The Coaching Session, Valorie Burton suggests we start a new Thanksgiving ritual of composing a gratitude letter. (I recommend you subscribe to Valorie’s email newsletter for a weekly dose of encouragement that inspires you to act.)

Before each Thanksgiving meal, my Mother would have all of us (friends, family, adults and children) hold hands to say grace. Everyone had to share at least one reason they were grateful. This will be our first Thanksgiving since she passed away, and there are no words to express how much we all miss her.

I took some time this morning to honor her memory by reflecting on my reasons for gratitude, for as the Scripture says . . .

Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
I Thessalonians 5.16-18

Wishing you and your loved ones a joy-filled Thanksgiving,

JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and Internet Marketing Services . 770-469-7385. 

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JC
Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and
Internet Marketing Services .
770-469-7385.

For several years, I have provided email
marketing services to help mortgage professionals attract and convert
leads.

In addition to customizing email newsletter templates, setting up
auto-responders, developing ezine content, and building subscriber
lists, I also check open rates to recognize email response patterns.

One of my most surprising findings is that the best
time to launch your email marketing program is during a holiday season.
It can be any holiday – Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, or the
Christmas and New Year’s season. 

Do not use the holiday themed
email newsletter to market your services
- instead, send a simple holiday greeting and include a link to your
website. Why? People are inundated by, and therefore resistant
to, marketing messages. People cannot seem to resist opening an email
with a holiday themed subject line such as “Happy Thanksgiving.”

The high open rates allow you to introduce your new mortgage email
marketing newsletter to a receptive audience. That way, your audience
won’t be surprised when they get future email newsletters advertising
your services.

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JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and
Internet Marketing Services .
770-469-7385. Are you
reaching out to the 87% of new buyers who start their search online?
Our team provides results-driven
mortgage Internet marketing services.
Visit our website and sign up for the More Closings
email newsletter to receive the report 6
Steps to More Referrals.

It seems as if we are on a never-ending quest to accomplish more in less time. Email, smart-phones, to-do lists — each tool we acquire has to be learned and managed, which in turn leaves us with even less time.

Whenever I find a tip or tool that works, I share it in case you can use it also.

For several years, this tool has helped me be more productive, and the great part is – it costs less than $3!

What is it, you ask? A kitchen timer!

Photo Source: Kevin C on flickr

Here are a couple of ways I use the kitchen timer:

1. To focus on tasks that need to be completed ASAP.  There’s just something about knowing that alarm is about to go off that makes you more efficient. I set the timer when it’s time to file paperwork, for example, work as fast as I can, and get that lovely feeling of accomplishment when its done.
2. To increase my speed. Although I can come up with good work when I’m inspired, alas, I am the world’s slowest writer. Considering the fact that I maintain 2 blogs, 2 ezines, and write for other websites, this is not good. So, after revieiwing my topic, I set the timer for 15 or 30 minutes and work as fast as until the timer goes off.

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JC Kiadii, Mortgage Virtual Assistance and Internet Marketing Services . 770-469-7385. Are you reaching out to the 87% of new buyers who start their search online? Our team provides results-driven mortgage Internet marketing services. Visit our website and sign up for the More Closings email newsletter to receive the report 6 Steps to More Referrals.

Welcome
to this installment of the Word of the Week. This week’s word is an
eight-letter word that starts with an s. According to dictionary.com,
the word means “cheerfully optimistic, hopeful or
confident.”

This photo is available under a
creative commons license. D. Sharon Pruitt is the original owner of the
photo.

The word of the week is sanguine. 

It is easy to be sanguine when things are going well, but it takes an
inner core of strength, of faith to be sanguine as you face what can
only be described as terrifying choices and challenges. A sanguine
person believes that no matter
what happens, it’s for the best. A sanguine person doesn’t fuss or
fret. A sanguine person handles pain and loss with grace.

Music for the
sanguine:

Al Green – Everything is Going to be
Alright

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Close
to 20 years ago,  a group of us formed a Toastmaster’s chapter
at our company.

One of the key elements
of Toastmasters is that everyone had to have a job. My favorite was
grammarian, where I delighted
in coming up with obscure, multi-syllabic
words to amuse my rest of the group. All week, I’d have people
throughout the building yelling out the word  (ex.,
obstreperous) whenever they saw me. What can I say, we were silly.

In honor of my brief tenure as grammarian, I introduce to you a new
blog feature: Jackie’s word of the week. 

This week’s word is
indefatigable.

Source: Beyond the Wall by Giuseppe Bognanni

According to dictionary.com, indefatigable means

“incapable
of being tired out; not yielding to fatigue; untiring.”
 

I simply love this word, and it is certainly appropriate for these
challenging times. Here are 3 reasons why “indefatigable” is a favorite.

1. Being
   indefatigable unleashes a reserve of strength you never knew you had. While
   talking to one of my power partners a few months ago, I found myself
   explaining that I wasn’t going to worry about obstacles. Instead, I was
   going to channel the hard headed child I used to be and just keep on
   going. I. will. not. stop.
   Just saying those words transformed me.
   Reflecting on that sentiment keeps me encouraged and focused.

2. Being
   indefatigable neutralizes the haters.
   According to urbandictionary.com, a hater is “A
   person that simply
   cannot be happy for another person’s success. So rather than be happy
   they make a point of exposing a flaw in that person.”
   We all have our
   share of hates, the wet blankets of the world who delight in trying
   their best to stamp out joy.

   There is nothing like moving ahead, no
   matter what, that discourages haters and makes them move on to bother
   someone else. Once or twice I have had to look a hater in the eye and
   sweetly say “I just won’t stop. As long as the Lord wakes me up in good
   health and in my right mind, I just won’t stop.” I encourage you to try
   this – if for no other reason than to see the expression on that
   person’s face.

3. Being
   indefatigable leads to success.
   Sooner or later, if you won’t quit, you will achieve success. You may
   not achieve success in your chosen goal, but the habit of
   stick-to-itness will reap results, sometimes in an area you never
   imagined.

Music
for the indefatigable (the links take you to the youtube videos).

Break my Stride  - Matthew
Wilder

Makin’ It – David Naughton
Okay, I’ll admit. This disco ditty probably fits the bill as
egotistical rather than indefatigable, but it beat is good.

Work
That – Mary J. Blige

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