By Doren Aldana
Have you ever wondered if purchased Internet leads really work? Perhaps you can relate to the experience of this disgruntled LO: “Why are internet leads so damn bad and the conversion rates so low? Do these people really fill out these forms or is it all BS?”
To be completely frank, I’m not a big believer in buying leads. Yes, you can make money (even six figures) calling purchased leads but it requires a ton of “smiling and dialing” and you have to get past a high wall of skepticism, fear, apathy and rejection. Not to mention the fact that you’re competing head-to-head with a dozen or so other companies solely on price. It’s like throwing yogurt at the fan hoping something sticks. On 100 calls, you’re laughing if you can get 3-4 solid apps. It’s a numbers game.
Keep in mind, these “leads” don’t know you from a hole in the wall so you’re starting at absolute ground zero. You have to break the ice with absolutely no trust, no credibility and no rapport established. And to top it off, they’re not even expecting your call. You’re unwelcome pest versus welcomed guest. That’s an uphill battle if I ever saw one!
In my opinion, Internet leads are for sales tigers who don’t have a clue how to market themselves. The only people I know who make good money with Internet leads are ultra-talented sales sharks who smile ‘n dial all day long using an auto dialer. Unfortunately, they usually spend so much time hunting for the “next deal” they never get around to creating a follow-up system to mine the gold from their existing database. If you’re income depends on your daily effort, you have a glorified job, not a real business.
That’s why I recommend developing marketing systems that feed your pipeline with a steady stream of qualified mortgage leads who are pre-sold on working with you before they even meet you. You become the “Mortgage Expert” and you don’t have to compete on price.
So, what do you think of this post? Please share your thoughts/comments below. I love feedback!
JCTworek says
Same goes for the monthly dialers ‘guaranteeing’ 25-35 leads per month.
They have about the same rate of efficiency and effectiveness: An associate on our team, before joining us paid $10K over 3 months and didn’t get 1 solid lead… seems that the lead generators are the only ones that truly make the money that they talk about: yours.
Doren Aldana says
Amen brother. The best marketer always wins!
Ron Aguilar says
Buying leads is the worst way to originate mortgages period. Your right Doren, the LO does not have the time or CRM to follow up he or she just keeps buying fresh leads.
Doren Aldana says
Yo Ron. Thanks for your insight. Marketing dummies get a customer to make a sale, while marketing masters make a sale to get a customer – for life!
Thelenderguy says
I have a different OPINION here, I am a brand new Mortgage Broker in the Mortgage Business, I started OCT 30/2010, I strictly Purchase Mortgage Leads & Advertise on The Internet, I don’t market to family and friends and I have been able to close 70 Mortgages for 20 million Since December 01/2009, so for me it works!
Thelednerguy says
sorry OCt 30/2009
Mannycharles says
Brain new mortgage guy in less than a year closing 20 million dollars by himself with mortgage leads on the internet , I am not sure that is possible in today’s environment. Maybe as a team. Otherwise Doren you might have to interview this guy.
Doren Aldana says
Hey Manny. If you give me his contact info and look into what he’s doing and if it would make sense to interview him. Thanks!
Doren Aldana says
Sweet! Glad to hear it’s working for. I’ve seen lots of my clients produce great results with PPC and SEO online, but there are very few who make a strong six-figure income strictly from “purchased Internet leads.” May I ask where you’re purchasing your leads from and what kind of leads they are?
No Lead Purchasing says
I purchased 600 leads for $17,000 from Lower My Bills.com. I was a pest to the people I called. They claimed no lead would be sold to more than 3 originators but 5 would be calling and calling the lead. And I was competing with Quicken Loans and the like who were making outrageous promises upfront. So a very bad experience for me. Worst waste of money in my life.
Bakervaughn says
It is the hard”s work I”v ever done in my Life,and spend more money then i made
jorge touzet says
But buying leads is the only real way to scale origination. You can only scale real estate networks so far. Direct to consumer is the way to scale mortgage business if handled correctly. Probably more suitable for a dedicated call center within a licensed mortgage outfit. Let a lead machine do all the heavy lifting and let the originators get patched in once the call center mines the “gold”. Definitely not a good idea to hand over a thousand raw leads for a producing originator to sift through. There are services like PreApprovalLetter.com which offer to call on your lists for a small fee. Their service takes care of the heavy lifting and hot transfers buyers to Loan originators using their own traffic sources.