Interview Archive

Top Producers in the mortgage industry share their success stories, marketing strategies, and mistakes THEY see professionals make. Become the best by learning from the best.

Are you a top producer that is willing to share your story? Email your contact information to info@topproducerstrategies.com

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Volume VII Issue 03: Interview with Sean Briscombe
"We're fighting an uphill battle all the time because of marketing on television, the internet, the information from news media. They're always talking about rates, and everyone wants the lowest rate. Now we have companies like ditech.com and lendingtree.com where they're actually trying to commoditize our industry. They're treating a mortgage as a commodity, and the lowest price always wins in a commodity. A lot of rookie loan officers get caught up in that and start panicking, thinking they've got to do the same thing."

Volume VII Issue 01: Interview with Jonathan Klein
"My specialty is divorce planning and it is uncontested market space. I don’t have to waste time answering fruitless calls every day about rates. The people who call me have specific needs which I’m specially qualified to meet. I don’t worry about other business I may be “giving up” which doesn’t fall into my niche. I know that by spending that time on becoming a specialist, and networking in my specialty, I’ll make any lost revenue back and then some."

Volume VI Issue 15: Re-Interview with Scott Kelsey
"I think for those who have been successful in the past, the biggest contributor to anyone’s success is the effort you put into the job. Even if things aren’t as busy as they were a year or two ago, there are ways to keep busy. Stay in front of people, meet new contacts and referral sources –all these things will eventually lead to more deals and continued success."

Volume VI Issue 10: Interview with Dan Green
"Always talk to your clients in plain English and give them an education. Give them a sense of control over their own finances. Regardless of their background or their comfort level with personal finances, people are going to make the right financial choices for themselves if they understand those choices and how they impact their lives. Education never goes out of style."

Volume VI Issue 08: Interview with Ryan Nelson
"When I first got into this business, I accidentally told people a lot of stuff that wasn't true because I wasn't sure of things. I thought we could do something and then would find out that we couldn’t. It was a humbling experience because I got shot down quite a bit but over time I really learned my job."

Volume VI Issue 06: Interview with Gary Welch
"Thank people and then ask them for more referrals. I think we do the first one pretty well, but normally not both. You need to be very confident in asking people for referrals after they've experienced the service that you give them."

Volume VI Issue 03: Interview with Matt Elerding
"It is easy to succumb to complacency from time to time. You get kind of comfortable and you don't keep doing what you need to do, such as write those thank you notes...But you have to keep doing all that. Once you’re “there” you can’t just coast. "

Volume V Issue 16: Interview with Gene Humphries
"I don’t see the mortgage business as a transaction business. I think a lot of people in our industry today try to maximize specific transactions rather than approaching each customer from a relationship point of view. Instead of viewing each customer as one mortgage, I view him or her as a lifetime of mortgages. "

Volume V Issue 14: Interview with Tom Bass
"The mistake that I most often see rookies make is trying to engage in every referral relationship. For example, if they meet a Realtor, they assume (without knowing any of the Realtor’s background) that they should work with that Realtor. This is a mistake because it is important to choose your referral relationships carefully. "

Volume V Issue 12: Interview with David Baca
"I think that if you surveyed originators in the industry, you’d find out that they don’t really have a marketing plan. They don’t really have a business plan. Even if they do, they sure don’t have it in writing. They really don’t think about how to take the next step to effectively grow their business to the next level and the beyond."

Volume V Issue 10: Interview with Scott Cummings
"The seminar really helps to educate and enlighten people on how they can improve their finances. We discuss second homes and vacation homes, as well as how to offset the costs of their purchase. We talk about funding children’s college education. We talk about purchasing and building their own homes. We talk about the capital gains tax exemptions. We talk about home equity and asset optimization."

Volume V Issue 8: Interview with Eric Union
"It’s not about quoting rates and products. It’s not about trying to compete against everyone else on price. Instead, it’s about becoming an advisor, not a salesperson. You need to be able to identify what people are trying to accomplish, both short and long term, financially. You need to understand their core values and the habits they’ve built financially."

Volume V Issue 6: Interview with Brad Sorsabal
"The additional training allowed me to double my volume within about a six month period using his “sledgehammer approach.” This approach involved warm calls rather than cold calls. I’ve used the same approach ever since."

Volume V Issue 4: Interview with Chuck Oliver
"We have a specifically defined filtering process. We used to take business wherever we could take it, and we all learned the hard way that it isn’t the best way. So our first filter is that the asset advisor has to let us do their own debt and equity advising –we require them to be an actual client."

Volume V Issue 2: Interview with Dylan Kramer
"I think the biggest mistake is over thinking everything. Sometimes there’s just too much thinking. At some point, you just have to accept the fact that you’re new to this business (or any business) and ride the learning curve."

Volume IV Issue 11: Interview with John Bell
"You’ll often hear people talk about teams, but we take it to the next level. We actually have everyone take the Kolby test before they’re hired. As a general rule, we want someone who is going to be a Mortgage Planner to be a minimum of six in the “Quick Start” category."

Volume IV Issue 9: Interview with Jim McQuaig
"My most successful campaign is to focus on finding value for the client and delivering that value. Because of that, I get referrals from my clients. I don't do “marketing” in the traditional sense of “advertising.” My marketing is really my value proposition to my client."

Volume IV Issue 7: Interview with a Winner: Cindy Ertman
"I sent hand-written thank you notes and made follow-up phone calls. I would call them on Friday afternoons and let them know that was available to handle their client needs over the weekend and give them my contact information...I truly went above and beyond what they were used to from their current mortgage professional."

Volume IV Issue 5: Interview with a Winner: Amy Tierce
"Now that I'm in management, I see new loan officers from a couple of different angles. First of all, I think they make a big mistake in not being consistent in implementing a marketing plan. Frequently new loan officers, as well as experienced ones, get impatient when they don’t see immediate results and move on to the next thing. However, the absolute rule of marketing is "repetition, repetition, repetition" in order for the message to sink in."

Volume IV Issue 1: Interview with Linda Davidson
"I had a loan officer come by last week who had been in the business for six months. She didn’t know how to fill out a 1003! She was blaming her company but I told her it was her fault. I don’t care what company you work for, there is no excuse for not learning your craft. And it’s not your company’s responsibility to teach you; it is your responsibility to learn."

Volume III Issue 23: Interview with Scott Kelsey
"Any personal experience - whether you’re buying a meal, a car or real estate - is going to lead to referrals if it’s pleasurable. So I tried to get into the right circles of people and do a very good job for my clients. I was growing my network without doing any work because I could rely on my clients to do it for me."

Volume III Issue 21: Interview with Michael Scalise
"I have about a 95% success rate when I call up a FSBO and offer to put them on my website. I tell them I’ll put a sign in their yard, list their home on the website, and do it all for free. They usually ask what the catch is. But there isn’t one. I’m selling myself while I’m helping them - that’s why I can do it for free."

Volume III Issue 19: Interview with Randall A Luebke
"From day one, we try to identify all our borrowers’ long-term financial plans and goals, and show them how they can use their mortgage and their homes to help them achieve those goals. "

Volume III Issue 17: Interview with Brent Burns
"By building affinity relationships with financial planners and attorneys, I hope to have more consistent business year round. Everyone else is out there talking to Realtors...I always try to be where everybody else isn’t. And I think there are other more consistent sources of business that I can go after. "

Volume III Issue 13: Interview with Bryan McNee
"Many of them are forced into a commission situation where they have to try to focus immediately on closing loans. They are so consumed with making the money required to survive that they aren't giving their customers all the benefits that they should as a trusted loan officer. Their short term thinking will hurt them in the long run."

Volume III Issue 11: Interview with Dave Cusano
"I'm knowledgeable about all the products that are available. I try to quantify each client's situation so I can direct them towards the best product. Understanding the market, understanding where rates have been, and giving a full array of sound advice with regards to prepaying mortgages, savings, debt and credit. Not just getting someone a mortgage, but giving them valuable information in all financial areas."

Volume III Issue 9: Interview with Dave King
"See people. Get out and make sure everyone knows who you are. Build a good base of friends and acquaintances by joining different clubs, boards and associations. Participate in anything where you can meet, and network with, people with similar interests. These people will become your best source of business and referrals."

Volume III Issue 7: Interview with Rick Geary
"If they aren't entering the business with a strong referral base, through past affiliations or a strong networking system, the best thing they can do would be to apprentice under someone who is a larger producer. It's an excellent way to gain experience very quickly and to see first hand how to take care of clients and deliver the products they need."

Volume III Issue 5: Interview with Richard Elmendorf
"I wrote a list of everything that I never wanted to do again. I then hired people to do those tasks while I concentrated on the processes that make money. I think that's something that some of the more experienced loan officers don't understand."

Volume III Issue 3: Interview with Brian Sacks
"I spend almost zero on advertising. Instead, I do a tremendous amount of PR, which gives me more credibility than I could ever pay for. It is millions of dollars of free publicity. I believe in picking a niche and becoming the expert in that niche, then letting everyone know that you are the expert."

Volume III Issue 1: Interview with Steven Marshall
"The biggest mistake new and old loan officers make is not coming up with a "referral by design" plan. This is a plan where the loan officers take such great care of the clients they have, that the clients refer them to other potential buyers and referral sources."

Volume II Issue 19: Interview with Randy Keiberlein
"You have to make contact of some kind. Not all clients realize, without a little encouragement, that calling on us again is a good thing. I had a client who was actually embarrassed that he was calling me again. I had to explain to him that we love it when our clients come back to us. I could understand his logic, so I started telling people that we want their business, over and over again."

Volume II Issue 17: Interview with Denise Phillippi
"We found out that the agents would love for us to do more open houses, but they don't want to seem "greedy" and ask us for them. If we make a point of suggesting an open house, then they'll let us hold one."

Volume II Issue 15: Interview with Sue Woodard
"Do not be afraid to make your business your own. Don't feel you have to model it after someone else's. All of our businesses are made up of little tidbits of what we've learned. You take all those little pieces and put your own spin on it, and that becomes your business."

Volume II Issue 13: Interview with John Haydin
"It clicked in my head that when you’re a divorce attorney, you have a huge need for contact with a loan officer. A loan officer can give you marketing and rates information and can tell you what can and can not be done with a loan. Right away, I called up the divorce attorney and scheduled a meeting with him. I was surprised that there was a virtually untapped niche market."

Volume II Issue 11: Interview with Craig Strent
"I think veteran loan officers become somewhat jaded. They lose some of their sales skills and forget to put their client first. They forget some of the basic relationship building skills, and they lose their focus."

Volume II Issue 9: Interview with Mark Taylor
"I have a marketing assistant, a customer service assistant, and three people who don't originate but help facilitate the transition. They help me place the loan and help take the application. I'm the originator and the one who goes out and has to make sure that the front and the end matches."

Volume II Issue 7: Interview with Michael Gilmore
"I have always preached to my loan officers that they don't want to ignore their long-term bread and butter business. It is the source of their referrals, financial planners, accountants, and Realtors."

Volume II Issue 5: Interview with Steve Rockefeller
"This is the first thing I teach all the originators here. If you don't ask for referrals, how do the clients know what you expect from them? I start asking for referrals right away. I tell clients 'I want to be your lender. I want you to be able to refer your friends to me.'"

Volume II Issue 3: Interview with Tim Braheem
"You can learn all of the tools and techniques of being a good loan officer, how to read a rate sheet, how to quote rates, all of that, but what in many cases cannot be taught or is difficult to teach, is the proper mentality."

Volume II Issue 1: Interview with Bill Hogarty
"In the loan process, instead of blaming the appraiser for being late, or blaming the title company for not drawing up the documents, or blaming the investor that it didn't get approved and so on... we actually take ownership and hold people accountable. That's the biggest mistake that I see new LOs making."

Volume I Issue 19: Interview with Dennis Duncan
"I think a lot of companies hire people who have sales ability but they don't have the nuts and bolts knowledge of the product. I've always felt that was the most important thing. I think originating takes a lot of analytical skills."

Volume I Issue 17: Interview with Patrick Fairon
"Knowledge is power and that comes from self-education. If they know more than their manager, their processor, their underwriter and their secondary marketing position they will be a valuable asset to the team and company."

Volume I Issue 15: Interview with Mike Alea
"I really try to counsel my clients on what is best for them when they come in. Most loan officers are just trying to sell a loan, and don't realize they actually selling clients an investment. That loan is an investment. It's really about helping people reach their financial goals. And when you take that approach, you don't have to work as hard any more."

Volume I Issue 13: Interview with Karen Deis
"I can tell you that one of the things that loan officers are constantly asking for is information on time management. Even though you have this wonderful marketing program and you get all these people in the door, there is the problem of managing your time so you can continue to do a higher volume of business then you did last year, the year before that, etc."

Volume I Issue 11: Interview with Jim Ladd
"When people applied with us we would send letters to them under the theme - relax, don't worry about it, go to the movies on us. Or - relax, we will take care of it, send you a blockbuster video certificate. We would send that out to the borrower, to both realtors, and to both attorneys. "

Volume I Issue 9: Interview with Jane Floyd
"I think even with veteran loan officers, time blocking is huge. You have to know when you are going to be taking apps, when you are going to be working on them, when you are going to be out marketing yourself, and when you are going to be meeting with your strategic planners, or whatever it is you do best and that makes you money."

Volume I Issue 7: Interview with Mark Klein
"I think people need to focus. I don't care if it is FHA, I don't care if it is jumbo loans, I don't care if it is non conforming loans, I don't if it is with realtors, builders or whatever. There are too many people in our business that are jack-of-all-trades and master of none."

Volume I Issue 5: Interview with Penny Doubek
"The first thing I do is to treat people the way I like to be treated. I like to feel that I do things that make a difference in peoples lives. My vision is to create constant and never-ending improvement in people's lives through financial management and personal growth. I go from that."

Volume I Issue 3: Interview with Barry Habib
"Rookies in any business or profession, people just starting out are going to make tons of mistakes. I wouldn't be afraid to make mistakes, but try and learn from them, because there are people who tell you that they are in the mortgage business for 10 years but it could be that they are in the business ONE year ten times."

Volume I Issue 1: Interview with Tom Bass
"It's a different approach to create clients where they become an annuity income versus a one-time deal. It takes a different mindset to build relationships with referral sources where you provide such a phenomenal service to them and to their clients, that they have a compelling desire to refer clients because the clients that they refer to you are just so enthralled with how great a service you provide them that they are calling back that referral source thanking them for sending them to you. "