Use Bots to Reach Borrowers and Referral Partners

Everyone got excited for the future when they watched “The Jetsons.” People thought they would one day own Rosie the Robot housekeepers, travel from place to place through tubes, and go to salons where clunky tech could change hairstyles instantly. The future arrived without Rosie or any other physical robots, but artificial-intelligence bots are definitely here. 

Although they may not help us fly through space or get whatever we want to eat at the press of a button, bots are definitely a powerful asset for creating more consistent sales. Mortgage originators will want to learn what they can accomplish with bots. 

Sorting prospects

Bots are an automated software program that interacts with people or other computers, which means they can handle the repetitive heavy lifting for you. Bots also are responsive. You can design your bot to create journeys for your clients that are specific to their needs. They’re similar to the choose-your-own-adventure books from your childhood. The way your prospect interacts with the bot dictates what they’ll experience. 

A well-designed and executed bot makes your prospect feel seen and understood. It educates them on the things they need to know given their specific situation. The bot also puts them into the proper bucket of either “ready to buy now,” “ready to buy within 90 days,” “nurture for future sales” or “not a good fit.” By separating prospects into their respective buckets, you can now give them targeted messaging, content and education that warms them up for the sale.

There are several ways you can obtain and install a bot for your business. The first thing you want to decide is whether or not you want to install, design and implement the bot yourself. If you want to do the work yourself, all you have to do is Google “messenger bot” and you will find companies to choose from. Each bot company will have their own tutorials and walk-throughs to help you navigate the technical aspects of installing the bot. 

If you’d like someone else to install your bot for you, it might take a little more digging. Many social media management and advertising companies offer bot services, as do many marketing agencies. Look for social media or marketing companies that work specifically with mortgage originators, and ask if they offer bot services. If you already work with a company that you like and they do not offer bot services, ask them if they have any referrals for you. 

Educating clients

The bot’s function is pretty straightforward. The complication comes from not fully thinking through the journey your bot is creating for your client. One of the most common mistakes loan originators make when building bots is to make the bot too aggressive. 

You don’t want to interrogate your prospect, especially upon entry into your world. Instead, you want to offer value upfront. Think about giving your prospect a big win right away. For example, are they looking to get a bigger house than the one they have right now? If so, you can use the bot to immediately let prospects know what their house is worth.

Are your prospects interested in buying a home within the next year but they’re worried about their credit? No worries. You can create an epic credit-hacking checklist that prospects can access as soon as they subscribe to your bot. Whatever topic you choose for your audience, make sure you create tangible success for your prospects right away. 

Are you a little worried because you deal with different kinds of prospects with different needs? Again, no worries. That’s what a bot is for. It can actually sort your people into different buckets quickly so that they get the resource that’s right for them. 

You can create resources and pathways for such things as first-time homebuying, flipping a house, raising a credit score or anything else. The possibilities are limited only by your imagination — and what your prospects want. Don’t try to give them something that they don’t want. It ends badly and with bruised egos.

Another important component is to keep the tone conversational. No one wants to feel like they’re talking to a bot. Prospects want to feel like they’re having a conversation with you. Once you’ve engaged with your prospects, sorted them into the proper bucket and given them a win, then you can ask for a call. The best part is the bot can automate all of this, so the only thing you have to do is design the prospect pathway and install the pathway into the bot. Then just let the bot do its job. 

Another important component is to keep the tone conversational. No one wants to feel like they’re talking to a bot. Prospects want to feel like they’re having a conversation with you.

Reaching Realtors

Now that you know how to build a bot for leads, you can construct one for all kinds of prospecting tasks — including referral partners. You want to take the same concepts you used to design a client-based lead-generation bot and apply it to one for referral partners. 

Thinking about your referral partners, what are the things that they want most? More leads. Since originators and Realtors have a symbiotic relationship by nature, helping them helps you. There’s a catch, however: If you market this as another, “I’ll help you grow your business and get more leads” opportunity, your message is going to fall on deaf ears. So, you need to brainstorm ways you can make your message stand out. 

For example, to properly leverage your new bot tool for Realtor partners, you could create an educational win around the idea of, “Want to meet the leads of your dreams while you sleep or cheer your kid on at their soccer game? Want to do it without ever having to stare at your phone or jump when it rings?” A little cheesy, yes, but the example will do. 

There are two main ways you can leverage bots for your Realtor partners. You can set up the bot in-house and then hand the leads to your Realtor partners, or you can create a custom bot for your top referral partners as a thank-you. The first option gives you more control, while the second option can entice your Realtor partners to work harder at giving you referrals so they can earn their own lead-generation system. Neither is right or wrong. It’s all about preference.

Think about the problems your Realtor partners have and be specific with how you’ll help them solve those problems. That’s how you’re going to stand out. Once you help them achieve initial success, you can nurture them with content that will help them make more sales, which will naturally keep you top of mind. Then you can have your bot schedule a call to talk more specifically about being referral partners. 

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The best part about installing a bot into your business is that you can have it create and nurture any kind of lead flow you want. All you have to do is intentionally implement your system with the type of lead you want in mind so you can help them solve their problems. •