Optimism Will Improve Your Sales

Did you know that research proves that optimistic salespeople are more successful than pessimists?  In fact, studies show  that optimism outsell their pessimistic peers by 20-40%. Sounds good but what if you aren’t a natural Pollyanna?  The good  news is that even if you don’t typically view the glass as half-full, you can learn to be more optimistic.  For starters, we  suggest the following:

 Practice Gratitude.

By practicing more gratitude, you can slowly start to change your perspective.  Begin each day by thinking about a few things  that you are truly grateful for.  You may even consider beginning a gratitude journal and writing down the things that you are  most appreciative of.  This focus—on what’s right, rather than what’s wrong—will help you to alter your mindset.

Change the Way that You View Setbacks.

Optimism is associated with resilience.  In the sales world, being able to view setbacks as occasional occurrences that happen to everyone—rather than as evidence that you’re not a good salesperson—will help you to have a rosier perspective.  Consider setbacks as opportunities for you to learn, rather than proof of failure.

Rethink Your Relationships.  

Motivational speaker Jim Rohn says, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”  Are you spending time with people who uplift you or people who drag you down?  An hour in the company of a cynical complainer can have a negative impact on your entire day.  Aim to spend time with people who look on the bright side of things.

Choose Uplifting Material.

Just reading about others who have overcome adversity can help you to feel inspired.  Look for reading material that is motivational and positive in tone.  Some good places to start are the Chicken Soup for the Soul series and Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill.  Reading about other people who have overcome challenges with a positive mindset will help you to have a better attitude when you’re tempted to dwell on your problems.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

Sales & Prospects: Tips for Handling a Stalled Deal

You’ve probably encountered this situation at one time or another.  You met with a prospects, felt that the two of  you were on the same page, and walked away from the meeting elated about the sale you were about to make.  Later,  you tried to pin the prospect down to close the deal and he was on the fence.  Although frustrating, stalled deals do  occur from time to time and knowing how to reengage with your prospect will make the experience less likely to  result in a missed opportunity.

 Think Positively

Although this advice sounds very New Age, it really is useful in the sales world.  If you approach your prospect from  a perspective of fear, it can be off-putting and lessen the likelihood that you can reinvigorate the sale.  Be mindful  that this is just one deal out of many potential ones, rather than focusing on whether this will prevent you from meeting your monthly financial goals.

Prepare Supporting Documentation

Knowing that stalled deals are an unfortunate reality, be prepared for them.  In the course of your work, you’ve probably seen that there are certain points in the sales life cycle where prospects are hesitant to move forward.  Typically, their reasons can be attributed to fear and uncertainty.  Create documents that address common questions and fears they might have so that when a deal does stall, you can address their concerns.

Use Testimonials

When a deal fails to move forward, it is because the prospect doesn’t believe that there is enough value in completing the sales transaction.  Think of clients who at one point felt similarly and later on, were very pleased that they decided to go through with the deal.  Share these stories with the prospect to set his mind at ease and to let him know that this commonly occurs in the sales process.

Be Forthcoming

Throughout the sales life cycle, you want to avoid giving the prospect the false impression that the deal will be simpler than it actually is.  Instead, be upfront about any potential issues without inundating him with stories about what could go wrong.  This establishes trust and credibility, important factors in a sales transaction.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

Mortgage Marketing: Developing Your USP

As a mortgage broker, it’s important to differentiate yourself from your competition. But how can you do that? You do so by developing your USP. In marketing, USP refers to unique selling proposition. In essence, it is that special something about your brand that sets you apart from your competitors. Once you know what your USP is, you’ll want to use it in your mortgage marketing materials so that you can clearly communicate the value you offer to prospective clients.

Sometimes it can be hard to determine what it is that sets you apart from other brokers. So, here are some things to consider as you formulate your USP:

Experience. Is your core area of expertise in getting mortgage loans for those with poor credit histories? Do you specialize in refinancing? Think about your experiences and how they might relate to your USP.

Demographics. Demographics are important to consider in any marketing initiative. Ask yourself who your target client is. Is your primary market young, first-time homebuyers? Or is your core demographic older homeowners who require your services? When creating your USP, you’ll want to ask yourself how likely it is that your USP will resonate with your target market.

Soft Skills. Are you willing to leave no stone unturned in getting the best offer for your client? Is providing exemplary customer service your goal? Do you offer unparalleled professionalism? Do an assessment and reflect on what makes you different from other mortgage brokers.
After you’ve thought about these items, start drafting your USP. Ideally, it should be a short statement that not only reflects your value but that clients will easily remember. A common example is FedEx’s USP, “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight.” It’s simple, easy to recall, and delineates FedEx as the shipping provider that guarantees overnight delivery.

Once you have a good USP, don’t forget to incorporate it into your marketing materials. It should appear on your website, as well as your advertising, newsletters, and emails. Over time, your brand identity will become closely associated with the USP that you carefully crafted.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail,Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

10 Prospecting Voicemail Don’ts

Many of us may use prospecting as a method to reach new clients and probably not a day goes by when you don’t get directed to someone’s voice mail. For some, this can be an unnerving experience. But with a little forethought and preparation, leaving an intelligent-sounding and effective voice mail can be less difficult than you might fear. Kendra Lee, author of The Sales Magnet and president of KLA Group, has identified the most common voice mail mistakes in this handy:

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Below we offer a summary of the top 10 things she suggests that you avoid doing when leaving a voice mail.

Being Dishonest. It might be tempting to act as if you’ve been trying to get the prospect on the phone for awhile. But if this isn’t true, “playing pretend” comes off as odd and dishonest. Instead, think of a better way to make an inroad with the individual in question.

Don’t Ramble. If you’ve ever found yourself babbling when you’ve unexpectedly landed in someone’s voice mail, you know how unprofessional this appears. Prepare what you would like to say in advance and then, stick to it.

Focusing on Your Products and Services. At first glance, this seems like an odd addition to this list. However, it’s important to remember that your goal is to get your prospect’s interest. Rather than going on about your services, think about how you can address the client’s needs and mention that in your voice mail.
Forgetting to Leave Your Contact Information. All too often, people forget this crucial detail. Lee suggests that you provide your name and number at the beginning and end of the message. Make this a regular habit for all of your voice mails and as you become accustomed to doing so, you’ll find yourself less likely to make this mistake.

Giving Up Too Easily. A lot of salespeople throw in the towel after 2-3 calls. But it can take as many as 7-8 calls to get a return phone call. Be persistent.
Being Overly Brief. If your prospect isn’t being given a compelling reason to return your phone call, he won’t. Don’t make your message so short that he fails to see the value in contacting you for more information.

Addressing Too Many Topics. You might provide multiple services that you want to let your prospect know about. But trying to cover a wide variety of subjects in a voicemail is to your detriment. Instead, choose one topic and stick to it.

Being Passive. Sitting around waiting for your phone to ring is never enjoyable. Once you’ve left a voice mail, have a plan in place for when you’ll follow-up.
Forgetting Your Referral. If somebody referred you to this prospect, it’s crucial that you mention that in your voice mail. In this case, “name dropping” is your foot in the door and you want to take full advantage.

Talking Too Rapidly. Do you sound like you’re talking so fast that you don’t have time to take a breath? Aim to use a conversational pace in voice mails, rather than racing through your message.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

Mortgage Industry & Thoughtfulness: A Daily Work Habit Worth Cultivating

Each day you probably engage in dozens of habits that you don’t even think twice about. You wake up in the morning, shower, check your email, drink a cup of coffee, etc. And while you probably find those habits enriching in some way, there is one daily work habit that promises the most enrichment—thoughtfulness. By cultivating a habit of thoughtfulness, you can experience greater happiness, better relationships, and more business success. If you are in the mortgage industry, having your past clients refer business is an important part of cultivating new business.

What do we mean by thoughtfulness? The Mirriam-Webster Dictionary defines thoughtfulness as “showing concern for the needs or feelings of other people.” In essence, thoughtfulness means that you place a value on treating the people who you encounter throughout the day with kindness.

To make thoughtfulness become a habit, we recommend setting an intention. In the morning before you leave for work, remind yourself of your goal to be thoughtful throughout the day. You can also place reminders in locations you’ll be likely to notice them such as your bathroom mirror, car, and office phone.

As you go about your day, look for opportunities to respond thoughtfully. This might mean maintaining a positive demeanor—rather than rolling your eyes—when you’re in a long line at the gas station. Or maybe you remember a client’s birthday with a card. It could mean realizing that someone might be having a bad day and showing more patience with their behavior than you typically would.

When you begin to cultivate an attitude of thoughtfulness, you’ll find that people start to respond to you differently. They’ll often be more engaging and kind themselves. In turn, you’ll find that you enjoy your interactions more which will help you to maintain a positive attitude throughout the day. This will only add to your professional success.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

Mortgage Marketing: 7 Tips to Get Your Prospecting Emails Read

Do you know what the email open rate is for your prospects? It probably ranges between 15-20%, according to Constant Contact. That’s a fairly low number and it means that there’s lots of potential for improvement. Fortunately, there are things that you can do to increase the likelihood that your emails will be read:

Get Personal. People appreciate emails that have a personal touch. Avoid using stiff, dated language and instead, try to incorporate the type of language that you would use if you were communicating in person. Also, make sure to address the prospect by name.

Use A Compelling Subject Line. The subject line is what’s going to motivate your prospect to open the email. As such, you’ll want to mention in your subject line what benefit you are offering the recipient. But, make sure to avoid spam triggers by removing exclamation points and the word, “free.” Spam filters are more likely to direct these emails straight to the trash bin.

Choose A Great Opener. Start your email with a good hook. Some suggestions include a shocking statistic, a humorous anecdote, or a relevant question. Your goal is to draw the reader in and the more interesting you can be from the start, the more likely your prospect will want to read the rest of your email.

Remain Consumer-Focused. While it’s tempting to boast about your credentials, think about the email from the customer’s point of view. Rather than make your emails egocentric in nature, think about your prospects’ needs and the benefits that are important to them. Then, address those issues upfront. The more that you can make your email consumer-focused, the better it will resonate with the reader.

Include a Call-To-Action. Every email campaign should feature a call-to-action. What is it exactly that you would like your prospect to do? Do you want them to set up a free consultation? Would you like them to sign up for your newsletter? In your email, choose one action item that you would like your prospect to take. Then, include it in 3 places throughout the email.

Design for Mobile. Almost half of all emails are read on mobile. If you don’t take this into account—and design your email for laptop reading only—you’re missing out on half of your market right out of the gate. Instead, create emails that are optimized for mobile. This is becoming more and more important as the number of consumers in the US with smart phones continues to grow.

Consider Timing. Think about when your prospects are most likely to have the time to review your email. For instance, a bad time to reach out to them would be over the weekend when they might not be checking email during their off-hours. If your email marketing software allows it, try testing your campaign. Send half of your emails in the morning and half of them later in the day. See if you notice any significant difference in open rates.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail,Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

5 Ways to Excel at Customer Service

Consumers are two times more likely to share their bad customer service experiences than they are to talk about positive experiences, says a recent report. Furthermore, 55% of consumers say that they would be willing to pay more for a better customer service experience. These statistics highlight just how important good customer service is to sales. When you offer your clients exceptional service, their satisfaction level increases and they’re more willing to remain loyal to your brand.

Below we offer up our top tips for excelling in the customer service arena:
Have a Positive Attitude. Who would you rather do business with–someone who’s positive and friendly or someone who is frequently out-of-sorts? People prefer to do business with those who are cheerful. When a survey asked respondents what qualities they expect from someone in the customer service field, overwhelmingly they chose a positive attitude as their number one attribute.

Appreciate Your Clients. It’s not often that businesses will go the extra mile to show customers that their support is appreciated. This makes the businesses that do really stand out. There are all kinds of ways that you can show clients that you care without breaking the bank. For example, after working with them, send them a thank-you note or call in a week to see how things are going. Make it your aim to let your clients know that their business is appreciated.

Be Responsive. There are few things worse than lodging a complaint or an inquiry to someone who doesn’t bother to acknowledge or address the issue in question. If a client comes to you with a problem, be responsive and work to resolve it promptly. People will respect your professionalism.

Arrive on Time. If you’ve ever waited 20 minutes for someone to show up to a business meeting, you’ve probably felt that your time wasn’t very important to the late attendee. If you’re the one frequently running late, you’re communicating in a subtle way to others that you don’t value their time. After all, you probably managed to show up promptly for those events that were important to you (remember your last job interview?). Show clients that they’re valued by giving yourself extra time to arrive at meeting locations; you can always get caught up on your email until they arrive.

Be Reliable. Think of some of the all-stars you’ve worked with in the past. These are the people you can count on to handle any issue. Once you give them something to work on, you can trust them to do it without continually following up to check their progress. People appreciate this kind of reliability. Strive to be an all-star for your clients. They’ll value knowing that they can trust you to do what they requested without micromanaging.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

Marketing: The Tip to Selling? Become A Better Listener

Oftentimes you’ve probably heard it said that listening is one of the most important talents that a good salesperson possesses. There’s some truth to this. By being skilled in this arena, a salesperson has the opportunity to listen to a prospect’s objections, address them, and hopefully, make the sale. Yet even though most salespeople understand that active listening is critical, many of them fail to do so. The good news is that people can become better listeners with practice–below we offer some suggestions for accomplishing that goal.

Develop the Right Mindset.
You may believe that being a better  listener means that you’ll be bored or feel impatient during sales calls. This negative assumption is to your detriment. Rather than surmise that the conversation will be less enjoyable, remain open-minded. Trust that when you’re actively listening, you’ll derive more from meetings with sales prospects than you would otherwise.

Prepare in Advance.
One reason that salespeople struggle to listen to prospects is because they are considering how they’re going to respond to what the prospects are saying. Typically, they’re coming up with good follow-up sales questions. Yet as Jill Konrath, author of SNAP Selling states, “Your brain is unable to do two things simultaneously. It can either listen OR it can formulate questions to ask. Not both. Just one.” She recommends that rather than formulate questions on the fly, you prepare for sales calls by drawing up a list of questions in advance that you can ask potential clients. When prospects respond to your prepared questions, you’ll feel more comfortable allowing yourself to relax and listen, knowing that you have a list of good questions to draw from. Click HYPERLINK “http://www.jillkonrath.com/sales-blog/bid/160825/One-Easy-Tip-for-a-Successful-Sales-Conversation” HYPERLINK “http://www.jillkonrath.com/sales-blog/bid/160825/One-Easy-Tip-for-a-Successful-Sales-Conversation” HYPERLINK “http://www.jillkonrath.com/sales-blog/bid/160825/One-Easy-Tip-for-a-Successful-Sales-Conversation” HYPERLINK “http://www.jillkonrath.com/sales-blog/bid/160825/One-Easy-Tip-for-a-Successful-Sales-Conversation”here to watch a 90-second video she created that explains this process in more detail.

Remove Distractions.
It’s rare these days that we place our full focus on listening. Oftentimes, we’re adjusting our clothing, glancing at our email, seeing who our latest text was from, etc. Make sure that before trying to listen to someone, you minimize distractions as much as possible. And when your mind is the culprit –with thoughts of what you should eat for dinner and whether the dry cleaning is ready to be picked up–make an effort to catch it in its tracks. Stop and redirect your attention to your prospect. Since great listeners are hard to come by, your prospect will appreciate how intently you’re focusing which will help to build rapport.

Celebrating 15 years in Business!

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.