Expediting the application (while securing relationship)

Jake Vermillion	Welcome to Up-Market Sales Success, a series designed to help U.S. Bank loan officers, just like you, make the most of high-volume markets. My name is Jake, I'm a member of the Mortgage Champions team, and we we are incredibly excited to bring this powerful offering to U.S. Bank thanks to Beth Ryan, Todd McFadden, and the entire executive team. Let's dive into the topic at hand, Expediting the application (while securing relationship), with Dale Vermillion. Hi Dale!
Dale Vermillion	Hi Jake.
Jake Vermillion	In this installment, we want to explore the process of completing the application. As listeners may know, you are a strong proponent of a two-step sales process; but, in high-volume markets, you're comfortable advising a loan officer to complete the application, pull credit and get documentation—all of which we'll discuss in greater detail in the next installment—on the first call. So Dale, would you mind walking us through what that looks like at a high-level to quickly complete a mortgage application?
Dale Vermillion	Absolutely Jake. And let me begin by just saying, there's an old saying that says "In desperate times, you have to take desperate measures." So I typically would say that we want to do a two-step sales process every time, for all the reasons that we teach in the mortgage champions training; but, let me say when we're in a high-volume time where those caveats come into play: Number one, obviously, if you have a single decision-maker application. You don't necessarily need a two-step process in that case because you're dealing with the decision-maker. You don't have to worry about that becoming an issue. And therefore you can complete on that first call. Second is when you got somebody where there's limited options that you can provide to them. It's pretty much a slam-dunk deal, you can create great savings, there's not a lot of places to go. That's a second scenario where it's very easy to on a first step call. But here's the bottom line: we want to try to expedite, so a one-step call can work as long as what? We make sure that we're getting commitment, we're building relationship, and we're following our process effectively of making sure that we're getting through the application and getting everything we need to get it into operations to be able to move through quickly.
Jake Vermillion	So, how can one officers be efficient in getting through the application without losing opportunities to do as you just said: build a relationship with their borrowers?
Dale Vermillion	It's very important that we understand that on that first call—if you're going to take a one-call close approach—you've got to establish the right kind of processes to not only establish commitment with that borrower, but set yourself up for the next call and get that relationship you're looking for. The bottom line is this: you want to make sure that before you complete that call, that you have literally made sure you've asked all of the pertinent and key information in the application, that you have locked that rate in—I recommend you lock the rate in those first deals. Now, I'm not establishing what your lock policy is if you have a different policy, but I do believe if you've got somebody who likes the loan and you can lock them right here, do it. And make sure you get that Intent To Proceed completed. And most importantly, make sure you establish expectation with them at the end of that call and layout what the process is going to be, how long they should expect, and what they're going to need to do. Make sure you get those elements in and in the process of that, while you're having conversation, look for those moments where you can connect with that borrower as you're going through the application and you're getting key information, you're talking about their family members, you're talking about their home, you're talking about their financial goals. These are all leverage points that you can utilize to go deeper, to get them to talk more with you about that. Because if they talk about their family, they're connecting to you. If they talk about their home, they're connecting to you. If they talk about their financial goals, they're connecting to you. You're not only starting to learn how to better solve their financial needs, but you're building personal relationship because you're showing interest.
Jake Vermillion	Dale, one of the things I hear you say all the time is—walking through the application—to convert closed-ended questions into open-ended questions. Can you just unpack that a little bit for us?
Dale Vermillion	Yeah, it really begins by using these simple words: "Tell me about your..." It's those four words that are so critical. "Tell me about your home." "Tell me about your financial goals." "Tell me about your retirement plans." "Tell me about your credit." Anything that you start with, "Tell me about your...", it creates an open-ended opportunity. If I go in and I say, "How much is your home worth?" "How much did you buy it for?" "When did you buy it?" "How much did you put down?"—all closed-ended questions, no conversational opportunity whatsoever in those. That's the mistake most loan officers make. I want you to flip that mindset into, "Tell me about your..." and bring the higher level. "Tell me about your home." "Tell me about your plans." "Tell me about your career." These are the kinds of questions that open up conversation. You can still keep it efficient within these, but it gets them to talk at a level that you really understand them, that you really start to connect, and they will pour out personal pieces of information that get them more emotionally tied to you. And they're going to feel like you really, really care about them. And the key to all of this Jake, the last thing you've got to remember is: listen, listen, and listen! Don't cut them off! Let them finish what they're saying so they know you value them.
Jake Vermillion	Are there any obstacles to building a relationship with borrowers, especially in a high-volume market, given the technology that loan officers have in today's world?
Dale Vermillion	There is, because our technologies, what they do is they get us more into an order-taking mode. So, you want to make sure that you turn that into more of an emotional conversation by translating them out of technical terms into more relational terms. The bottom line is you don't want to become so technological, that you're no longer emotional.
Jake Vermillion	Don't forget to complete today's Skill Challenge by spending at least 30 minutes completing the next application you take. I know it sounds crazy, but trust me, you're going to build a stronger relationship with your borrower and be better off for it. And then of course, let us know how that felt by clicking the feedback link in the show description. Coming up next, Gaining commitment (with the big three).