“Having only one location on the web is like being a needle in a haystack; the trick is to have more needles.”

Don’t miss the downloadable Web Tracking Chart at the end of this article to monitor your Internet marketing.

If you don’t have a web presence yet, this is a great time to get started since it no longer requires shelling out thousands of dollars to have a location online. First, however, you must answer this question: What are your goals? They might include: Repeat customers. Referral business. New leads. Increased productivity. Automated marketing. Those results may sound implausible but they are achievable, depending on your budget and your dedication to incorporating your web presence into your marketing strategy. There are three main avenues of entry: web directory listing, web page and website. Think of a listing as a business card, a web page as a brochure, and a website as a tabbed notebook, and you’ll know what you’re getting. Here are the pros and cons to consider about each:

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Web Directory Listing

Consumers still turn to directories like the Yellow Pages, though more frequently they do it online through a “find” search at Google, Yahoo, MSN or other Search Engine. Online industry-specific directories are available not just for loan officers but for nearly every vocation from attorneys to zoologists. A directory listing typically consists of only basic contact information but may include space for one or two lines to describe services and/or specialties. You submit your information by completing a form online, and, depending on the site, you may receive an email confirmation when your listing is posted. Fees for a basic listing vary markedly from free to $100 per month (yes, per month).

Directories exist for loan officers and mortgage brokers but the higher-priced ones typically feature listings for lending companies, not individuals. Examples of free directories are LoanInfoHome.com and Mortgage-X.com. GoGetLoan.com is a directory and web page provider and costs $59/year. A high-end directory with traffic, starting at $50 per month/per state, is Mortgage101.com operated by LionMTS.

PROS: A directory listing is usually the least expensive way to place your contact information online. Directories may provide an opportunity for new leads since they can generate traffic (attract customers). If your directory listing includes a link to another location, i.e., web page or website, this “back link” could improve search results for that other web location. (More about back links, link exchanges and search engine ranking later.) The bare minimum for an online presence, a directory listing is better than nothing.

CONS: Directory information is limited. Listing directories permit contact info but nothing to differentiate you from others. If that listing is all you have, you’re at a distinct disadvantage. Let’s say your listing is one of 12 results from a prospect’s directory search, and three results have links to other web locations. A prospective customer is more apt to click on those readily available links than to call you to ask for more information. Also, if you want a web address for your marketing efforts, a directory probably won’t provide one. Most are programmed so pages can’t be bookmarked or the address is long, unfriendly, and not suitable for marketing, such as www.listofloannames.com/us/oh/78345mwcl28119v?asp.39071. Try putting that on a business card!

Link exchange directories publish a link to your web page or website in exchange for your posting a reciprocal link on your site. Once considered an easy method for moving up in search results, random link exchanges have fallen out of favor with search engine companies. In fact, Google, the largest search engine on the web, recently revised its algorithm to downgrade link exchanges in favor of legitimate websites that have a valid purpose and provide related content, i.e., information, articles, resources or forums.

If a directory depends on advertising for income, its pages may be cluttered with dozens of tiny ads and flashing banners, and some of them are downright ugly. Think of the image you want to project when you’re considering directories, but remember free is free and the more locations you have online, the better.

Web Page

The definition of a web page is simple: it’s ONE online page. You can call it a home page if you like, but it’s still a single web page. The confusion comes when companies try to promote a listing as a web page, or, worse yet, attempt to sell a web page as a website. A web page may be posted as a stand-alone page or hosted in a group of related pages. Costs range from free to about $300 a year, plus possible upfront graphics fees for custom design. Custom web pages ensure your page is uniquely yours but typically cost more than a self-managed template web page. Template web pages allow you to complete a simple form and easily publish a professionally-designed page. You can find a sample of a template web page at www.GoGetLoan.com/get/jmoran.

Free web pages are routinely offered by Internet Service Providers (ISPs)—such as AOL, Cox, Earthlink, Cableone. The trick is, you have to design the page yourself with software such as Microsoft’s Front Page and post it following your ISP’s instructions. If you’re comfortable doing this and can create an attractive page, by all means, do it. It’s free!

PROS: A web page presents more information than a directory listing and is more economical than a website. If you’re not ready for the expense of a full-featured website, a web page could serve for now and, depending on the company you choose, may give you a web address you can market. Having your own template-type web page means you’re in control. You can immediately update your contact information so your customers can always find you—even if your company merges and changes names or you relocate. This is especially beneficial for someone who values repeat and referral business and cultivates lifetime customers. Having a permanent, memorable web address and a location your customers can bookmark is a necessary part of any long-term marketing strategy.

Also, if you’re hesitant to try a big self-managed website, a template web page is a good place to start with very little investment. You’ll become familiar with posting text and graphics online and be ready to move up to a website when your marketing strategy calls for it.

A web page company may specialize in a particular field, such as loan originators, and include a search function for website visitors. The benefit of a hybrid web page/directory company, like GoGetLoan.com, is that, along with having a location for your repeat and referral customers, you are included in a directory which may provide new leads and make it easier for you to be found.

CONS: A web page is limited in the amount of information it contains. If this is a stand-alone page, it doesn’t have additional content to educate customers about loan programs, the loan process, buying and selling homes, credit issues and so on, and with a stand-alone page, there’s little chance that it will generate traffic and new leads. A web page doesn’t offer any productivity or lead capture tools. And like directories, if your web page company sells ad space, your page may be surrounded by advertising and annoying animated signs.

Website

Websites are, in effect, online presentations made up of multiple pages. They both offer more and cost more than directory listings or web pages. Monthly costs for template websites run from about $25 to nearly $200, and upfront fees may be waived or run $499 or more. Template sites usually allow you to express yourself with choices of multiple themes and colors and the ability to post your own text, photos and logos.

A unique fully customized website will easily cost several thousand dollars for design plus hosting fees. To maximize your site’s effectiveness, consider working with a company that specializes in loan originator sites. They have available a variety of add-on options that could greatly increase your productivity. An excellent website designer who isn’t familiar with the industry may be capable of building you a beautiful site but incapable of integrating a 1003 application, contact management, automated marketing and lead generation tools. Many of the template-website companies offer fully customized websites and reasonably priced tiers of upgrades so your site can grow with your business.

Checking in with some of the loan officer forums online, I see anonymous advice given to get full customization so you don’t have a non-descript cookie-cutter website that looks like all the rest. My advice: Start with a professional template site and go custom later if you can justify the cost. Those of us who spend a lot of time online can easily spot a template site, but the average borrowers won’t know the difference. They’ll be happy to find an attractive, simple, easy-to-navigate website with info that makes them comfortable with that loan officer. Visit GoGetLoan.com’s More Resources page for loan officer template-website companies.

PROS: A professional website can serve as your sales assistant, introducing you to customers, educating them about all aspects of the lending process and providing time-savers such as secure online 1003 applications. Your website will make it easier for repeat customers to find you and to refer others to you. Websites that are specifically designed to generate leads (usually with high-end fees!) may bring in additional new business.

CONS: Cost is the number one disadvantage of a website, followed by the time, energy and frustration involved. For a custom site, unless you work with a company that specializes in loan origination websites, it will take twice as long as you expect and may cost twice your original estimate to get the productivity tools you want. And having a stand-alone site, you will be responsible for driving traffic to it and marketing your web address, or you may end up paying others, such as a search optimization company, to do the work for you. (Beware promises of getting you in the top 10 on Google! That’s possible but it costs BIG BUCKS! Watch for a future article on the truth about search engine optimization and site submission.)

Among those three avenues—web directory, web page, website—which one should you choose? This isn’t “either/or.” Visibility is just as important in the virtual world as the real world. The more locations you have online, the more likely a customer will find you. You should be listed in every directory that’s free and as many others as you can afford. To make your listings more effective, they should include a link to another web location. This means at least invest in an affordable web page that provides information about you and your loan programs—and can be bookmarked for repeat visits. When a full-feature website fits your budget, move up to boost your productivity (time is money), but keep your directory listings and web page to help drive traffic to your new website.

How does GoGetLoan.com fit into your marketing strategy?

• We offer the best of both worlds: A true web page with FREE Bonus placement in our loan officer directory.
• Affordable: Flat fee is $59 for one year. (Check our Special Offers page for discounts.) NO premium charge for uploading photo or logo. NO premium charge for additional text to promote what’s unique about you. NO premium charge to include testimonials.
• Memorable and marketable web address: GoGetLoan.com/get/YourName. (Or ask us about getting your own domain name.)
• Search-by-name function so repeat and referral customers can easily find you.
• Web page can be bookmarked so customers can quickly return to your information.
• No ads or banners on your web page. Your page is all about you; even the “sidebar” disappears.
• If you have a website, you’ll benefit from being included in our directory, and this is perfect place for a “back link” to your other web location.
• You can network with other members of GoGetLoan.com, GoGetEscrow.com, GoGetNotary.com, and GoGetRealEstate.com.
• Free 7-day trial!

Bonus Web Tracking Chart

Here’s something to help you track your Internet presence: Download our Web Tracking Chart to keep a record of every location you have online. Track your costs vs contacts made/loans received. (Keep in mind this may be misleading: A prospect may look at two or three locations, see your name keep popping up and then contact you, so it could be a cummulative effect of being listed in several places.) When you have a change in loan programs, specialties, phone number, company, etc., make a note on the chart as you update each web location. While this chart was designed for the web, you can easily use it to track your other marketing efforts, too.

Best advice: ALWAYS ask the customer how they found you. If you’re not asking, you don’t know what’s working. Maybe it’s your Internet locations. Maybe meeting with local bank managers; speaking at real estate office meetings, clubs and events; holding a homebuyers seminar, or some other networking activity. Find out what’s working and do more of that!

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© Sharon Hassler. All rights reserved. Sharon Hassler is president of Go Get Experts, LLC, owner and operator of GoGetLoan.com, GoGetEscrow.com, GoGetNotary.com and GoGetRealEstate.com. She has written articles for Broker Agent Magazine-Phoenix, RealtyTimes.com and LoanOfficerMagazine.com, and is author of the ebook, “So You Think You Want A Website: Internet Marketing 101 for Real Estate Agents.” A former loan officer and real estate agent in Southern California, she served as Communications Manager for First American Title-Arizona for 11 years. For more about Sharon, visit GoGetLoan.com/get/Sharon.

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