Some interesting highlights emerged from the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals (CAAMP) conference in Montreal last week.
Senior economist for CIBC World Markets Benjamin Tal pointed to Chinese consumers and those from other emerging markets as driving forces in the future global economy. According to a report by Mortgage Broker News, Tal urged mortgage brokers and Canadian companies to think about their industries in global terms.
He also suggested that the U.S. Housing market will take years – not months – to rise from the depths and push American homeowners out of negative equity.
Canada’s situation is pretty rosy by comparison. Popular mortgage news site Canadian Mortgage Trends points to presentations at the CAAMP conference by three prominent industry representatives from the U.S., Australia and Canada that show Canada’s mortgage industry as having a strong showing on the world stage.
CENTUM was at the conference and by all accounts it was a great event.
CAAMP has 12,000 members representing 1,500 companies in Canada. The association offers education for both mortgage consumers and industry professionals.
This holiday season, think about buying yourself the gift of putting a lump sum payment on your mortgage (if you can do it without penalty). See how much prepayment options can save you using CENTUM mortgage calculators.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
What Are The Biggest Problems On Your Website? 3 Items To Generate More Sales Now
At this point, most businesses have a website. Whether you have been in business 3 months or 30 years a website is now a MUST when it comes to marketing. The challenge for many entrepreneurs, business owners, and even sales professionals is that their website is an expense. Each month they pay $20, $70, $100, or even $250 a month and not a drop of business comes in. Most people accept this as "normal" for websites.
Let me share with you a very simple idea: A website is NOT an expense.
Your presence online should generate income for you. Each month when you invest "X dollars" you should get 3X, 4X, or even 10X dollars back! For some businesses their website should bring in more foot traffic. For other types of businesses their website should bring in leads. Other types of businesses should make sales monthly just from their website, when they follow the right rules.
Instead of throwing money at your site monthly, make it work for you. While there are dozens of challenges that usually can be fixed, I invite you to consider the following three to fix immediately with your website. When you can fix these three items you will be on your way to having a business website that generates leads and sales monthly.
1. How Easy is it for Someone to Contact You? - For a local business this often comes down to displaying the phone number and address in a prominent place. When you want more people coming by your store, make it easy for them to reach out and come directly to you. Have a section with maps, cross streets, and even photos of your store so it's easy for them to recognize. Make sure your phone number is displayed in the header on each page so they are only a click away from calling you.
2. Who Is the Website About? - Tragically most websites are too much about the business. They feature stories about the owner, products, and services, etc. While this information is necessary it shouldn't be the biggest portion of any site. Consider adding content that focuses on your customer, there challenges, and then give them an opportunity to solve those challenges with what you are offering.
3. What is Your Traffic Plan? - You can build a great site, but how are people going to find out about it? Instead of counting on one source of traffic consider having a balanced attack. Identify key areas of traffic from SEO, pay per click, blogging, social media, and more. Put 1-2 traffic sources into action immediately. Optimally you will have a minimum of 4 traffic sources running constantly.
When you make it easy for people to contact you, focus your website on your customer, and have a balanced traffic plan you will be on your way to generating more business from your online presence.
Get the shortcut to website success with a FREE, 15 minute 1 on 1 call with me. I will be happy to look at your website and share what you can put into action today. - www.15MinuteBusinessHelp.com
Todd Bates is a national Marketing and Business coach. Through his programs, such as Todd Bates Systems, he shares innovative systems to help businesses owners and sales professionals dramatically grow their sales.
His systems cover a broad base from sales conversion to marketing on a budget. The strategies that he shares have enabled him to net over 1 million dollars a year since the age of 24.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Todd_T_Bates
Let me share with you a very simple idea: A website is NOT an expense.
Your presence online should generate income for you. Each month when you invest "X dollars" you should get 3X, 4X, or even 10X dollars back! For some businesses their website should bring in more foot traffic. For other types of businesses their website should bring in leads. Other types of businesses should make sales monthly just from their website, when they follow the right rules.
Instead of throwing money at your site monthly, make it work for you. While there are dozens of challenges that usually can be fixed, I invite you to consider the following three to fix immediately with your website. When you can fix these three items you will be on your way to having a business website that generates leads and sales monthly.
1. How Easy is it for Someone to Contact You? - For a local business this often comes down to displaying the phone number and address in a prominent place. When you want more people coming by your store, make it easy for them to reach out and come directly to you. Have a section with maps, cross streets, and even photos of your store so it's easy for them to recognize. Make sure your phone number is displayed in the header on each page so they are only a click away from calling you.
2. Who Is the Website About? - Tragically most websites are too much about the business. They feature stories about the owner, products, and services, etc. While this information is necessary it shouldn't be the biggest portion of any site. Consider adding content that focuses on your customer, there challenges, and then give them an opportunity to solve those challenges with what you are offering.
3. What is Your Traffic Plan? - You can build a great site, but how are people going to find out about it? Instead of counting on one source of traffic consider having a balanced attack. Identify key areas of traffic from SEO, pay per click, blogging, social media, and more. Put 1-2 traffic sources into action immediately. Optimally you will have a minimum of 4 traffic sources running constantly.
When you make it easy for people to contact you, focus your website on your customer, and have a balanced traffic plan you will be on your way to generating more business from your online presence.
Get the shortcut to website success with a FREE, 15 minute 1 on 1 call with me. I will be happy to look at your website and share what you can put into action today. - www.15MinuteBusinessHelp.com
Todd Bates is a national Marketing and Business coach. Through his programs, such as Todd Bates Systems, he shares innovative systems to help businesses owners and sales professionals dramatically grow their sales.
His systems cover a broad base from sales conversion to marketing on a budget. The strategies that he shares have enabled him to net over 1 million dollars a year since the age of 24.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Todd_T_Bates
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
How Many Hours A Day Are You Doing Money Making Marketing Activities?
The more hours a day you are doing true money making activities, the more money you will make. Sounds obvious right? Most business owners, sales professionals, and entrepreneurs will acknowledge this sounds correct; however, in daily practice they often put less than a single hour of money making into action.
For example, consider the following "usual" morning activities:
* Checking voicemail
* Checking email
These are perhaps the worst two daily activities to start with. Checking email and voicemail are not marketing activities that will bring you new business. For those people reading this going "I get business from my email", I would also say you get 95% junk and problems in your email as well. Instead of diving into fighting fires from your voicemail or sifting through the endless piles of junk in your email, put marketing to work for you daily.
Before I share with you key business marketing activities, here is the correlation of hours spent on marketing to yearly income.
* 1 hour = $100,000
* 2 hours = $250,000
* 3 hours = $750,000+
It really is that simple. Now, this is not 10 minutes here, 5 minutes there, this is focused work. Focused work on your marketing and conversion strategies. No time for talking at the coffee pot, no time for checking the faxes that came in, just time dedicated to generating more business. Oh, and you can't put your 3 hours in, in the afternoon. The money making marketing activities need to be done before lunch.
Here are the activities you can put into action to get to your million dollar business.
1. Phone Calls - Outbound phone calls to new prospects. Whether your prospects are dropped right in a database or are printed out on paper it doesn't make a difference. When you can get on the phone with potential customers for three hours a day you will be on the way to your million dollar business. Ask them interest piquing questions, pound on their pain, and give them choices on how they can do business with you.
2. Online Marketing - No goofing around here by checking endless reports. You should check the performance of your sites daily in the afternoon. In the morning you can focus on writing new pages for your site, writing new ads for Google/Bing, creating new ads for Facebook, etc. Keeping your online marketing fresh will keep leads pouring in.
These are just two business marketing activities that you can do daily to have a powerful net income. The more you keep the focus and the more action you take before noon, the greater your income.
Discover how to have 4 powerful business marketing systems working for you daily by getting a free 1 on1 business analysis - www.15MinuteBusinessHelp.com
Todd Bates is a national Marketing and Business coach. Through his programs, such as Todd Bates Systems, he shares innovative systems to help businesses owners and sales professionals dramatically grow their sales.
His systems cover a broad base from sales conversion to marketing on a budget. The strategies that he shares have enabled him to net over 1 million dollars a year since the age of 24.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Todd_T_Bates
For example, consider the following "usual" morning activities:
* Checking voicemail
* Checking email
These are perhaps the worst two daily activities to start with. Checking email and voicemail are not marketing activities that will bring you new business. For those people reading this going "I get business from my email", I would also say you get 95% junk and problems in your email as well. Instead of diving into fighting fires from your voicemail or sifting through the endless piles of junk in your email, put marketing to work for you daily.
Before I share with you key business marketing activities, here is the correlation of hours spent on marketing to yearly income.
* 1 hour = $100,000
* 2 hours = $250,000
* 3 hours = $750,000+
It really is that simple. Now, this is not 10 minutes here, 5 minutes there, this is focused work. Focused work on your marketing and conversion strategies. No time for talking at the coffee pot, no time for checking the faxes that came in, just time dedicated to generating more business. Oh, and you can't put your 3 hours in, in the afternoon. The money making marketing activities need to be done before lunch.
Here are the activities you can put into action to get to your million dollar business.
1. Phone Calls - Outbound phone calls to new prospects. Whether your prospects are dropped right in a database or are printed out on paper it doesn't make a difference. When you can get on the phone with potential customers for three hours a day you will be on the way to your million dollar business. Ask them interest piquing questions, pound on their pain, and give them choices on how they can do business with you.
2. Online Marketing - No goofing around here by checking endless reports. You should check the performance of your sites daily in the afternoon. In the morning you can focus on writing new pages for your site, writing new ads for Google/Bing, creating new ads for Facebook, etc. Keeping your online marketing fresh will keep leads pouring in.
These are just two business marketing activities that you can do daily to have a powerful net income. The more you keep the focus and the more action you take before noon, the greater your income.
Discover how to have 4 powerful business marketing systems working for you daily by getting a free 1 on1 business analysis - www.15MinuteBusinessHelp.com
Todd Bates is a national Marketing and Business coach. Through his programs, such as Todd Bates Systems, he shares innovative systems to help businesses owners and sales professionals dramatically grow their sales.
His systems cover a broad base from sales conversion to marketing on a budget. The strategies that he shares have enabled him to net over 1 million dollars a year since the age of 24.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Todd_T_Bates
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
HST confusion abounds in Ontario
It seems that the majority of Ontarians still don’t get it.
According to a recent Ipsos Reid survey, 56 per cent of Ontarians still mistakenly believe that the harmonized sales tax (HST) applies to the full purchase price of an existing home.
In truth, the tax only applies to the transaction fees for existing homes, and applies to the full price for new homes.
Since the average price of a resale home in Ontario is roughly $330,000, the majority of the survey’s respondents thought they would have to pay an additional $40,000 to purchase the home, according to the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA).
The association says the province’s Realtors are become increasingly concerned that this persistent confusion is in fact dampening the housing market.
"We see it on the front lines every day. Clearly, Ontarians still don't know what the HST covers and what is exempt," OREA President Dorothy Mason said in a news release. "This is not helping the housing market, and it's not helping the Ontario economy. This confusion means that many buyers think the cost of a resale home is tens of thousands of dollars higher than it actually is.
"We're doing our part to inform our clients, but we shouldn't have to do it alone. We're calling on the Ontario government to launch an immediate public awareness campaign to educate taxpayers and end the HST confusion," said Mason.
Ipsos Reid surveyed 830 Ontarians, between October 4th and 11 th, on behalf of OREA. The estimated margin of error is +/-3.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
Source: www.mortgagebrokernews.ca
According to a recent Ipsos Reid survey, 56 per cent of Ontarians still mistakenly believe that the harmonized sales tax (HST) applies to the full purchase price of an existing home.
In truth, the tax only applies to the transaction fees for existing homes, and applies to the full price for new homes.
Since the average price of a resale home in Ontario is roughly $330,000, the majority of the survey’s respondents thought they would have to pay an additional $40,000 to purchase the home, according to the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA).
The association says the province’s Realtors are become increasingly concerned that this persistent confusion is in fact dampening the housing market.
"We see it on the front lines every day. Clearly, Ontarians still don't know what the HST covers and what is exempt," OREA President Dorothy Mason said in a news release. "This is not helping the housing market, and it's not helping the Ontario economy. This confusion means that many buyers think the cost of a resale home is tens of thousands of dollars higher than it actually is.
"We're doing our part to inform our clients, but we shouldn't have to do it alone. We're calling on the Ontario government to launch an immediate public awareness campaign to educate taxpayers and end the HST confusion," said Mason.
Ipsos Reid surveyed 830 Ontarians, between October 4th and 11 th, on behalf of OREA. The estimated margin of error is +/-3.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
Source: www.mortgagebrokernews.ca
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
The Real Objective in Lead Follow-Up
We are in an inventory business; when you are out of inventory, you are out of future business. Find out the real objective in following up with your leads to create inventory. Too often, we are trying to determine the interest of the prospect. Don't be fooled into thinking their interest has value to you as a Salesperson. The prospect's level of interest is meaningless. What matters is: Do they need it; do they want it; can they afford to take action. It's their desire, need, ability, and authority to take action. Interest is something that many Buyers and Sellers use to evade committing to you or anyone else.
1. Determine the value of the lead
It boils down to how much, how soon, and how much effort. How much effort contains two parts. How much to get them to the committed client level and how much to serve them to a high level of satisfaction, so they buy?
2. Determine if they need, want, and can afford your service
Do they have a demonstrated need? Is there a gap between what they want and where they are currently in their home? Are they seeking assistance? Is there a desire to change, or is it a want or wish? Do they have the ability to proceed? This usually relates to financial equity, down payment, credit score, employment. Do they want someone's help?
Too often, we are trying to determine the interest of the prospect. Don't be fooled into thinking their interest has value to you as a Salesperson. The prospect's level of interest is meaningless. What matters is: Do they need it; do they want it; can they afford to take action. It's their desire, need, ability, and authority to take action. Interest is something that many Buyers and Sellers use to evade committing to you or anyone else.
I have an interest in securing more real estate. I am always looking to buy more. My interest is securing property for 70% or less of fair market value. How valuable is my interest to you now? I would be happy if you called me to tell me about properties that you have that meet that criteria. The truth is if you find that type of opportunity, you'd better be buying it yourself, not selling it to me.
When someone says they are interested, it's a short way to say, "If you could sell my home for $50,000 above market value and find me a home to buy for $50,000 below market value, I would let you represent me on those transactions." Oh gee, how magnanimous of you!
3. Categorize the lead
This is where a lot of Agents stumble. They don't have a clean categorization process. They don't have the ability to see the inventory of leads they currently have in their possession. Most Agents categorize leads based on time frame. I think that is the right approach, but it is only half the equation. We might create categories like "A" leads who will do something in thirty days or less and "B" leads who will take action in thirty to ninety days. We could create four to five categories like these.
The real question, beyond time frame, has not been factored into this typical type of system. The real question is a question of commitment. How committed is this person to working with you? How committed are they that they will give you at least an interview to represent their interests? To me, committed means that I would bet big money on these people. I would bet my car, my house, all of my possessions that I was going to get an interview or that they were going to list or buy with me. Someone in that category has great value to me and my business. Not everyone is in that category.
The next category would be those who will probably do business with me. A probability is something that happens 51% or more of the time. I know that is a wide gap between 51% and the committed level of 98%. People make a lot of money on probabilities because the odds are in their favor. Casinos play the probability game, and so should you.
The last category is a possibility. That is something that is a 50/50 chance or less. It could be only a 1% chance; that is still a possibility, but you'd better have a Plan B if you are going to operate with such low odds.
Your follow-up plans need to be designed on your ability to accurately assess the conversion probability of the prospect. If you can combine the typical Agent's time frame categorization that is letter based (A, B, C, D, etc.) with the commitment scale (1 - committed to you, 2 - probably with you, 3 - possibly with you), you will have a process that will enable you to maximize the return on your time, energy, and effort to increase your conversion and income. By tracking these different categories of leads, you will achieve a clear picture of the health of your business. To have a healthy business, we must have a reasonable level of leads in each category. We need to cultivate leads upward from long-term leads to short-term. We need to move leads up from the possibility level to the probability level quickly. If we can't move them at least to the probability level quickly, the odds are too long; refer them to another Agent. Let them invest their time and let them accept the high burnout rate on these leads.
We are in an inventory business; when you are out of inventory, you are out of future business.
Dirk Zeller is a sought out speaker, celebrated author and CEO of Real Estate Champions. His company trains more than 350,000 Agents worldwide each year through live events, online training, self-study programs, and newsletters. The Real Estate community has embraced and praised his six best-selling books; Your First Year in Real Estate, Success as a Real Estate Agent for Dummies®, The Champion Real Estate Agent, The Champion Real Estate Team, Telephone Sales for Dummies®, Successful Time Management for Dummies®, and over 300 articles in print.
Real Estate Champions is a premier coaching company. Training covers a wide spectrum from new agents, to seasoned, as well as those interested in real estate marketing or real estate investing.
You can get more information at Success Trio, Market Dominance.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dirk_Zeller
1. Determine the value of the lead
It boils down to how much, how soon, and how much effort. How much effort contains two parts. How much to get them to the committed client level and how much to serve them to a high level of satisfaction, so they buy?
2. Determine if they need, want, and can afford your service
Do they have a demonstrated need? Is there a gap between what they want and where they are currently in their home? Are they seeking assistance? Is there a desire to change, or is it a want or wish? Do they have the ability to proceed? This usually relates to financial equity, down payment, credit score, employment. Do they want someone's help?
Too often, we are trying to determine the interest of the prospect. Don't be fooled into thinking their interest has value to you as a Salesperson. The prospect's level of interest is meaningless. What matters is: Do they need it; do they want it; can they afford to take action. It's their desire, need, ability, and authority to take action. Interest is something that many Buyers and Sellers use to evade committing to you or anyone else.
I have an interest in securing more real estate. I am always looking to buy more. My interest is securing property for 70% or less of fair market value. How valuable is my interest to you now? I would be happy if you called me to tell me about properties that you have that meet that criteria. The truth is if you find that type of opportunity, you'd better be buying it yourself, not selling it to me.
When someone says they are interested, it's a short way to say, "If you could sell my home for $50,000 above market value and find me a home to buy for $50,000 below market value, I would let you represent me on those transactions." Oh gee, how magnanimous of you!
3. Categorize the lead
This is where a lot of Agents stumble. They don't have a clean categorization process. They don't have the ability to see the inventory of leads they currently have in their possession. Most Agents categorize leads based on time frame. I think that is the right approach, but it is only half the equation. We might create categories like "A" leads who will do something in thirty days or less and "B" leads who will take action in thirty to ninety days. We could create four to five categories like these.
The real question, beyond time frame, has not been factored into this typical type of system. The real question is a question of commitment. How committed is this person to working with you? How committed are they that they will give you at least an interview to represent their interests? To me, committed means that I would bet big money on these people. I would bet my car, my house, all of my possessions that I was going to get an interview or that they were going to list or buy with me. Someone in that category has great value to me and my business. Not everyone is in that category.
The next category would be those who will probably do business with me. A probability is something that happens 51% or more of the time. I know that is a wide gap between 51% and the committed level of 98%. People make a lot of money on probabilities because the odds are in their favor. Casinos play the probability game, and so should you.
The last category is a possibility. That is something that is a 50/50 chance or less. It could be only a 1% chance; that is still a possibility, but you'd better have a Plan B if you are going to operate with such low odds.
Your follow-up plans need to be designed on your ability to accurately assess the conversion probability of the prospect. If you can combine the typical Agent's time frame categorization that is letter based (A, B, C, D, etc.) with the commitment scale (1 - committed to you, 2 - probably with you, 3 - possibly with you), you will have a process that will enable you to maximize the return on your time, energy, and effort to increase your conversion and income. By tracking these different categories of leads, you will achieve a clear picture of the health of your business. To have a healthy business, we must have a reasonable level of leads in each category. We need to cultivate leads upward from long-term leads to short-term. We need to move leads up from the possibility level to the probability level quickly. If we can't move them at least to the probability level quickly, the odds are too long; refer them to another Agent. Let them invest their time and let them accept the high burnout rate on these leads.
We are in an inventory business; when you are out of inventory, you are out of future business.
Dirk Zeller is a sought out speaker, celebrated author and CEO of Real Estate Champions. His company trains more than 350,000 Agents worldwide each year through live events, online training, self-study programs, and newsletters. The Real Estate community has embraced and praised his six best-selling books; Your First Year in Real Estate, Success as a Real Estate Agent for Dummies®, The Champion Real Estate Agent, The Champion Real Estate Team, Telephone Sales for Dummies®, Successful Time Management for Dummies®, and over 300 articles in print.
Real Estate Champions is a premier coaching company. Training covers a wide spectrum from new agents, to seasoned, as well as those interested in real estate marketing or real estate investing.
You can get more information at Success Trio, Market Dominance.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dirk_Zeller
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Untitled
FARMING STRATEGIES (1)
Do you have a farming strategy?
The number one answer in the real estate industry today is, “No, farming and mail-outs don’t work!” It’s interesting to note that less than 5% of all agents have a consistent farming program.
• What is a farming program?
• How do I choose my area of focus?
• What do I send to homeowners?
• How often do I mail to them?
September Housing Starts
OTTAWA, October 8, 2010 — The seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of housing starts was 186,400 units in September, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This is down from 189,300 units in August.
“Housing starts moved lower in September due to a decrease in urban single starts in Atlantic Canada and Ontario,” said Bob Dugan, Chief Economist at CMHC’s Market Analysis Centre. “Multiple starts were unchanged.”
The seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts decreased by 3.3 per cent to 163,200 units in September. Urban multiple starts were unchanged in September at 99,600 units, while single urban starts moved lower by 8.1 per cent to 63,600 units.
September’s seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts decreased by 23.7 per cent in Atlantic Canada and by 10.9 per cent in Ontario. Urban starts increased by 6.4 per cent in British Columbia, by 3.9 per cent in Quebec and by 0.6 per cent in the Prairie Region.
Rural starts2 were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 23,200 units in September.
As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on more than 60 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of high quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable homes. CMHC also provides reliable, impartial and up-to-date housing market reports, analysis and knowledge to support and assist consumers and the housing industry in making informed decisions.
“Housing starts moved lower in September due to a decrease in urban single starts in Atlantic Canada and Ontario,” said Bob Dugan, Chief Economist at CMHC’s Market Analysis Centre. “Multiple starts were unchanged.”
The seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts decreased by 3.3 per cent to 163,200 units in September. Urban multiple starts were unchanged in September at 99,600 units, while single urban starts moved lower by 8.1 per cent to 63,600 units.
September’s seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts decreased by 23.7 per cent in Atlantic Canada and by 10.9 per cent in Ontario. Urban starts increased by 6.4 per cent in British Columbia, by 3.9 per cent in Quebec and by 0.6 per cent in the Prairie Region.
Rural starts2 were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 23,200 units in September.
As Canada's national housing agency, CMHC draws on more than 60 years of experience to help Canadians access a variety of high quality, environmentally sustainable and affordable homes. CMHC also provides reliable, impartial and up-to-date housing market reports, analysis and knowledge to support and assist consumers and the housing industry in making informed decisions.
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