Written By: Mark Blundell
Mark is one of Australia's foremost mortgage speakers and trainers. His track record and ideas have doubled the business of established companies and originators he has worked with. Visit his website at www.SalesAcceleration.com.au. Read his article and learn from the experts in other parts of the mortgage world.
To explain the importance of delivering responses that are relevant to what I call motivating questions I would like to use this analogy...
...Let's imagine that you and I had a lunchtime meeting arranged and our meeting was to be held at a location in the central business district of my home city. Imagine that the meeting time is 11:50am on the steps of City Hall. However, you have never been to my city.
So, you find yourself in the central business district at 11:30am, unsure of which direction City Hall may be, you ask someone the follow question: "I'm supposed to meet someone on the steps of City Hall in 20 minutes, can you tell me how to get there?"
Typically their response could be "City Hall, sure I can tell you how to get there. You follow this road to the second set of traffic lights, which is around 450 yards down over the hill. When you get there, turn left and walk until you come to a big white building that has the blue shutters. Cross the road and take the first lane to your left. When you pass the tobbaco store on the corner, go right and walk about 3 or 4 blocks until you get to the Macy's Store. When you get there, you will need to take the underground walkway. At the end of the walkway there is the road that takes you to City Hall. Walk along that road for about 100 yards and your right there!"
If you are like me, I would make it to the traffic lights and then have to ask for directions again!
What would be the "ideal" response that a passerby could give to this situation? - "I'm going there myself, it's only a 10-minute walk, just follow me!"
When you analyze the whole story, the first person gave the correct information - but it was delivered in a fashion that you could not use very easily. Conversely, the second person offered a solution that made you relax, feel comfortable and confident that you were going to make the meeting on time.
Effective communication begins by making sure what you are saying is being interpreted properly. And secondly, that the person getting the information, understands it and can use it.
I encourage loan officers to find out what the "motivation" is behind the questions customers often ask you. What they want to know sometimes has nothing to do with the loan, interest rate, etc. What the prospect often wants is the answer to there 3 important questions.
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