Arch MI

Season 2, Episode 3: Growing Realtor Relationships

04:28 - Blaine introduces today's topic, growing Realtor relationships. He explains why relationships with Realtors are important in today's world and how to grow or enhance these relationships with new or existing Realtors.

08:02 - Blaine goes into the three things Realtors would say they need from a mortgage lender, and what the relationship between Realtor and lenders should look like.

12:37 - Blaine gets into the nitty gritty of the ten specific things Realtors want from a lender. He wants to emphasize not having one of these qualities is in no way a dealbreaker, this is just what Realtors would love to see in a lender to comfortably do business with them, plus one additional outcome of these types of healthy Realtor/lender relationships.

23:14 - Blaine goes through a five-part framework for selecting and building relationships he likes to call The Five A's. Aim, Analyze, Approach, Appointment and Assess.

30:09 - Blaine talks the audience through an exercise in imagining your ideal Realtor. He asks to have three questions in mind, this goes hand in hand with figuring out how to build the five-part framework.

33:43 - Blaine reminds us of the importance of keeping a relationship with listing agents and also a few ideas on sealing the bond with a lender.

Thank you for listening.

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Season 2, Episode 2: 12 Qualities of Top Loan Officers

03:59 - Blaine introduces you to today's topic, The 12 qualities of top loan officers. After much speculation and research, Blaine has discovered twelve traits every top officer has in common. This episode is going to explore them all.

08:44 - The first quality is that they love a challenge and two, they attend closings. Blaine explains how this displays professionalism and how a closing should be viewed as a celebration. He also gives advice on the stops you should take if you're not able to attend a closing.

12:12 - The third trait is that a top loan officer is a good communicator. This sounds very basic so Blaine shares some examples to put it into context.

15:16 - Trait numbers four and five are explained and that is that they are competitive and use a database. Blaine explains the use of healthy competition and a great analogy to expand on number 5, as well as what they don't use their databases which work in their favor.

19:25 - Number six, they are disciplined and seven, they are experts in not only the role of being a loan officer, but they have an extended understanding of other related roles.  Number eight, a top loan officer is a life-long learner. They are interested in learning no matter how good they are. Nine, self-motivation, and ten, they are conscious of their professional posture. Blaine explains that this is not in the physical sense, but they perceived posture others have regarding them.

26:04 - The eleventh trait Blaine has noticed in these officers is that they are relationship builders, not because of the obviousness of the skill but the urgency of the bond. And lastly, number twelve. A top loan officer is that they enjoy serving. He explains a few specific examples in these loan officers.

28:13 - Closing thoughts and a quick rundown of all twelve of the qualities of top loan officers. As always, remember to take a step, tell a friend and talk with Arch.

Thank you for listening.

Season 2, Episode 1: The 3 Ms of Marketing

Podcast Shownotes

S2E1

 

03:24 - Blaine introduces today's theme, becoming an influencer. He talks about today's episode going a bit differently, there are paradigms involved with becoming an influencer. Blaine defines the word ‘paradigm’ and explains why it's significant.

 

06:21 - Blaine shares a bit of his bio in regards to influence. He talks about being a member of Mansa and being named America's Greatest Thinker from the annual event the Great American Think-Off. He talks about needing to be able to communicate and influence. Paradigm is brought up again, Blaine wants to share a few lessons learned leading up to and during his time in the event.

 

09:33 - Blaine talks about the Great American Think-Off and the question he wrote an essay to, ‘Competition or cooperation, what benefits society more?’

He found that there were three parts to influential communication, expertise, eloquence, and engagement. He briefly describes these words.

 

14:48 - Blaine walks through suggestions in all three categories and goes into the words in more detail. He hopes you find the advice he gives is considered uncommon and that you find value in it.

 

22:09 - Eloquence is broken down in this section. Eloquence is how to say something well. Blaine finds there to be another set of three words that help to do this. The three C’s are to be concise, confident and conversational.

 

25:30 - When talking about the last E, engagement, Blaine talks about how he needed to engage with the audience in order to do well in the Great American Think-Off.

 

30:01 - Blaine ends today's podcast by telling the story of when he was on Toast Masters, how moving the audience emotionally can instantly connect you to them. He shares another story on the word, ‘think’.

 

Thank you for listening.

Episode 6: Transform Your Business (and your life)

Podcast Shownotes

Episode 6

 

Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast, featuring our Senior Customer Trainer, Blaine Rada.
Arch Mortgage Insurance Company, or Arch MI, is a leading provider of mortgage insurance (MI) in the United States. Our competitive pricing tool, Arch MI RateStar®, is the leading risk-based pricing platform in the industry, providing rates based on a thorough
understanding of the underlying risk.

 

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00:30 - Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast! Blaine Rada is back to share some insight and ideas about sales and the mortgage industry, in which he has spent over 30 years. These episodes all have a sales theme to them, and these sales tactics can be applied anywhere to help you stand out as a unique provider in an oversaturated market.

 

2:40 - Blaine likes to start by giving the foundation of his view on sales, which is: selling is not just about getting the sale. It’s actually about finding if you are the best fit for the customer. Blaine truly believes that if you seek to be of service and value to your clients, you will find that you have plenty of business.

 

3:25 - Today’s topic is a bit of a departure from Blaine’s norm. The conversation today is grounded in the concept of transformation and how it affects or is applied to our personal and professional lives. Transformation can seem intimidating but it can actually be empowering.

 

5:18 - Blaine recalls a quote by a motivational speaker: “You don’t ever have to be the same after today except by choice.” 

 

5:50 - Blaine shares a significant experience - taking the pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago - that he found transformational. A lot of research, heart, and risk went into this journey, and this is just Blaine’s way of pushing his boundaries, finding out who he is, and realizing his spiritual intention. This really made Blaine think about his why.

 

11:40 - So, what does this mean and how does it relate to you? Blaine asks you to think about what your intention is, what is your why? How are you pursuing your own transformation in life, personally and professionally? 

 

12:05 - Blaine is going to highlight some moments in his journey that carry some significant teachings that actually tie into doing good business, because these are universal life lessons. 

13:00 - Blaine dives into Day 1 of Camino de Santiago, the difficulties he faced on this physically challenging day, and the lessons he had to learn as he started his journey. 

 

19:23 - When Blaine found himself alone and worn down, his strength to keep going was renewed by fellow walkers that he encountered before. From this, he learned that you never know how a comment or random encounter may change a person, but can also change you. It showed how much we as humans really need and depend on each other. Blaine uses this example to ask us: How do you act when you reach the end of your limit? How are you acting as the lifeboat for others when they have hit their end?

 

23:43 - Blaine skips ahead to Day 12, which he remembers as Sometimes People Are Jerks. Before a 10-mile stretch of nothing (no towns, stores, food, water, etc.), Blaine restocked on all his essentials and had a bad sense from the store owner. On the stretch, he managed to find an “oasis” for travellers to buy supplies and rest, but received an unfriendly welcome there. Blaine’s ugly thoughts of retaliation caught him off guard and made him evaluate his experience. 

 

28:24 - Fast forward to Day 20, the day that it was Blaine’s turn to be a jerk. After 12 hours of walking and trouble finding a place to stop for the day, Blaine was faced with some family issues that he couldn’t address that night. After finally connecting with his wife, they decided that he should continue on his pilgrimage, even though he later discovered that it hurt his partner. The lesson he took away from this was how we handle adversity can define us or destroy us. How do we react and handle life when it hits us?

 

33:35 - Blaine recounts a day walking through a mountain storm to get to the Cruz de Ferro. It was a decision he made in order to give himself the space to create a meaningful and encouraging experience that was deeply personal.

 

35:51 - The last day, Day 25, the end of his journey. The reality of what Blaine had done hit him, but he also realized that the recipe for completing the Camino de Santiago was easy: he just had to do it. This was a huge commitment that made Blaine realize that if you want to accomplish something amazing, you have to subtract some other things from your life. 

 

37:50 - What did this change in Blaine? First, he actually enjoys walking now. Second, he gained some perspective that only a personal journey can bring. Third, Blaine wrote a book about this experience, which he never imagined would be something he would do. All proceeds from his book, From Sore Soles to a Soaring Soul: Changing My Life One Step at a Time on the Camino De Santiago, go back to taking care of the Camino!

 

40:18 - This is the point where Blaine usually recaps the takeaways and makes a call to action for listeners. But today, he’s leaving that up to you - you are the one who decides how transformation happens in your life. 

Episode 5: Five Steps to Better Goal Setting (GRASS)

Podcast Shownotes

Episode 5

 

Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast, featuring our Senior Customer Trainer, Blaine Rada.
Arch Mortgage Insurance Company, or Arch MI, is a leading provider of mortgage insurance (MI) in the United States. Our competitive pricing tool, Arch MI RateStar®, is the leading risk-based pricing platform in the industry, providing rates based on a thorough
understanding of the underlying risk.

 

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00:32 - Welcome to the podcast! Hose Blaine Rada shares some insight about what this podcast is all about and what he hopes you’ll walk away with. These episodes all have a sales theme to them, and even though Blaine focuses on the mortgage industry, these sales tactics can be applied anywhere.

 

2:04 - As always, it’s important to understand Blaine’s worldview when it comes to selling, which could be seen as a little confusing or controversial, even. His philosophy is that selling is not about getting the sale. Selling is about establishing if you are the best fit for the customer, and in doing this, the sales will come.

 

3:33 - Today’s podcast is going to focus on planning and goal setting. Why bother with planning anyway, when we can’t predict the future? Well, Dwight Eisenhower, General in World War II in charge of the Allied invasion, said something along the lines of: “Plans are nothing. Planning is everything.” The planning part is where it matters.

 

5:10 - Planning is essential to goal setting. There is value in expressing a goal and what you want to achieve, and in going through the thought process of how you might achieve it, but we can’t be too rigid in our approach.

 

5:44 - Blaine is going to share five steps, which conveniently spell the word GRASS. For those of us who enjoy affirmations, think about standing on your lawn and saying “There are no weeds. There are no weeds on my lawn.” But, if you don’t do something about the weeds, they’ll take over your lawn. This is a good analogy for affirmations without action - just saying that you want something to happen won’t actually make it happen.

 

7:30 - First step is the G: the Goal! Every plan starts with the outcome. This can really apply to any part of your life, personal or professional. But a goal without a deadline is just a dream, so it’s important to set a timeframe around achieving the goal.

8:52 - The R stands for reality. Evaluate where you are today in reference to your goal, so you can determine the gap between the now and achieving your goal. We need to be realistic in our goal setting so we ensure we are setting attainable and achievable objectives. 

 

10:51 - The A stands for accountability. There are people who can help you with your goals, even if you are an independent person like Blaine is. Think about who can help teach you what you are seeking to know, or even who can hold you accountable to meeting the milestones of your ultimate goal. Blaine calls these people “drift catchers,” who alert you to when you are drifting off of the course that you’re pursuing. These people are so helpful!

 

12:39 - The first S stands for strategies. This is the heart of planning; establishing the steps that you will take to get from where you are to where you want to be. Blaine identifies three mistakes that people often make with strategizing: 

1) We have too many strategies! People aren’t good at changing multiple things in their lives, so focus on a small number of strategies at a time.
2) Your strategies are too similar to what you’ve been trying before. Strategies generally have to be something new that you’re not currently doing.
3) The strategies are too painful. People are motivated to avoid pain, yet we pick strategies and practices that we hate. This doesn’t encourage us to improve or stick with our strategy. You can’t sustain doing something that you actually hate doing.

 

21:27 - The second S is the word Stop. With a new goal and strategies, you’ve just decided to add more to your plate, more responsibilities and tasks in your life. Stop and evaluate everything in your life and remove the things that don’t serve you, don’t move you towards your goal, or that waste your time. This is an on-going step to work on throughout your progress towards your goal - you will have to constantly stop and evaluate what is useful and what needs to go.

 

24:40 - Blaine shares a detailed example of how to put the GRASS steps into action with something that nearly everyone has thought about - the goal of losing weight.

 

31:26 - Let’s cover the key takeaways from today. The act of planning and creating a plan is where the value is, because you are thinking through the steps you will take to create change in your life and career. We discussed the GRASS method of breaking down a goal into achievable and understandable steps. 

 

33:50 - Blaine has three final asks for listeners. First, take a step! Implement a lesson that you learned today, maybe change up your direction or approach using some of the ideas presented. Second, tell a friend about this podcast! Share this information with as many people as possible, so we can all grow and improve together. Third, talk with us at Arch MI! Tell us how we can be of service and value for you, and let us know your feedback on the podcast!

Episode 4: Habits of High Achievers

Podcast Shownotes

Episode 4

 

Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast, featuring our Senior Customer Trainer, Blaine Rada.
Arch Mortgage Insurance Company, or Arch MI, is a leading provider of mortgage insurance (MI) in the United States. Our competitive pricing tool, Arch MI RateStar®, is the leading risk-based pricing platform in the industry, providing rates based on a thorough
understanding of the underlying risk.

 

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00:28 - Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast! Our host, Blaine Rada, is here to share some perspective, primarily in the world of sales as it relates to mortgage lending, where he has spent the last 30 years of his career. But Blaine’s advice is fairly universal, as he is focused on helping you create separation and differentiation in the marketplace - it’s a crowded place out there with so many varied choices for customers to choose from, so find a way to stand out! Blaine is a “high content” speaker, packing in a lot of information in a short time for you to listen (and re-listen) to.

 

2:34 - Blaine always starts by sharing his worldview on sales: Selling is not about getting the sale. Rather, Blaine’s approach to sales is figuring out if you are the best fit for the customer, and with that, you’ll find you have plenty of sales. If your motivation is to serve others, rather than yourself, your customers will sense that and want to work with you.

 

3:22 - Today, we’re going to talk about some habits of high achievers, especially focusing on those in the mortgage industry. Blaine defines a high achiever as someone who does two things: 1) A high achiever will do an incredible amount of business, and 2) a high achiever will have very high rates of customer satisfaction. Blaine is going to explore six habits, or disciplines, of these high achievers.

 

6:49 - The first high achiever habit is to know your intention. What does intention mean? It is your why; it is your reason and motivation. High achievers know why they are in this business, why they choose the activities they do, why they invest their time and money they way they do - they are not doing things out of routine, but with a defined reason. It can be challenging to develop intention and it takes work to develop this discipline. 

 

11:38 - High achiever habit #2 is to pay attention and focus.This sounds easy, but do we really do this anymore? The world is so full of distractions and we are so surrounded by screens (looking at you, smartphones) that really paying attention is a challenge now. Blaine recommends picking up the book How to Break Up with Your Phone by Catherine Price, which can help you figure out a smartphone detox program for yourself because nomophobia is now a real diagnosis. When you truly pay attention to a person, a task, or a conversation, you can really make a positive and meaningful impact in your business and relationships.

 

18:17 - Trait #3 of high achievers is to set realistic expectations. In Blaine’s opinion, setting expectations is one of the most important things you can do, especially when you’re getting started in business with someone, because it lays out exactly what you plan to do to meet the customer’s needs. This can help with customer satisfaction, in which Blaine identifies three different levels. The most basic level of customer happiness is when they are just satisfied; the second level is to impress someone, so they will refer you and speak highly of their experience; the highest level of satisfaction is when you amaze people by anticipating their expectations and needs.

 

21:45 - The #4 characteristic of high achievers is to be specific. Giving clear and straightforward ideas, directions, and details means that you can be held accountable to deliver but also build trust with your customers. Remember to be specific about your competitive advantages that are not price and product: focus on customer experience, your reputation, your company values. 

 

25:08 - High achiever trait #5 is don’t just contact; connect.This can be challenging because it takes time to really connect with someone. Contact isn’t very meaningful, but to connect with someone is to make it personal.

 

28:08 - Last but not least, the final high achiever habit is to balance efficiency with effectiveness. This can be challenging because there is sometimes tension between being efficient and being effective. We have to make conscious choices to choose one over the other, depending on the situation, the timing, and what needs to be done. We are an efficiency-driven society so making sure you are balancing effectiveness is equally important and will make you stand out.

 

31:40 - Blaine recaps the six habits and traits of high achievers to be mindful of and put into practice. None of these habits are easy, but they are possible!

 

33:20 - Blaine wraps up with a call to action for his listeners. First, take a step! Take something that you learned today and implement it, make it useful in your own life and work. Second, tell a friend! Share the good ideas, share the podcast. Third, talk with us at Arch MI! We’re interested in helping you do more and better business, and we’re here to listen to you. We also want to hear your thoughts and feedback about the podcast, any suggestions you have, and what you want to hear next!

Episode 3: Two Techniques to Increase Sales

Podcast Shownotes

Episode 3

 

Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast, featuring our Senior Customer Trainer, Blaine Rada.
Arch Mortgage Insurance Company, or Arch MI, is a leading provider of mortgage insurance (MI) in the United States. Our competitive pricing tool, Arch MI RateStar®, is the leading risk-based pricing platform in the industry, providing rates based on a thorough
understanding of the underlying risk.

 

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00:35 - Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast! Our host, Blaine Rada, wants this podcast to be a way for him to share some useful lessons and perspective he’s gained through his 30 years of experience in the mortgage industry. His aim is to help you differentiate yourself from the competition when the market has so many varied choices for customers and clients to choose from. Blaine also describes himself as a “high content” presenter, which means there is a lot of information for you to digest and think on!

 

2:30 - As these podcasts tend to have a sales focus to them, Blaine likes to start off by sharing his world view on sales, which is: Selling is not about getting the sale. Rather, the focus of selling should be on establishing if you are the best fit for your customer’s needs.

 

3:30 - Today’s topic is on the sales process, or sales conversation, as Blaine likes to call it. This process has several sequential steps, although there is no exact formula to sales - it’s a highly personalized approach. The first step is building rapport between yourself and your potential client where a connection is established through similarities and shared experiences.

 

4:45 - The next logical step in the sales conversation is asking good questions and listening to your potential customer’s needs so you can figure out how you can offer them a solution that works. And there are so many other steps to take in this process, but today, Blaine is really going to focus on two techniques that appear at the end of the sales process. 

 

5:10 - “I honestly think that many salespeople are pathetic.” Man, that sounds mean - but why? Blaine says he feels pity for salespeople because sales is a difficult field and many people are inexperienced and undertrained. The skills he wants to share in this episode can lead to a change if you’re in sales; it just takes some practice until you can master the technique.

 

6:25 - These two critical skills are closing and follow-up. Let’s focus on closing first - what is it, really? The close is simply asking if someone is interested in doing business with you. If you’ve done all other parts of the sales conversation correctly, fully understand what your customer is looking for and needs, and you know you have a solution that fits them, why wouldn’t you ask to close the deal? The worst they might say is “No.” Don’t hesitate to close on the deal if you’ve done the work and the timing is appropriate.

 

8:18 - There are two ways that closing is misused and gets a bad rap. First, some salespeople never ask to do business with a potential customer; there is no invitation to take the next step. Closing can’t be done well if it’s not attempted in the first place! Fear of rejection can definitely hamper an ask, but it’s more a problem of timing. 

 

9:53 - The second problem is that closing is asked for too much. There’s an expression known in sales as ABC - Always Be Closing. Blaine’s view of this is that it’s generally an unwelcome and disliked sales tactic because it feels like pressure or coercion, and it doesn’t resonate with Blaine’s approach to sales as a whole.

 

10:50 - Blaine shares a personal experience with a salesperson who was constantly trying to close on a deal for a new construction house, where the pressure of making a sale created stress and an unpleasant experience for Blaine and his wife. The timing was absolutely not right to close on that sale.

 

14:46 - If it’s not the right time to close, what then? This leads us to the second skill of follow-up. Blaine explains that every interaction with a potential customer should lead to a next step, even when the sale is done and closed! Offering to follow up and check in with clients to see how they’re doing is a simple service to provide, but can keep that relationship alive, create expectations of what the next steps are, and leave a client with a good impression of you.

 

18:14 - The follow-up is really key and can often be challenging to adhere to. Blaine shares another personal experience of buying a car, where the lack of follow up from a salesperson made him choose a different dealership that provided more attentive communication and tailored service after their first interaction.

 

23:12 - Let’s recap on some key takeaways from today! If you want to be a top sales professional, then focus on the art of closing and follow-up, which happen towards the end of a sales conversation. Also, don’t hesitate to ask people for their business. If you’ve put in the work to show people you have a solution that meets their needs and you feel you can be of value to someone, go ahead and ask to do business with them! (Don’t follow the sales ABCs).

 

24:30 - Finally, make sure that every interaction ends with a next step. Follow up, follow through, and honor your commitments.

 

2444 - Call to action time! First, take a step. Try implementing one of these tips and techniques into your business practice. Second, tell a friend about this podcast. Knowledge is power, so let’s share it and grow our profession. Third, talk to us at Arch MI about how we can be of service to you, your needs and ideas, or any feedback you have about this podcast!

Episode 2: Communicate With Impact

Podcast Shownotes

Episode 2

 

Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast, featuring our Senior Customer Trainer, Blaine Rada.
Arch Mortgage Insurance Company, or Arch MI, is a leading provider of mortgage insurance (MI) in the United States. Our competitive pricing tool, Arch MI RateStar®, is the leading risk-based pricing platform in the industry, providing rates based on a thorough
understanding of the underlying risk.

 

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00:36 - Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast! Our host, Blaine Rada, has over 30 years of experience in the mortgage industry and wants this podcast to be a useful resource of tips and lessons for those in the industry. His aim is to help you separate yourself from the competition when the market is already so flush with many different choices for customers and clients to choose from. Blaine also describes himself as a “high content presenter,” which means there is a lot of information for you to digest.

 

2:18 - Before diving into today’s podcast, it’s important to understand Blaine’s overall worldview when it comes to sales, which is “Selling is not about getting the sale.” What this really means is that your focus shouldn’t actually be on getting the sale, but rather on being of service and establishing that you are the best fit for your borrower, for your client. This type of attitude shift generally leads to more authentic business and more sales.

 

3:35 - Today’s topic is about communication and how to communicate with impact. Communication now is rather casual, which by no means is a bad thing, but this also means it is no longer intentional. What do we do in those moments that need to be significant, where our communication can make or break an important moment? Impactful and clear communication is a skill that needs to be practiced.

 

8:25 - “The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” - George Bernard Shaw. Blaine brings up this quote because we may think we’re communicating - we text, we speak, we write - but we really don’t know how our words are being received or understood. Blaine will share a few tips on how to have impactful communication that serves the purpose you intend for it to serve. 

 

9:00 - What would Blaine’s one piece of advice be to make communication more effective? He recommends to think before you communicate. If you want your communication to serve its purpose and be effective, you have to give it some thought. Maybe you don’t reply right away, take time to compose your thoughts, reassess the situation if it feels emotional; then come back to it and create a more constructive and productive response.

 

11:18 - There are three reasons why we don’t think before we communicate. First, we’re distracted! We have so much going on in our day, we’re surrounded by screens at work and home, we’ve almost always got something going on outside of just our thoughts. It’s hard to be intentional with communication if we’re so distracted all the time.

 

12:32 - The second reason we don’t think before we communicate is because we’re multitasking. Multitasking in humans is actually a myth anyway; it’s what computers do, but not the human brain! While we can think of many things at the same time, neuroscience shows us that our brains’ primary focus is really on one thing at a time.

 

15:17 - The third reason is because of something called “pre-crastination.” This is the idea that everything is urgent, everything has to be addressed right now. Technology, for all of its benefits, has exacerbated this problem by making communication so rapid-fire that we now expect (and find ourselves compelled to send) instant replies. Blaine calls this mental trap pre-crastination.

 

20:10 - If you want to be successful in sales, one of the things that our communication needs to accomplish is empathy. Empathy is expressed through the art of conversation. How do we achieve this, especially in a digital world?

 

22:00 - Empathy can demonstrated through shared experiences and relating with others through those connections. Expressing empathy in a conversation makes people feel heard, valued, and understood. Blaine recommends the book We Need to Talk by Celeste Headlee as a great resource about the art of conversation, filled with tips and tricks to have on hand.

 

23:23 - The other part of having good conversations is to ask good questions, which also needs practice. We should be more interested than interesting. You can truly stand out by asking questions and listening to others, demonstrating that you are sincerely interested in learning about the people around you. 

 

24:30 - Blaine has a tip for better listening. Most of the time, we are crafting our responses while someone is talking. Don’t listen to respond, listen to understand what that person is saying!

 

25:22 - Blaine wraps up with key takeaways from this episode. First, the importance of good communication, thinking about what you say and your responses to make your communication more impactful. Second, being aware of the reasons that we aren’t thinking before we communicate - distractions, multitasking, and pre-crastination. Sometimes, it’s okay to take a step back, think about what to say, and craft a better message. And third, expressing empathy through conversation to truly connect with people.

 

27:17 - Let’s end on a call to action! 1) Take a step today. Take this information and try it out in your own life and work. 2) Tell a friend! If you find these podcasts to be valuable, share it out with your friends, family, and even your competitors. 3) Talk to us! Your account manager at Arch MI is always available to chat about how to help your business. We also want to hear your feedback about this podcast - let us know what you want to hear and what you think of the content. 

Episode 1: Value Trifecta = Convenience, Value, and Trust

Podcast Shownotes

Episode 1

Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast, featuring our Senior Customer Trainer, Blaine Rada.
Arch Mortgage Insurance Company, or Arch MI, is a leading provider of mortgage insurance (MI) in the United States. Our competitive pricing tool, Arch MI RateStar®, is the leading risk-based pricing platform in the industry, providing rates based on a thorough
understanding of the underlying risk.

 

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00:33 - Welcome to the Arch MI Podcast! Our host, Blaine Rada, tells us a little about himself and his professional background. He’s been in the mortgage industry for over 30 years, and his favorite part of his current job with Arch MI is that he gets to travel, speak at various events, and meet with lenders at every stage of their life. He also calls himself a thief… of time. Blaine wants to make sure that the time he is “stealing” from you is the most valuable and informative as it possibly can be.

 

1:35 - How do we separate ourselves from the competition when borrowers, buyers, clients, and customers have so much choice in options and services? Blaine is here to share some ideas that will be helpful in setting your services apart from the rest, but it’s on you, listener, to put these ideas into action! 

 

2:16 - A couple tips for listening and what to expect: This is an unscripted podcast. Blaine believes in professionalism, but also in creating an accessible conversation with listeners and time for all to reflect. Blaine also describes himself as a “high content presenter,” which means there is a lot of information being delivered and high audience engagement (at least in a live audience setting). 

 

3:46 - Blaine starts by telling us what he believes about sales and selling, since most of these episodes will deal with topics that involve or relate to sales processes. His contradictory stance is that selling isn’t about getting the sale. What he means by this is the focus of selling shouldn’t be about getting the sale, but rather about establishing if you, your product, or your service is the best fit for that customer. Shifting focus to fit should actually result in more sales, as your clients will be able to see that you are invested in their best interest.

 

5:40 - The discussion topic for the rest of today’s podcast is what Blaine calls the value trifecta, which is composed of three concepts that influence people to choose you over all other providers: convenience, value, and trust. This concept is rooted in research done by JD Power & Associates, who measure customer satisfaction and have spent millions on research to find out why people buy where they buy. 

 

7:02 - So, why convenience? People want to do business in a way that is convenient for them. Does this mean easy, quick, self-service, 24/7 accessibility, online service? This is a rather subjective term, so Blaine suggests some homework for you. Think about how you can answer the question “How does your business or service make life more convenient for me?” Perhaps dig a little deeper and come up with your own specific definition to stand out from the competition. Once you have this definition, start telling people how you can offer convenience before they even ask.

 

10:15 - How do we offer specifics on qualitative aspects of our competitive advantage, like reputation, company values or quality of service? Testimonials and reviews from happy customers, as well as stories of how you’ve gone above and beyond to help people are very compelling selling tools. Focus on the “customer experience” and learn how to quantify that.

 

14:00 - Now, to address the values part of the trifecta. Come up with your own value proposition and develop a meaning that goes deeper than the word in order to answer the question: What is the value in my doing business with you? Again, the focus is to approach defining your values from the customer’s perspective and psychographic.

 

18:27 - What are some specific ways that we can define value? Superficially, value is the problem that you solve; the need that you meet. The way to add value is to truly understand the problem or issue that you can help with, so you can figure out the most effective and unique solution. 

 

21:00 - Another idea is to consider the concept of pain and pleasure. Human beings are pretty straightforward in that we seek pleasure and avoid pain, but which of those drives is stronger? Studies show that avoiding pain is a greater motivator than pleasure and this is reflected in the marketing that we see everyday. If decreasing pain is more effective, then the ultimate question is “How are you the Tylenol for my mortgage headache?”

 

23:21 - “How do you relieve the discomfort; how do you make the pain less painful? If you can speak to that, it’s a really strong motivator for people. And again, you’re going to sound different because most people in sales don’t want to talk about anything negative. So, when you bring up the negative, it’s fine as long as you bring up your solution - that’s the key!”

 

29:00 - The final part of the value trifecta is trust. In business, people have to trust your capabilities to do what you said you were able to do. How do you demonstrate this to people you have no history with? Again, here you can use the strength of third party testimonials, customer examples, and stories of satisfied clients to vouch for your credibility and capability.

 

31:51 - What about the personal side of trust? Well, potential clients will have to trust your intent, which means they know you’re looking out for them and not just yourself. You should be driven by finding the best solution to fit the customer, not simply making a sale for you. 

 

34:46 - How do we communicate trust without actually using that word? Thankfully, Blaine did the legwork already. Think of authenticity and transparency, consistency and respect - all of these words convey trust in a more actionable way. Demonstrating these qualities in our actions and communication builds trust between us and our clients. 

 

41:04 - Let’s recap on the key takeaways from today’s episode. We talked about the value trifecta, how people are influenced to choose to work with you, and how to quantify and be specific with showing Convenience, Value, and Trust. 

 

42:28 - Blaine leaves listeners with a few asks. First, take a step with a lesson that you learned today, maybe change up your direction or approach using some of the ideas presented. Second, tell a friend about this podcast! The aim of this podcast is to share information with as many people as possible. Third, talk with us at Arch MI. Tell us how we can be of service and bring more value to you as a customer.