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Marketing is part of being an Independent Contractor. There are however many
facets of Marketing, some of which we neglect; while others we pay meticulous
attention to. We don't mean to; but some things we do are then put aside when
done, in order to take care of more immediate concerns.
A clear example of this is your online profile. If you are like many other IC's
you have several profiles floating around the net. That's great, broader
exposure, more calls or inquiries for your service, more hits to your
website... right? Maybe, then again, maybe not.
It all depends on how well that profile is written in the first place and most
importantly, how current it is.
Most often what happens is you think of it as a task completed, and you never
give it a second thought. In fact you should be refreshing it every 30 days or
so. Updating your Personal Information, certifications, how much work you have
accomplished, and so on. All the statistical info you present in your profile
changes all the time, so should you change your profile. A lot of the time
profiles are left incomplete too, and then forgotten about.
In both scenarios; it's BAD for business. Incomplete or inaccurate info leads
to NO CALLS. Outdated profiles have the same result because you appear
lackadaisical - and if you are not taking your Public Profile seriously, why
should anyone else?
A quick "true story".... I got a call from UNAA's Linda Kassis about a closing
scheduled for that afternoon in New York State. She thought maybe I could do
it, or find someone who could. It was not in a county I serviced, so I went to
the Notary Locator on the UNAA site and got a list of potential closers.
My first call was answered by someone who had no idea what I was talking about.
It was a wrong number! I cross-referenced it and double checked the site - then
emailed the notary to check his profile and fix the problem. Then without
exception 5 out of 5 calls went to voice mail.
I was only trying to help out, and cold not pursue it further; however I was
alarmed by the results of my effort.; and several ideas came to mind
immediately.
- If you have already written a profile, proofread it for
errors and completeness.
- Make sure it's up to date and accurate.
- Contact Information includes your Name, Cell Phone,
Alternate Phone #, Fax #, Email Address, Website and perhaps a mailing address.
Make it as convenient as possible for a potential client to reach you.
- Include the hours that you work - there is no shame if
you work as a Notary/SA part-time. Include the days and hours you are
available. If someone is calling for YOUR service, and it goes to voice-mail;
unless they are a regular customer, they will continue calling around until
they find someone that answers their phone. So posting your available times
willreduce calls made while you're not free, and keep you in the good
graces ofthe Schedulers.
- Outline the territory you service - regardless of the
mileage factor, there may be an area 5 minutes away that you won't service (for
whatever reason), and yet another 30 minutes away is your favorite. Break it
down for them.
- List your experience and credentials - You could include
the # of Closings you have done, types of Loans you have experience with,
Certifications, Awards and General Accomplishments as related to your Notary
work.
- A photo of yourself helps people to identify you as a
human being rather than as a robot. Also, when you are communicating with your
clients via email, they will then be able to put a "face to the name"
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