It is not news that everyone needs a website for their business, this includes those who are in the mortgage industry. In the event that you do not have an online presence, the online leads and deals that could have been yours are going to your competitors that do offer websites. Whether you are a brand new loan officer, or you have been in this industry for a long time, you need a website. Creating a good website for your mortgage business is easier said than done. However, I am here to share with you a few things that your loan officer website needs to have in order to be effective.
The Best Mortgage Websites Have A Clean Design
First and foremost, you should have a clean, modern, and visually appealing mortgage website design. Make sure that the different pages you offer on your website are easy to navigate between. Ensure that you are clearly labeling different pieces of information on your website so your website visitors can easily find what they are looking for. It is important to keep your website modern and tidy, otherwise it can be extremely overwhelming for the reader. Different pages for different bits of information are crucial. If you throw all of your information, articles, blogs, etc. on the homepage, you are trusting that your website visitors will take time to go through all of the information to find what they are looking for. That is a big ask for the general public – who has had access to clean, easy to navigate websites for years.
Having a clean website design is great, but it has to be clean and visually appealing on mobile devices as well. The average Joe is relying more and more on their phone to conduct any type of internet searches. This is especially true when they are on the go. If I am out and about and I want to look something up on the internet, I pull out my phone and find my answer right then and there. I can’t recall a time I’ve ever waited until I had access to a desktop or laptop computer to conduct an internet search. Therefore, you need to ensure that your website layout is mobile-friendly.
You should also look into including forms on your website so your visitors can have an easy way to give you their information if they want you to contact them. As it stands, you might be using mortgage lead generation websites, which is a good idea and an effective way to get plenty of leads. However, you are able to obtain some leads on your own just by adding a form to your website. If someone stumbles across your website, give them a space that says ‘contact us’ or ‘enter your information to learn more’. You could trust your prospects to give you a call, but they are more likely to fill out their information if there is a form easily accessible to them.
It is absolutely essential for you to include your contact information on your website. Otherwise, your prospects as well as existing clients will have no way to get a hold of you. You should include your phone number, email address, and physical address if you accept clients in-office. A good place for this information to sit is in the footer of your website, so it is always on the screen and always accessible to your website visitors. You also might want to look into an ‘About Us’ section to allow your prospects to learn more about who they will be working with. People love to know that they are dealing with real people, just like them. So, allow them to get to know the team just a little bit better by adding photos, names, and contact information for those on your mortgage team.
The Best Mortgage Websites Have Social Proof
Something else you should add to your website is reviews or testimonials. Social proof is a huge deal in this day and age. Testimonials and reviews on your website can do a lot for you. Testimonials and reviews give you credibility – these videos or bits of text prove to everyone visiting your website that you are someone who is worth working with. Testimonials and reviews can be incredibly powerful, as 70% of people will even trust a recommendation from someone they have never met before. Chances are that you already have some reviews on Google – you can pull those and add them to your website. You can also ask your clients to create testimonials for you. Whether they are video or text, you are adding credibility to your website and telling your prospects that you have helped people before, and you have the ability to help them with their mortgage needs as well.
If you are creating posts on social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter, you should also add outbound links to those network pages on your website. These buttons could also find a place in the footer of your website, along with your contact information. Facebook and Twitter are a much faster way for your prospects and clients to keep up with your posts. If you do create a new blog post or add something else that is new to your website, you can link to it in your social media post – that way, your audience knows when they should visit your website for new content.
To learn more don’t hesitate to reach out to our team here at S3. We’ll have your new website up and running in less than 2 weeks!