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In a recent episode of “The Loan Officer Podcast,” co-hosts Dustin Owen and John Coleman discuss key tips for loan officers when engaging in small talk with prospective clients. Owen and Coleman explore common discussion topics, conversational nuances and best practices for communicating with clients from different backgrounds.
These questions and responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
To start the conversation, Owen and Coleman dive into the first tip, which involves asking for a client’s area code to learn about their backstory. Owen opens up with an explanation.
Dustin Owen: We all have an area code, right? That area code tends to tell us something about each other and that’s, well, where are we from? Sales is built on trust; it’s based on relationships. The first thing I have to do is get someone to like me.
Look at the area code. Is it local or is it from out of the area? If it’s from out of the area, do you recognize it? If it’s from out of the area and you don’t recognize it, sweet. That’s your very first question. Where’d you go to high school? What did you do after high school?
And every time, I’m giving someone the opportunity to talk about themselves, I’m asking good, basic questions. The more they talk, I can look for opportunities for us to eventually transact something together.
Coleman then moves the conversation forward with a question for Owen.
John Coleman: Because you are good at remembering people’s names, and what they say, is that something that you practice, or is that just one of your traits that you have as an individual?
Owen: Truth be told, I suck at remembering names. But I genuinely love to learn a new story. And what I also love, like some people, I love how people work. I love how businesses work. And as you tell me, I’m concocting my own story.
Coleman: What advice do you have for those awkward loan originators? Because they do exist, you know, the socially awkward ones.
Owen: Find your people. At the end of the day you have to find your people. If you have some quirks, or your freak flag flies higher and faster than other people’s freak flag, just go find more people like you, because you will attract your ideal client.
To end the conversation, Owen offers the last tip involving vulnerability and establishing trust in a conversation.
Owen: Small talk is fake because people won’t be vulnerable. If you want to truly get someone to like you, to trust you, it’s because you showed them a piece of you that they feel is special, right? Me being vulnerable, willing to talk about my quirks, my fears, my anxieties and some life experiences, I think that’s when small talk goes to the next level.
