If you’re stuck in the same habits and getting the same business results, take action toward a rejuvenated credit repair business this year. Here are five ways you can step up your credit repair game in 2018.
1. Execute Business Goals
If you don’t have a detailed, inspiring credit repair business plan already, you’ve got to start there. Some people create a business plan that is more like a wish list. You need to keep your end goal in mind, but--just like you do for your credit repair clients--you should have some goals that are achievable and that stretch you a bit beyond what you think you can do.
How to create SMART Business Goals:
(Adapted from Zillow’s article on the widely-used business goal acronym.)
- Specific: Goals like “I want to be making $500,000 in annual revenue in 4 years” are easier to reach than “I want to make a lot of money in a credit repair business”
- Measurable: It may feel intimidating to set a timeframe or a goal of a certain number of referrals you want to earn, but this is one of the best ways you will motivate yourself (and your team) to run a great credit repair business
- Achievable: Make your goals stretch you, and use facts and figures to determine a goal that you can theoretically achieve
- Reasonable: You want to light a fire under yourself to get traction in your business, but if you keep trying for goals that are not reasonable, you may get burned out instead
- Time-bound: Just like you would push yourself the last quarter-mile of a 5K run, you want to have timely goals with specific dates to keep you focused and push you to work just a little bit harder to get there
When you’re pushing toward a meaningful, big-vision goal, you will feel the electricity - and it is contagious. By staying motivated you not only reach your goals, but your enthusiasm and belief will be infectious for your credit repair clients. Your business is changing lives for the better so your credit repair business goals shouldn’t shy away from greatness.
2. Build Your Referral Base
Affiliate Referrals
Credit repair helps your clients change their financial lives, which means they will be ready to apply for a mortgage, get that new auto loan, or invest in other ways that your financial affiliates would be happy to support! When you develop relationships with local auto dealers or mortgage brokers, they will refer clients to you who they otherwise could not help. After you fix their credit, these clients can go back and get their loan approved. You’re helping people reach their dreams, and you’re building stable business relationships in the community.
Here are a few ways to encourage affiliate referrals:
- Introduce yourself - Local business owners are more likely to do business with you when they know you and have some sense of personal connection to you. Stop by to shake hands, learn about what they do, and leave behind some information on how credit repair can serve their clients and their business
- Return the favor with affiliate referral fees - No one is required to kick a little cash back to a company that refers clients to them, but a small referral fee is a tangible way to say thank you and “please come again” that usually results in repeat referrals
- Partner with financial affiliates for free marketing - Work with a local mortgage broker to create free community education classes on how to get a better rate on their mortgage, get approved for a loan, or how to develop better financial habits
Client Referrals
Did we mention that credit repair changes your clients’ lives? That is no exaggeration, and your clients are usually more than willing to share their positive experience working with you. As elated as they are to have a new lease on life, they can bound out the door and forget to share the good news.
Ask credit repair clients to:
- Record a video testimonial to share on your website
- Write a brief, 2-3 sentence overview of what you did for them and their family (for the camera shy)
- Share you with their friends and family
Collect those success stories to share about your excellent work and to remind yourself why you got into the credit repair business!
3. Create Client Loyalty
Your credit repair clients may only take about five minutes of work per month after the initial setup, but it doesn’t mean you can’t send a little sunshine their way throughout the year.
Your credit repair client appreciation can take the form of:
- Cards and letters: Mail a letter or card to congratulate a client when a debt is paid, a negative item removed, or any other small milestone is reached on the road to debt freedom and credit building
- Emails that say you care: Set calendar reminders for client birthdays and special occasions and send out automated emails to celebrate them, and to keep your work at the front of their mind
- Annual client barbecue: Invite all of your credit repair clients to a summer barbecue or winter holiday party. Clients at different stages in their credit repair journey can mix and mingle, share stories of their successes with each other, and remember why they are working hard to have a better financial life--all with some awesome grub and fun!
No matter what creative ideas you come up with to appreciate your clients, what ultimately builds loyalty is your genuine commitment to working hard for them and being a kind, persistent, authentic credit repair business owner.
4. Find Your Market
If only there were a credit repair bat signal that you could look for in the sky to echolocate your clients. To find your credit repair clients you’ll want to target the right market (you can find some free tools through the Small Business Administration), and let them know how you can help them.
Get more credit repair business by getting in front of your target market:
- Create marketing materials for your business: Download free marketing materials from your Credit Repair Cloud portal and personalize with your business’ information
- Show up to community events both as a credit repair business owner and community member
- Volunteer for causes that are dear to your heart, and even better if they fit with credit repair
- Give free credit education to people in your community
- Consider joining a local business networking group so professionals know what you do and can refer business your way
5. Invest in Your Future
Sometimes you come to a crossroads in your business life where you can keep doing what you’ve been doing, or you can make a significant shift in your actions to take steps toward reaching a new level in your business. Great businesses don’t happen by mistake; they come from great leaders who invest in growth, education, and putting what they know into practice.
There is no replacement for live credit repair training from experts who know what it takes to be successful in a credit repair business. This year you can join hundreds of other credit repair business owners at the best credit repair training and networking event of the year!
Here’s what you can expect at this year’s Credit Repair Expo:
- Inspirational talks from business leaders and industry experts
- Credit repair training in break-out sessions led by successful credit repair business owners and business leaders
- Networking opportunities with fellow credit repair business owners
- A group of fun, hardworking people who invest in themselves and their businesses
Henry Ford is credited with saying, “Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right.”
Sometimes as business owners it is easy to feel trapped in our current results and unaware of the habits that are keeping us stuck there. When you join us at the Credit Repair Expo you can get outside of your box to think bigger than ever before, meet people who are achieving the results you only dream of, and gain a new perspective on what is possible.
Don’t miss out on this once-a-year credit repair event. Sign up for your spot at the Credit Repair Expo now!
