A common fear for any new venture is that the business may not be profitable—or will take too long to get to that point. Credit repair is not only a viable subsection of the financial services industry; if you run a credit repair business you’re an agent of positive change in your clients’ lives and financial futures.
Consider these seven practices from millionaire credit repair business owners when deciding whether you’d like to take the next step in owning a credit repair business and elevating your community from the inside.
1. Make Mortgage Brokers, Auto Dealers, and Tax Preparers Business Partners
Credit repair is critical to having access to other financial services, such as mortgage and auto loans. Without a strong credit score, many people may not qualify for the loan they need for the car or home they want to purchase. Mortgage brokers and auto dealers may turn these people away unless they can pull up their score—or they may send these clients to credit repair consultants in their referral network. That’s where you come in.
By offering credit repair consultations, you serve clients whom other financial services professionals refer to you. Your knowledge and expertise helps your clients boost their credit score, which enables them to qualify for their car or home purchase. Their qualification means a closed deal for the mortgage broker or auto dealer who referred that client to you, and the lead-generation cycle continues.
If you want to learn more about how to start a credit repair business in this way, look no further than Credit Repair Business Owner and CEO Tara-Ashley Gable’s story. She founded her own now-multi-million-dollar credit repair business, Integrated Loan Assistance, using this very strategy.
Take Action: Make a list of local mortgage brokers, real estate agents, tax preparers, auto dealers, and other financial service providers who may have clients with credit repair needs. Reach out to introduce yourself and your services as a potential affiliate lead generator.
2. Sell Credit Repair to Affiliates
Just as success in your business can hinge on your understanding of other financial services, professionals referring clients to your credit repair services should also understand how your business works. Educating your affiliate partners means they deliver higher quality leads who are closer to saying yes to your services so your shared clients can in turn purchase the car or get the home loan they deserve.
Take Action: Assemble a brief packet of information you can print out or email to your affiliate partners that explains your credit repair services in a level of detail that helps them help you.
3. Identify a Niche Target Client
Clients needing credit repair services can run the gamut, so it’s critical to drill down a niche demographic for your target clients. Certain clients are closer to pulling the trigger on repairing their credit than others, such as clients already intending to purchase a car or home in the near future. Casting a wider net may turn up more leads at first, but that quantity could be undone by the quality of the leads—and the time you ultimately waste on them.
Take Action: Drill down your list of potential affiliate partners to one or two primary niches that might deliver more higher-quality leads. Your community may have a greater immediate need for home loans versus auto loans, for example.
4. Boost Client Financial Literacy
Credit repair is not just about taking your client’s financial situation and magically improving it for them with a few calculations and phone calls. Your client’s active role in their credit repair experience is essential to success for both sides of the services exchange, so it only helps you to offer education to your affiliate partners and your clients. Lessons in better credit habits can set clients up for a more stable future by taking a more active role in their financial well-being even after they no longer directly need your services.
Take Action: Consider starting a blog with weekly or monthly posts on your website, or create a few checklists and other resources your clients could read on their own time to supplement their consultations with you.
5. Turn Clients Into Fans
In almost any industry, few referrals are better than those from satisfied former or current clients. These happy clients often go on to become lead generating machines of their own. This is especially true when your services enable them to qualify for a life-changing purchase, such as a home or auto loan, or to bounce back from bankruptcy. As a brand advocate, these clients spread positive reviews of their experience with your credit repair services across their personal and social media networks.
Take Action: Ask clients for a review or testimonial that you can post on your website, or ask them to leave you a rating and review on sites like Yelp.
6. Avoid Burnout
Overwhelm and burnout are critical concerns when you consider starting any business, and when it comes to credit repair, consultants can wear many hats, from dealing with creditors to teaching better credit habits. Hiring a virtual or office assistant or intern could lessen your load of the more mundane administrative tasks such as scheduling calls and appointments. This frees up your time for more high-level thinking and direct interactions with your clients.
Take Action: Review your daily tasks for the next week, and determine which tasks you might be able to delegate to an assistant without compromising your business or your finances.
7. Never Stop Learning
Whether you attend conferences and webinars or otherwise consume educational materials through blogs, podcasts, ebooks, and so on, it’s critical to always continue to learn more about the credit repair and financial industries. New trends, regulations, and news headlines abound in the financial industry, and staying on the pulse of what’s new in credit repair means you deliver the best and most informed services to your clients.
Take Action: Subscribe to our blog for regular updates surrounding industry news and expert tips.
Are you ready to learn how to start a credit repair business of your very own? Don’t miss this free webinar about how you can build a business by helping your clients improve their credit scores and habits.
