Ready to Ignite Texas!

Strategies From An Innovative Sales Team

I just spent the last couple of days with the high-energy sales team of Essent Guaranty, a Mortgage Insurance (MI) company looking to take that industry and their team to a whole new level. I was the keynote motivational speaker for their Mid-Year National Sales Meeting entitled Ignite Texas, and Ignite Texas they did.

These last couple of days were high energy, content packed, and focused on one thing: making the experience of their customers better. Sure, like most sales events, there were presentations on new products, enhanced training, customer value and communications, but what makes Essent different is their presentations were all focused on one thing. They were all focused on providing their sales and operations teams with the tools they need to make a great customer experience even better.

Now I know, to the average person, the mortgage insurance industry does not sound all that exciting. However, if you had just spent the last couple of days with this team, I think they might have just changed your opinion about what a mortgage insurance company can do and how customer focused they can be.

I spend my life studying and teaching ways to improve the customer experience, keeping up on the latest trends and newest information. So it takes a lot to get my attention and impress me, but this team did.  From the time I walked into the room I could feel a great energy, that perfect balance of business focus and community. This is a group of professionals that is motivated by purpose, dedicated to innovating their industry, and committed to one another. I learned a lot in the couple of days I spent with the Essent team, but there were three strategies that truly stood out:

1. Values Matter – Essent has clearly stated values. They have defined and are committed to ensuring their values can be easily felt by everyone who interacts with their company. They know who they are and what they stand for, and anyone who does business with them would know that too.  Now, that is impressive in and of itself, but the mortgage insurance industry is a very competitive business, where values are not always the driver of many in the industry. Essent states their values,  stands by theirs, and in doing so radiates a message of trust. They understand the power of their brand, and what standing by it means for their customer relationships and their customers peace of mind..
2. People Matter – Only the best, that is the message I heard loud and clear from Jeff Cashmer, the Senior Vice President of Business Development,  when talking about who they hire and why. I could feel the sense of community in the room during the conference, and the sense of fun when I attended the conference dinner and party that night.  Watching the team laugh, dance and take endless photos together, not only made me smile but made me think, “Yeah, this is a company I would want to do business with.” Essent gets it; people matter, and the better quality of team members they have, the more they invest in them, the better experience their customers are going to have.
3. Customers Matter – The word I heard mentioned most often at this conference was customer. Now that may not seem like a lot to you, but as business growth expert it says volumes to me. It means that Essent has their eye on the ball, they understand what is most important in their business, and they are never losing sight of it. From the comments of their executive level leaders, to the presenters, to their team breakouts the impact on the customer was a consistent topic. In a day and age when sales rallies too often focus on margins and bottom line results, it was inspiring to experience a team that understands their growth and their customer experience are one in the same.

So yes, all in all an amazing sales conference, and I feel very  lucky to get to be a part of it. I can only hope that my motivational keynote speech taught them as much about the customer experience, as I gained from just hanging out with them. Now one other thing, if you have not heard or worked with Essent Guaranty, then I encourage you to take some time and check them out www.essent.us. It just may surprise you how when you have the right values, the right people, and the best customers, how incredibly interesting mortgage insurance can be!

Motivational Keynote Speaker & Business Growth Expert, Meridith Elliott Powell, works with clients to help them instill ownership at every level to ensure profits at every turn. Click here for 3 Sure Fire Tips To Get Your Team To Instill Ownership At Every Level, To Get Profits At Every Turn! Meridith is the author of several books, including her latest, Winning In The Trust & Value Economy: a professional’s guide to business and sales success. When not keynoting and leading workshops, she looks for inspiration cycling, golfing or hiking her favorite trail.  https://www.meridithelliottpowell.com