Posted by Anonymous on 1/23/06 5:02pm
Msg #90401

Getting Started

hi, is there any free books i can find on the web and down load about how to target title/escrow companies, mortgage companies, etc? About Flyers, any and all tips?

Reply by CarolynCO on 1/23/06 5:09pm
Msg #90402

Re: If, in fact, you are just "getting started"

and have little or no experience, you aren't ready for TCs

Reply by Anonymous on 1/23/06 5:40pm
Msg #90408

Re: If, in fact, you are just "getting started"

actually i've worked in title companies and mortgage companies for the last 7 years. and in the last year i coordinated signings for the mortagage company and 3 title compaines they worked with. I hired the notaries, paid them, and assigned them signings. I'm just actually on the other end now, being an actual notary. I have good relationships with a lot of these notaries, but i can't always get a hold of them to ask them questions and right now i'm on here every day reading and learning all i can, so sometimes i ask questions Of course i'm going to target the companies i've worked with, but i want to be as good as i can and i was wondering if there's a book, to help you target places. Now can anyone help me with this, instead of telling me i'm not ready for TC's. I'm trying to be as ready as i can and thought this was a good place to come for support. I'm in California!

Reply by Becca_FL on 1/23/06 8:19pm
Msg #90442

Re: If, in fact, you are just "getting started"

No offense but, I worked with MANY people in a CA TC that had been there for years and still had not one clue as to how the closing process worked. Many of them couldn't even explain what Title insurance was or tell you who the underwriter was. Don't even get me started on the docs and the lack of knowledge there.

Well, at least you know how to schedule appointments, that's a start.

Reply by Anonymous on 1/23/06 5:44pm
Msg #90412

Re: If, in fact, you are just "getting started"

Also please if you can't answer the question and instead write a rude comment that didn't even give help....save your time and don't even type back Carolyn CO

Reply by NM_CO on 1/23/06 6:00pm
Msg #90417

Re: If, in fact, you are just "getting started"

Where was Carolyn being rude? She was being honest and she is very correct. I think you just took it personal because that is not what you wanted to hear. It's very obvious that you are not ready.

Reply by CarolynCO on 1/23/06 7:33pm
Msg #90438

Re: Believe me when I tell you that you haven't even begun

to see rude -- so bring it on.

Reply by BP/WV on 1/23/06 5:11pm
Msg #90403

you've got to invest money to make money.

Reply by Anonymous on 1/23/06 5:42pm
Msg #90411

i know that...and i also know there is alot of free things out there on the web, before i start spending uncessary money that i can be using to make my business cards or something else. I thought this was a place of help and support and not to be rude but all i got from you and Carolyn CO is kinda negative feed back...instead of maybe saying no you don't know of any free guides to get started, u said what u said. Thanks and God Bless you and yours

Reply by Nd_WA on 1/23/06 5:53pm
Msg #90415

CarolynCO gave you a reality check, and your reaction to her post showed she nailed it.

Reply by Mike_IA on 1/23/06 6:20pm
Msg #90424

And why did you leave your day job? Was it to make...

the BIG money promised by the NNA?

Reply by CaliNotary on 1/23/06 6:48pm
Msg #90431

It wasn't even a full reality check, it was a harmless and factual comment that made him start whining like a grade schooler.

I'm sure we're all going to go out of our way to offer advice to this ingrate now. Not that it'll matter, anybody with skin that thin is going to be a monumental failure in this industry anyway.

Reply by NM_CO on 1/23/06 7:06pm
Msg #90434

Re: Cali

You really need to start taking up comedy at the local clubs. If I could swear on this board I would say "you're amazing at making one laugh" but I'd put a couple of f's in between.

Reply by cmd_NH on 1/23/06 7:14pm
Msg #90436

I agree with Cali....

I can't believe someone that is just starting could be so rude. I am seeing why all the notaries that have been doing this for a while get ticked off. I've been doing this for three years and still consider myself new. I appreciate all the information that I have learned from the more experienced. I still have questions, most of which are being answered by searches, but I have one question regarding fee structuring that I am researching everywhere without results. But still, the info and responses I get (good or bad) is welcomed. Constructive critisism is a good thing in my book.

Reply by CaliNotary on 1/23/06 11:34pm
Msg #90491

And yet I'm proven completely wrong

Shortly after my post about nobody going out of their way to help this ingrate, there were 3 posts giving a bunch of information and wishing him luck.

Of course if I had posted something similarly snotty and ungrateful, there would be 15 posts telling me what a jerk I am and 3 telling me that they had complained to Harry and are trying to get me banned from the board. Maybe I should change my screenname to CaliNewbieNotary so all the do-gooders won't care what I say or how I say it, they'll still trip over themselves trying to give me whatever I want.

Now if only I can use this newly discovered power for only good and not evil. Yeah, right.

Reply by John_NorCal on 1/23/06 11:44pm
Msg #90497

Re: You're changing your name??? Say it isn't so!! nm

Reply by Leon_CO on 1/23/06 7:01pm
Msg #90433

I don't know how much this will help, but I use the lists that you can find on message boards such as this one. The lists are not hard to find (click on the 'Signing Services' tab at the top of this page and you'll see a long list of various title companies and signing services). On their web sites you will see a place where Signing Agents can sign up with them. I also do some searching on Google to find potential leads.

Then I visit their web sites. I might also start with a search on this board to see what other Notaries have to say about them (click on the yellow
Search' tab). But it's a good idea to visit their web site to see what they're all about. For example, they might not be hiring in your particular area. Scratch them off your list. I also make notes of all the various skills and qualifications that they are looking for. It's not enough to want to work for them. You have to know if you're someone they would want to hire.

Some of these qualifications you may already have. Some you may not. You can think of these as your strengths and weaknesses. It might be a certain number of years of experience, or a type of service that they want. Some will only hire you if you have certification, or a certain type of printer. If you notice that there is a skill that someone is looking for, and you don't have it, then that is something you want to work on. And you may have to wait a while before approaching that company. It's just like applying for a job anywhere else. If the employer is looking for someone with a particular skill, then you'll apply to that person only if you can do the job. It's the same with the title companies. Find out what they're looking for. And target only those whose demands match the skills that you can offer them.

By the same token, you may find that you have skills that they may be in need of, and that no one else has. You have something you can offer this company that no other person can. For example, I visited the site of a title company and noticed that they provided multi-lingual services. I searched to see which languages they were able to provide at this time, and they had no one on their staff who could speak the language that I'm proficient in. I made a note of it, and it's something I could offer them if I ever sought employment with them in the future.

In short, assess your strengths and weaknesses. Let the companies know what you can offer them, and how you can be beneficial to their operation. It may be something that seems insignificant to you, but it might be just the thing that can get your foot in the door.

By the way, I found an ad for that particular title company I mentioned in the yellow pages. I cut it out and taped it to my monitor as a reminder of a potential lead. As CarolynCO suggested earlier, a title company is something that I don't think I'm ready for just yet. I'll wait a while and learn the ropes, pay my dues, etc.

Good luck.

Reply by debra brown on 1/24/06 7:41am
Msg #90564

what excellent advice and great of you to respond with such info. thanks.

Reply by Elva_oh on 1/23/06 7:50pm
Msg #90439

Here are some sites I found useful
www.signingregistry.com I highly recommend this training
www.notarylinks.com
www.123notary.com
www.notarylaw.com
50statesnotary.com

I personally do not post questions to this board because of reading it. If I can be of any help please email me at [e-mail address]

Good luck
Elva

Reply by Kelly M Robertson on 1/23/06 9:02pm
Msg #90457

Dear Anon: Here's Some Free Resources

www.50StateNotary.com (free info galore inclu list of SS)
www.GoMobileNotary.com (free Msg Board and SS list)
www.Americannn.com (great site too - good resources to study)
www.NotaryCA.com (Free stuff and list of ss)
www.NotaryLinks.com
www.MelissaData.com (zip codes - the best resource)
www.PAWNotary.com (great site for resources)
www. NotaryDepot.com

Tons more - this is just what I can think of off the top of my head. Good luck

Reply by Anonymous on 1/24/06 2:00am
Msg #90523

Dear Anon,

As you can see, there are quite a few "Old Timers" here who like to bully the boards. Miss Colorado is a bitter old thing isn't she?
Look, use the links that others have given, sign up with as many signing services as possible (200+) and even with that it may take 1-3 months before you start hearing the phone ring. Be patient and keep positive, you at least have a leg up on TRUE newbies as you already have contacts in the field.
Get some nice business cards printed and start letting people know what you do and what you can offer. Remember a handshake/smile is free and a great marketing tool. Also, dont put too much stock in what the "Regulars" on this board have to fire back at you, but it is funny though...If they are such great, know-it-all notaries why in the HE** are they always on these dam* boards?!@#, YES I'm a newbie BUT I don't have time to "PLAY" on these boards all day. I ACTUALLY have signigs to do...novel idea huh????

Anon, in L.A

Reply by Janlee_MI on 1/24/06 7:01am
Msg #90553

Re: Dear Anon,

I am in Michigan and you can contact me if you have questions. I have been in the Real Estate and Title Industry for 20 years. I will be glad to give you some help.
I am helping some other newbies.

Reply by Anonymous on 1/24/06 8:13am
Msg #90572

Re: Dear Anon,

:Hats off to the people on this board who actually have the heart to help a newbie. It's a big business folks and there is little need for the egotistical crap coming from some of these agents.

Reply by CaliNotary on 1/24/06 1:21pm
Msg #90688

Re: Dear Anon,

We help newbies all the time on this board, even us egotistical ones. But some of us have a problem giving help to somebody who acts like such an ungrateful jerk when they didn't get the EXACT information they wanted. Don't be a jerk, get the help you're looking for. Novel concept, huh?

Reply by CaliNotary on 1/24/06 1:25pm
Msg #90689

Re: Dear Anon,

"If they are such great, know-it-all notaries why in the HE** are they always on these dam* boards?!@#, YES I'm a newbie BUT I don't have time to "PLAY" on these boards all day. I ACTUALLY have signigs to do"

Well maybe when you figure out how to do this job correctly, you won't need to spend the entire day doing your signings. Some of us can get em all wrapped up in just a few hours. I'll earn $290 today and it'll take about 4 and a half hours of my time.