Posted by Belinda Flickner on 4/4/12 1:04pm
Msg #416959

I Started in November of 2011

I did my first signing in November of 2011. I just recently started marketing to different SS and Title companies. My question is can anyone give a list of their favorite companies to work for, (any notaries not in pa, i would assume, Since i am not your competition).. That would be greatly appreciated. I did get a call from genuine title one day and i declined that one. I have been reading lots of reviews, but i know not all good companies are listed on here. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am ready to go into this full time now, since i have done about 50 signings now. I didn't want to go full force until i got a few under my belt. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me!!

Reply by Ilene C. Seidel on 4/4/12 1:27pm
Msg #416963

I doubt anyone will share that info with you, we've all paid our dues. The only way to build a client base is to market yourself using signing central and walk in to the local title companies to introduce yourself leaving a business card and perhaps a resume. This business takes years to build, I can't count the hours spent on the computer marketing. Good luck to you.

Reply by bfnotary on 4/4/12 1:34pm
Msg #416965

I have spent hours upon hours online marketing to companies. I even wrote up business letters to local businesses. I will give my email address to anyone whom would love to share any companies with me (remember unless you are in pa I am not competition). My email is [e-mail address]. Any advice, tips, company names.. Oh and i am not a lowballer.. I do get lots of calls offering low ball fees, I refuse them. I know how much it costs me in gas, printer fees, toner, time, etc, and taxes.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 4/4/12 5:50pm
Msg #416990

"remember unless you are in pa I am not competition"

Technically, this may be true, but what about other members of this board who might be your neighbors, for all we know? It would be really unfair for someone to give to you (a newcomer to this forum) what other people (perhaps long time contributors here) have never asked for, possibly because they didn't think it would be appropriate to do so.

Even if that info wasn't posted here for everyone to see, it's still undercutting someone else. If everyone started doing that randomly, we'd eventually be cutting our own throats. Further, what would be the upside for someone to take some of their valuable time to send what you're asking for? Probably nothing.

The tough reality is that you're asking for what is the bread and butter of any business - and the hardest part to acquire. It sounds like you've started off on the right foot, but you just need to hang in there and keep at it for the long haul, if you're committed to breaking into this business and making a go of it. Unfortunately, that's become harder and harder for new people to do over time, but that doesn't mean some aren't still getting there. Your chances will depend on your area's demographics and competition - and your effort and determination.

Best of luck!

Reply by NJDiva on 4/4/12 6:40pm
Msg #416998

Nicely said Janet...as always...

Reply by JanetK_CA on 4/4/12 11:23pm
Msg #417012

Thanks, Cheryl. ;>) n/m

Reply by FeliseSoCal on 4/4/12 1:55pm
Msg #416973

Ditto Ilene, well put! n/m

Reply by BossLadyMD on 4/4/12 7:41pm
Msg #417005

Nicely stated Ilene!! I agree :) n/m

Reply by Patti Corcoran on 4/4/12 1:32pm
Msg #416964

Re:Best of luck!

Most of us have gone to Signing Central, made note of the 3 star or above companies and signed up with them. My advise is that you read the reviews. A company can get a three star status but receive many comments of poor pay, etc. You choose the ones that appeal to you, or that you feel comfortable working with. You will be marketed by some companies that require you to pay to get onto their data base. I decline those offers. Again, your choice. Their are also two other websites for notaries that you can sign up with (besides NotaryRotary which is the best). Signing up with all of those companies is time consuming but it is time well spent. Good Luck!

Reply by C. Rivera Chicago Notary Services on 4/4/12 1:36pm
Msg #416966

Patti, that's probably the best advice to give these folks.. n/m

Reply by bfnotary on 4/4/12 1:43pm
Msg #416969

Re: Re:Best of luck!

I have read the reviews for every single company in sc, and marketed to the ones with good reviews(that took many many hours to do). But i do know that not all the companies are on there. That is only reason i was asking for any recent company names. It seems people dont like to post the good companies. Which to me makes since in a way but also in a way does not. I did only start back in November and have done just over 50 signings which to me isnt bad considering i just started out. I have 3 of the companies that always call me first. If i happen to be busy i refer them to my mother. She is a notary as well. But ya know what, if a company really likes you, they will always try you first. and in my opinion if you are busy and refer someone else, you score brownie points.. Always good to score brownie points. But that is just the way i do it. Just wanted to say I am not really asking for a handout or anything, I have spent many many hours online marketing, just wondering if anyone had any companies not on the list. I for certain will add companies to the list when i find good ones., or bad ones. Thanks again

Reply by C. Rivera Chicago Notary Services on 4/4/12 1:50pm
Msg #416972

"if a company really likes you, they will always try you

first.." WRONG...If you are 'cheaper' than your competition, sure they'll call you first...do not be fooled into believing that there's some sort of loyalty in this business, very very few, and I mean, less than 1%...

Its a money game to these SS and TC's..that's all...and if you happen not to screw up a closing, then yeah, mostly likely they'll call you back, but ONLY if you're fees are less than the other guy around the corner...IMO...

Reply by Moneyman/TX on 4/4/12 3:44pm
Msg #416983

Re: "if a company really likes you, they will always try you

Carrie is correct in that there are very few SS companies that believe in loyalty regardless of how good your work is or your own customer service skills which may even be above the "normal".

The companies that I work with know my knowledge, experience, and customer service (both to them and the signers) is worth what I charge. I say that because you may not want to get into a "price war" with your local NSA competitors, especially with gas prices and all other expenses going up.

I have had 2 different SS companies and 1 TC that I worked with, years ago, that due to my knowledge and customer service skills I was able to overcome several bad LO's poor customer service and help get the borrowers in touch with people that could give them answers to their questions right away or was able to find the documents within the closing file that would address their questions. If I had not been able to do that, the loan would not have been "saved" and they would have not signed the docs at that time. I have also caught several mistakes that would have resulted in 2nd signings prior to the original appointment. At the time they thanked me. As soon as they realized that there were some new NSA's that were willing to accept $75-$100 they stopped calling me except when they were in a bind. Of course, once I realized this I began charging them full price for each signing they called for. I know that at least one of the SS and the 1 TC are now out of business and the other SS which used to have a 4-5 star rating has received complaints regarding slow/no pay for a few years (about 6 months after they stopped calling me on a regular basis).

I still offer the same level of high customer service along with my knowledge and skills but I charge what I charge because I know I am worth it.

Reply by MW/VA on 4/4/12 2:18pm
Msg #416978

It usually takes at least a year to build your business.

You will get repeat biz by building a reputation of professionalism & knowing what you're doing.
Good luck & happy signings. :-)

Reply by ToniK on 4/4/12 4:52pm
Msg #416986

Re: It usually takes at least a year to build your business.

I will add my two cents. I started in 2007 and my business just this past september 2011 is now a full time income producing job. It took me longer than a year to build this business BUT I was doing it part time along with my full time income between 2007-early 2011 when I got laid off my defense contractor job.

Reply by NJDiva on 4/4/12 6:37pm
Msg #416997

It took me a number of years to get established and I can

assure you, not one person divulged their proprietary information in me getting there. As most others did, I spent hours marketing, selling and proving myself. It took me hundreds of closings to START getting there, not 50.

If anyone (that is working full time as an NSA) is naive enough to give up their hard earned customer base, I personally, would have to judge them as being a dam fool. It's just not good business sense.

How about going to "Duke", the golden retriever of Bush's Baked Beans and asking him for the family recipe. He "ain't givin it up." I wonder why? hmmmmm

If those posting really want to be taken seriously, (IMO!!!!) you may want to consider adding a link to your profile. To do so, all you do is, when posting a message, under the "Enter Your Message Here" scroll bar, there is a box next to the "Author" box that says "Add Link To My Profile." Check that box. It helps to give yourself some credibility. Anyone can say they are from anywhere.

I think one of the problems is that the **Association publicizes this business as an easy, get rich quick business! It's misleading and some would say false advertising. Like any business in the real world, to be successful, it takes time,effort and patience. If you need to make a living on this business and are just starting out, you need to get another job. It just doesn't work like that (In My Opinion.)

Wishing you much success.

Reply by Integrity Notaries - Tennessee on 4/4/12 7:03pm
Msg #417004

Re: It took me a number of years to get established and I can

I'm still part time and have built a nice client base but it's has taken many years. I would suggest that you do many hours of research and join different forums. Somes forums give you a list of companies with ratings that is very helpful. This is method I used and I'm sure a lot of others did the same.

Reply by bfnotary on 4/6/12 10:19am
Msg #417147

Re: It took me a number of years to get established and I can

I just wanted to add this. I have spent MANY hours marketing. And the fact that my first signing was November 29th i think, and the fact that i actually have over 50 signings isnt to bad. That is how many a month in my first 4 and half months. (over 10 a month). And no i dont low ball. Cant make a living if ya lowball. People seem to think i am not marketing, and i am not sure why it takes years to get established. heck i am just starting out and get on average 10 or more a month.

Reply by cawest/PA on 4/4/12 9:00pm
Msg #417009

I do not see why you consider yourself competition to all Notaries in Pa? I am about 260 miles from you and in PA ... You are by Lake Erie with barely no competition in a radius of 25miles so just market yourself , take time to review companies and contact them. The market is probably not as large where you are compared to more dense areas but if you market yourselfyou will get there...after all Rome was not built in one day!

Reply by CJ on 4/5/12 12:25am
Msg #417015

My 2 cents.

First of all, I think everyone is competition. You don't know who has a relative or friend somewhere else that they will help become a notary. A woman in my area trained my stepmom to be a notary. Stepmom was not competition because she lived somewhere else. Then stepmom trained me, I lived in another place so I was no competition. Then I met my husband and moved into the territory of the first woman, and now I am her competition. You never know. Even someone out of state, my have a friend or relative in your town that they will help become a notary.

Secondly, you really just have to call, and call and call signing services. That is what we all did. We all had to break in with no expereince in the begining. When you get to the bottom of the list, google some more or go back to the top of the list. When you have worked a few months and it gets slow again, call them all over again.

Thirdly, there is NO loyalty from the signing service or the title company. When you work in an office, you can SEE the politics, but you can't see them here. That does not mean they don't exist. They could have a favorite notary in another town move into your territory, and that's the end of you. You could do a great job for someone for years. Then comes a super-busy EOM, you have too much on your plate and a borrower complains, or you make a significant mistake, and you're history. The SS also has to answer for your mistakes, so they can't afford to hire screw-ups. It could cost them clients or legal ramifications. If they drop you, they don't necessarily tell you either. And if you call to find out why they stopped calling you, they always just say, "Well, it's just slow for us right now". You have no idea if they are lying or not. So you just have to keep your chin up and market yourself some more, and hope that it blows over and they call you in a moment of desparation again, (most likely during the EOM when you are booked solid and have to turn them down and can't redeem yourself.)

I do my best to do a good job for all the people that hire me, and they are nice to me too, but bottom line: it's every man for himself, and everyone knows it.

Reply by Lee/AR on 4/5/12 7:35am
Msg #417019

Spot on, CJ!

Even the B can become competition! How often are we asked by a B how to get started in this field?
And they can hurt you with a company in a lot of ways that you'll not hear about--the calls just stop.

I have been right in front of a B as s/he calls the LO and proceeds to put words in my mouth that I never said/implied/thought! They seem to think it's 'cute' and usually do this with a wink like we're conspirators!At least I can address that issue w/hiring co. later, but how much gets said about stuff that never happened when we're not there to hear it, we'll never know.

Reply by CJ on 4/5/12 10:23am
Msg #417033

Borrowers sabotaging your job.

So true Lee!

I try to make the signing and fun and quick as possible, and then the borrowers say, "This looks like a fun little part-time job. How can I get into this? How much schooling does it take? Is it LUCRATIVE??" (and when they say "lucrative", their eyes get big and they start to salivate.)

And you are right about the phone too.I have said a million times, point-blank, "It is a CRIME for me to give opinions or advice, so I can't answer that question. So they get on the phone to title and say, "The notary said" and then basically say I was giving them advice or opinions. When we need to call title, I either ask title the question myself and then pass the phone to the borrower, or I write down the question. Speaker phone is good too, but make sure title knows so they don't accidentally say something stupid like, "This borrower is an idot and they've been giving me grief from Day One".

About the borrower wanting my job, sometimes they say, "But my unemployed sister lives far away from here". I think, "Do I want some other notary far away from here setting up notaries in my area? NO! So I don't help them. I make it sound as bad as possible: pay for your own paper, ink, and gas; work evenings weekends and holidays; go back for free if you miss a signature, and go to jail if you make a mistake. And I don't even make per month as you pay for your mortgage. That usually makes them sudder and drop it.

This is my livlihood and I worked hard to be a favorite notary here. I have worked at 11:30 at night, 5:00 in the morning, Chrismas Eve, Thanksgiving day, took my phone and acks on my honeymoon in case there was a problem, worked for free to win back an angry SS, etc. I am not handing this out to anyone, especially borrowers who need mad money for their retirmement or manicures.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 4/5/12 3:06pm
Msg #417070

Spot on and well said - both posts! n/m

Reply by NJDiva on 4/5/12 10:17am
Msg #417031

AMEN CJ!!! KUDOS! YEEEEEEES!!!!! That's exactly what I was

thinking but forgot to mention!

Reply by bfnotary on 4/6/12 10:27am
Msg #417148

Re: AMEN CJ!!! KUDOS! YEEEEEEES!!!!! That's exactly what I was

Just want to thank those of you whom sent me an email. Greatly appreciated.