Posted by Buddy Young on 6/2/12 12:01am
Msg #422437

To all the Newbee's

The reason seasoned notaries get a little put out by newbee's questions is that we hear these questions on a regular basis.

1. How do I get work?
2. Give me your client list?
3. How do I become a signing agent?
4. How much do I charge?
5. Can you set up my business for me?
6. How soon can I expect to make a 6 figure income?

I'm only going to say this once and all newbee's questions are going to be directed to this message.

The only advice I recieved was "sign up on a place called notary rotary"
you've done that so you've taken the first step to building a business.

1. Read message 33325

2. Write a profile here on notary rotary.

3. Familarize yourself with loan documents. You can do this by becoming certified. There are several places online who offer these classes and certification.
Experienced Notaries don't need to be certified because they know loan docs inside and out.

4. Order business cards here on notary rotary. They have very high quality cards at a reasonable price.

5. Pass out your business cards to all the real estate offices, banks and title companies in your area.

6. Go to signing central and sign up with all the 3 star and above rated companies. This will take weeks.

7. Reread message 33325

8. Go to the begining and read everything written on this forum. You will get a wealth of information.

9. Building a business will probably take at least a year, so in the meantime move back in with your parents.

10. By the time you build your business you will be antediluvian, and suffer from dotage.

11. Reread message 33325.

Any seasoned notary feel free to add anything I left out.

Buddy

Reply by HisHughness on 6/2/12 12:54am
Msg #422441

Go suck on a stamp, Buddy, and get off my damned case.

***10. By the time you build your business you will be antediluvian, and suffer from dotage***

Reply by Buddy Young on 6/2/12 12:08pm
Msg #422460

Re: Go suck on a stamp, Buddy, and get off my damned case.

Hugh,

I wasn't talking about you, but you must have a guilty concience.

Although you are antediluvian, you still do posess a keen mind.

Reply by BrendaTx on 6/2/12 9:04am
Msg #422445

Great advice, Buddy. I added to #33325. n/m

Reply by 101livescan on 6/2/12 9:54am
Msg #422450

ANSWER YOUR PHONE....CRAFT A PROFILE in NR that is compelling, and truthful.

Be prepared to market your services 100% of the time.

Work for only 4 and 5 * rated companies in SC.

COMPETENCE AND RELIABILITY, DISCREET.

Knowledgeable about your state notary laws, detail oriented,

I have a number of friends and associates who have tried to do this work, and they've been in the RE business for years.

COMMON SENSE is an important characteristic and skill set, and not all notaries are created equal in this discipline.

I agree with everything that you posted, Buddy. Good call.

Reply by Dorothy_MI on 6/2/12 11:07am
Msg #422454

Excellent advice both Buddy and Live

I can not emphasize enough the advice to ANSWER YOUR PHONE. So many say they won't answer if the call shows unavailable (which isn't as prevalent now as it was a few years ago) or if they don't recognize the number. That is probably the number ONE way to shoot yourself in the foot! If you are uneasy speaking to people you don't know, then get out of this business RIGHT NOW and stop wasting time and money because we deal with strangers every single day.

Reply by sheltn on 6/3/12 11:06am
Msg #422513

Re: Excellent advice both Buddy and Live

why would a title or sc have a unavailable or
restricted number?

Reply by Dorothy_MI on 6/3/12 12:13pm
Msg #422515

Depends on the phone system they have.

Phones that used to go through switchboards would show up as unavailable. Up unto recently Service Line always showed up as unavaillable.

Reply by MW/VA on 6/2/12 1:03pm
Msg #422463

LOL #10--yes, unless you are driven insane first. LOL n/m

Reply by Buddy Young on 6/2/12 2:23pm
Msg #422467

Re: Hugh, you always make me laugh.

Also I for got to add:

After #10 happens, move in with your kids.

Reply by CJ on 6/2/12 11:44pm
Msg #422499

My 2 cents.

I think the reason most notaries here are not in a big hurry to give information to newbies on a silver platter is because EVERY ONE OF US did it the hard way: We searched for the signing services, we cold-called them for months before we got our first job, then we took all the jobs that the other notaries were turning down: Sunday mornings, Thanksgiving morning, Christmas Eve, 10:00 at night, far-away borrowers, etc. We have paid our dues.

Secondly, there is only a finite amount of work out there. Every new notary slices the pie a little thinner for everyone else. Why should we help others dip into our pockets?

Newbies are lucky that Signing Central has a list complete with stars and comments on this website that you can dig in to. When I started, I had to google "signing services" and take whatever reject job came my way. Many times I was not paid because I had no way of knowing that no one else would work for them.

So:
#1. Cold call the list at signing central.
#2. If you are not working, then keep calling.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 6/5/12 1:40am
Msg #422588

I'm almost as tired of saying this as you all are of hearing it, but once again, I strongly recommend that, unless you're in an area with few NSAs, you get a very healthy amount of experience under your belt before you try to market to title co's. They don't have time to train people or to answer lots of basic questions and if you make a mistake, they will just cross you off their list and you've burned one of your most valuable bridges. There's also less of a chance that you'll be able to reach someone after hours if you need to when you're at the table.

No one ever thinks they're going to make a mistake and even if you're very detail oriented and extremely careful, we regularly run into situations where we have to deal with other people's mistakes. This is an area where experience can make a huge difference - especially if you can't reach anyone.

BTW, by "experience", I don't mean 10 or 20 or even 50 signings... There's always more to know about something than what it appears, and our business is no exception.

Reply by Diedra/TX on 6/15/12 11:49pm
Msg #423696

Well, since I am not asking any of the questions that have been answered here, I hope I won't get my head bit off. LOL Yes, I am a newbie. I started in March of this year. I stopped writing my books, stopped marketing the one that is out and jumped into this with both feet. The wages for jobs in this area are just not enough to live on.

So, on to the question. I became a NP and then a NSA as a full time thing. Job wages in this town are not enough to live on so I thought I would do this instead. Perhaps I am wanting too much too fast, but I feel like my business is not growing as it should. Now I am not expecting a six figure income by any means. I have realistic goals. 20-25 signings a month at an average of about 120 per is my goal. I get many for higher than that, so all looks good on that front, so far. I am signed up with 34 different companies and signing up for more everyday. Here's what I have for growth since I started this.

March took all my classes, got my commission and supplies and put out the "open" sign.

April 1 Loan Signing, 1 General Notary call

May 1 Site Inspection, 5 Loan Signings

June so far 2 General Notary, 3 Loan Signings

Is it me asking for too much too fast or is this just painfully slow growth I could do something about? I am in a fairly small town, just 115,000 or so people. I can't find anyone else doing this in my area that is listed anywhere, but I have had some calls that were for a signing but for a different notary, so I know there is at least one.

My first signing I had one minor error, I fixed it immediately and have not had another since. What am I doing wrong?

Thanks in advance and PLEASE don't bite my head off. ;-)

Notary
Signing Agent
Author
Single mother