BATTLECALL GUEST EXPERT: Tom Domin, Mortgage Marketing Toolkit

Unless you've been living in a cave or under a rock the last few years, you've seen first hand how Tiger Woods has become one of the most dominate forces in men's golf.

We watched as he won the CA Championship at Doral Golf Club this past weekend by two strokes. Woods won this event for the sixth time, more than any other tournament. Tiger is believed to be the first player to win a tournament six times on six courses - in Spain, Ireland, Atlanta, San Francisco, London and Miami, the latter on a Blue Monster course where he has won the last three years.

There is no doubt we are witnessing the performance of a truly great athlete. His dedication and preparation is truly amazing. He finished at 10 under par at 278 and earned $1.35 million for his second victory of the year, and 56th of his career.

You're probably asking...Where's that mortgage lesson you talked about? OK...Here we go!

On every hole that Tiger plays (whether it is practice or sanctioned play) a gentleman follows Tiger closely...charting each stroke and documenting the results. He maintains a low profile and you would find it difficult to pick him out from the gallery that follows Tiger on every hole. He documents each hole, of each round, at each location that Tiger plays.

Just so you know, the gentleman's name is Hank Haney and he is the "Swing Coach" of Tiger Woods. Tiger pays Hank one million dollars a year plus expenses to perform this function. Hank Haney charts each stroke from tee to green, analyzes each stroke, and then recommends the appropriate practice to correct the problems that he may have noted.

Hank Haney doesn't organize Tiger's travel plans or make hotel reservations, and he doesn't chart the golf course (that's the job of Steve Williams, Tiger's caddie of six years). As a side note, Tiger pays Steve some 10% of all purse monies. Hank Haney gets paid to do just one thing...to be Tiger's "Swing Coach."

Today, most of the top pros on the tour employ a "Coach."  We picked Tiger to underscore our point here: Why would a man so naturally talented and currently so dominating in his profession, be willing to invest such a huge amount of money into his game?

The answer is simple! He's investing in his business...his livelihood...and, his future. He knows that to stay ahead of his competition he needs to invest, or better yet...re-invest in his business at every opportunity. With tour earnings of $9.9 million in 2006...Tiger spent more than 20% of that amount to improve his business

I am always amazed by the number of Loan Officers/Mortgage Brokers who don't spend more than fifty dollars a year on their own professional growth. We're in a profession that's changing daily and by leaps and bounds, and most mortgage folks refuse to invest in their business.

There's no doubt, you began a strong mortgage career, and you really got into it - but then you fell asleep at the switch and forgot to do those basic things like read industry publications or new books by sales masters. You don't go to sales seminars. You don't listen to audios or view videos on sales-related topics. You don't have any paid subscriptions to newsletters that could improve your mortgage knowledge or capability. In short, you don't constantly re-invigorate and improve your business or yourself.

If you want to survive and prosper in the Mortgage Business today...you need to be a "Tiger."

About The Author: Tom Domin has over twenty-five years of experience in sales and training in Real Estate and as a Licensed Mortgage Broker. He is currently publisher of "Tom's Mortgage Tips" a twice monthly Mortgage Newsletter for Mortgage Professionals. You can sign-up by visiting http://www.mortgagemarketingtoolkit.com