Full Transcript is Below:
– He’s Stepping Out in a huge way. Lots of people in the mortgage industry have taken notice. Of course, I’m talking about Josh Dobson, Mortgage Dad Of 3. He’s a branch manager from Bluprint Home Loans in the NFM Family of Lenders. He’s got a lot of followers on social media, and is generating a lot of business from it. Josh joins us right now. Where are we getting you from, Josh?
– Back in hometown of Modesto, California.
– Well, let’s get into it right away. When did you first put yourself out there on these verticals?
– Yeah, so we’ve been doing social media probably since the beginning. But we really didn’t step out and put ourselves out there as a social media micro influencer, I guess is what they’re called, until about a year ago.
– And what have you found since then?
– It’s been a great way to reach a lot of people. I think there’s a lot of misinformation in the industry, and in the general public about becoming a homeowner, about financing their homes. And so it’s a great way for us to really connect with people on a one-on-one basis, but also educate them about the process, about what it takes, and that home affordability and purchasing a home is actually achievable.
– I watch you all the time. So I am a fan. You could also consider me a groupie, maybe. Love this influencer stuff. And you’re one of the leaders in the space. So I recently watched a video of yours where you talked about some misconceptions among first-time home buyers that thought they could never afford a home and would be willing to make some unbelievable sacrifices to get into one. Let’s take a quick listen.
– More than half of you who don’t own a home yet believe that you would need to win the lottery to afford to buy one. That’s a pretty bleak outlook. But it doesn’t have to be that way. According to the same study, 95% of Gen Zers and 94% of millennials say they would have to make some serious life changes to achieve home ownership. This includes getting a second or third job, changing careers or even moving to a different city. But what caught my attention the most is that 36% of Gen Zers said they would give up social media if it meant having enough cash to put down on a starter home. Now, that is serious dedication. I know it may seem daunting, especially with mortgage rates on the rise and home values skyrocketing. But don’t lose hope just yet. The study also found that 2/3 of both generations still believe it’s realistic to think they can buy a home in the next five years. So don’t give up on your dreams just yet. If you’re serious about home ownership, start making a plan today. Figure out what changes you need to make in your life to save up for that down payment. And remember, you don’t have to do it alone. There are plenty of resources out there to help you, including mortgage lenders and financial advisors. So let’s make it happen. With some hard work, dedication and a bit of luck, you could be on your way to becoming a homeowner sooner than you think.
– So I notice your lane, you’ve got multiple lanes, but I’m really moved by the power of those kinds of things you do, where you’re bringing light to the homeowner population, in particular first-time home buyers in this way where they understand it’s possible for them. How did you land on that, as someone that’s trying to influence and motivate people to buy?
– You know, it actually came really naturally. It was while we were making content, we realized that a lot of our messaging was resonating with certain people. And when we figured out who our audience was. we decided that that’s how we were going to direct our messaging. And then it became more about hope, bringing hope to those that maybe felt like they were out of the market, weren’t gonna be able to buy. Because I’m sure you’ve probably heard a lot about it, but there’s a lot of people out there who’ve been turned down, who’ve been told they can’t qualify because they don’t have 20% down. I mean, there’s a lot of messaging out there right now. I think we just did a spoof on a video where a realtor was actually on “Good Morning America” telling people they needed a $100,000 to buy a $400,000 house. And when you hear that on “Good Morning America” and you’re watching the media, it can really have a negative impact on people’s thought process and ability to really step out and become a homeowner.
– So do you have a think tank? Do you have a group of people that help get your thoughts around different ideas? Or are you doing all of that work?
– So it’s really funny. I think I get this question a lot when I’m doing interviews. And a lot of it comes from the fact that it’s me and my mom. So my mom has, in this industry what we might call a unicorn. She’s been in multiple different industries, from tech, I think she was in a CPA firm where they were working on the first complete office computer. So they took up an entire room. She went from there to teaching people how to use different technologies. She’s been a lender. She’s the one that brought me into this industry. She’s been a realtor, she’s been a escrow title rep. And so she understands the marketing side of things. So between her and I, we spend a lot of time researching on social media, and then we test, right? So one of the things that we’ve learned along the way from a lot of the people that we learn from on social media is that you’ve just gotta test. You’ve gotta be willing to test messaging, use different words, try to engage people in different ways. And by testing, you know you’re gonna get things wrong, but then you’re also gonna get things right.
– I love the graphic element to what you do. Because a lot of times, people just put up the white graphics. You’ve got blue, you’ve got white, you’ve got red. You’re really mixing it up with some boom font. Where does that come from? ‘Cause it really looks unique to me when you do it.
– So a lot of that comes from the editing process. We’re looking at different apps. We’re always trying different things ’cause obviously, different colors have different mental triggers for people. So we’re testing different messaging, different colors, always trying to just see if something works better phonetically, but also maybe aesthetically.
– Yeah, total followers, you know, give or take, on all the platforms? Do you have any idea what that is?
– I wanna say it’s close to 250,000.
– Oh my goodness.
– Between all the platforms.
– That’s amazing. And then advice, ’cause like you said, you just started this a year ago. You stepped out a year ago, and look at you now. What do you say to someone that wants to try and do this too?
– It’s cliche, we’ve all heard it, but just hit record.
– That’s it, just get in, start.
– Yeah.
– Josh Dobson, you’re making waves, man. Loving your stuff, Mortgage Dad Of 3. Thanks for agreeing to be with us on “Stepping Out” we really appreciate it. Continued success. Of course, I’m gonna follow you. It’s pretty obvious, you know now. Thanks so much.
– Thank you Greg.
– Josh Dobson, branch manager from Bluprint Home Loans, the amazing division out on the West Coast from the NFM Family of Lenders. We’ll see you next time. You’ll never know when it’s gonna hit. “Stepping Out” on NFM TV I’m Greg Sher, so long.