[WhoisKingsley]

What regulations and "laws" would you like see be implemented?

My reccomendations:

1- Registration of REAL lenders. Sift out the "syndication" or "I only fund what I want to fund" lenders.

2- Broker house standards and audits. Whether you lend direct or not, how much personal information is stored unsecured in your office?

3- Training. Everyone is quick to answer forums and say "send it to me- I promise I'll get it funded!" But no one lends their knowledge in teaming up to create something greater. More than half of you don't know what your doing and those that do are hurt by the BS.

Your thoughts? Your concerns? Is anything going in the right direction?

[JSL23]

I don't se e anyone having a problem with any of the above, but for me personally, I'd say training is paramount to success. I have been doing this just over a year now and my first 3 months was spent with a Lender who offered zero training and then micromanaged you to death. I hired a rep a few months ago with almost 6 months of experience under her belt at a well known shop who did not even know what a freaking factor rate was!!! Even worse, if you told her we were getting 10 points on a $50,000 deal and she was getting 35% of that she would have no idea what her commission was because she didn't know the basic math.........or the product........or how to pitch it!! I cared enough to absorb as much as I could those first 3 months before I got out of that place. I am still learning, anyone who thinks they know EVERYTHING usually knows less than most.

A lot of Broker shops and Lender/Broker shops simply do not care enough to offer training, its that simple. They don't want to provide (God forbid) paid training and expect people who have never done this to close deals from day one. They bring you in for a (non) interview, basically close you about what an amazing opportunity they have, give you a start date and then sit you down with a few pages of UCC leads, without teaching a damn thing. I have heard this from several people and it continues to be an issue. There should be a full week of training for new reps and continued training(say one day every quarter) for experienced reps to go over technique, new products, Underwriting guidelines, etc. It all starts from there.

[Franklin]

What regulations and "laws" would you like see be implemented?

My reccomendations:

1- Registration of REAL lenders. Sift out the "syndication" or "I only fund what I want to fund" lenders.

2- Broker house standards and audits. Whether you lend direct or not, how much personal information is stored unsecured in your office?

3- Training. Everyone is quick to answer forums and say "send it to me- I promise I'll get it funded!" But no one lends their knowledge in teaming up to create something greater. More than half of you don't know what your doing and those that do are hurt by the BS.

Your thoughts? Your concerns? Is anything going in the right direction?

--


1 - Can you clarify what you mean by "sift out"? Is there an issue with syndication (which would reduce stacking), and "I only fund what I want to fund" lenders? If they are, please explain.

2 - That's an issue for everyone, not just brokers, as hackers usually go after the big boys, not the little guys. It'd be helpful to recommend good security software and data protection protocol.

3 - The couple of people/companies that did mention training (MCA Academy, Buynance) seemed to get ridiculed on the forums (I took a potshot myself). Those that do know what they're doing aren't all that willing to share that "superior knowledge" as they're creating competition. So while veterans on this board do give a lot of good insight into the industry as a whole, in multiple aspects, what more information do you feel is not being brought to the light, or would be beneficial for the industry to know as a whole?

As far as direction, the market is indicating that their is still a lot of opportunity for growth, but done the right way. Increasing daily competition, major players preparing to drop anchors, and a couple of quiet developments behind the scenes that will force change on what is considered the normal way to do business, will make the level of entry much more expensive, (right now the cost is simply a PC/Laptop and $100 for a website, email, and phone with auto attendant).

[WhoisKingsley]

"Sift Out" - There are many reputable lenders that have been out for a very long time. Have you noticed lately the other companies that come out of left field and want to fund your deals? Where does there money come from? Can they show a proven track record of the deals they funded, default rates, what is their rates? I have a philosophy that if a company solicits and doesn't have a professional package and has complete transparency with you- they are not a real lender. I won't name names, but I've been solicited by many of these. I believe all direct lenders should be apart of NAMAA. All Brokers or Tech companies should be approved by NAMAA. You may disagree but it will happen eventually.

2- I worked for companies that keep socials and tax documents everywhere. You take that and hire without training, don't pay people (which half the time they don't) and you have an "Identity Theft" disaster. I managed a few currency exchange stores a few years ago and audited everyone all the time. Not only money, but scenarios and knowledge. Yes, it was a pain, but I had the highest grossing location and my team kicked butt when the big guys came through and shut down 3 outside locations for not storing bank information correctly. Again, this will probably happen eventually.

3- Everyone attacks those who try to make things better. Jay is a very smart man with an enormous vision of how to implement change. 99% of those who attach are too scared to take the first step. I gladly open my doors and answer my phone/email to assist anyway I can. What many Sales focused people don't realize is that there is many pieces to the puzzle. You have Sales, Submissions (who work hard), UW (who work hard too), marketing teams, content writers... everyone plays an important part and to do things effectively you need MORE THAN ONE PERSON. If you want to do it all, you have to learn it all but some don't want to.

[J.Celifarco]

I don't se e anyone having a problem with any of the above, but for me personally, I'd say training is paramount to success. I have been doing this just over a year now and my first 3 months was spent with a Lender who offered zero training and then micromanaged you to death. I hired a rep a few months ago with almost 6 months of experience under her belt at a well known shop who did not even know what a freaking factor rate was!!! Even worse, if you told her we were getting 10 points on a $50,000 deal and she was getting 35% of that she would have no idea what her commission was because she didn't know the basic math.........or the product........or how to pitch it!! I cared enough to absorb as much as I could those first 3 months before I got out of that place. I am still learning, anyone who thinks they know EVERYTHING usually knows less than most.

A lot of Broker shops and Lender/Broker shops simply do not care enough to offer training, its that simple. They don't want to provide (God forbid) paid training and expect people who have never done this to close deals from day one. They bring you in for a (non) interview, basically close you about what an amazing opportunity they have, give you a start date and then sit you down with a few pages of UCC leads, without teaching a damn thing. I have heard this from several people and it continues to be an issue. There should be a full week of training for new reps and continued training(say one day every quarter) for experienced reps to go over technique, new products, Underwriting guidelines, etc. It all starts from there.

Have to agree with you here.. The amount of people I see on this forum and in this industry with a lack of knowledge of what we do and how we do it is scary. Training is a problem for a lot of people but for them to be trained they need to work at a company where someone has the knowledge to train them. With a lot of these new banks and ISO's that are popping up, I feel many of them don't have a single person with any real knowledge on the industry, the products we sell, or the proper way to go about selling them.. I could be wrong but seeing the questions asked on this forum and some of the statements made I think Im right

[JayBallentine]

Amanda GOOOOOD STUFF!!

Franklin - no hard feelings. However, I can say this; Amanda is way better than I am at placing deals.

You made some good points regarding some changes. Sean Murray wrote a piece for MPR a long while back that showed how the "house / shop" model being decoupled. As costs of customer acquisition rise and with increasing competition I see it being more and more expensive to run call centers.

I think that as guys go from the "shop" and to their home offices, they should be equipped with the tools needed to succeed in a competitive marketplace. Knowledge is certainly key, but guys are getting killed by all the time being wasted via inefficient processes.

There are folks like Amanda are here to help guys be better equipped to place deals and work with merchants, we're focusing on helping guys save time...

Big announcements soon.

[bdshaw]

What regulations and "laws" would you like see be implemented?

My reccomendations:

1- Registration of REAL lenders. Sift out the "syndication" or "I only fund what I want to fund" lenders.

2- Broker house standards and audits. Whether you lend direct or not, how much personal information is stored unsecured in your office?

3- Training. Everyone is quick to answer forums and say "send it to me- I promise I'll get it funded!" But no one lends their knowledge in teaming up to create something greater. More than half of you don't know what your doing and those that do are hurt by the BS.

Your thoughts? Your concerns? Is anything going in the right direction?

I think the training issue is even more basic. At least 7 of 10 people who contact me through The daily Funder don't know what the word interest means. That means they can't ever give an apple to apple evaluation to their merchant. They lose money because they don't know which deal is the cheapest. I would also train the salespeople to at least understand a basic understanding of other financing options, to once again compare.
I have been reading financial statements for over 40 years and try to pass some knowledge on but inevitably I'm asked about the fees they could earn on a 6% installment loan. Most seem shocked that they can't make 10 points.
Bob

[Chambo]

Have to agree with you here.. The amount of people I see on this forum and in this industry with a lack of knowledge of what we do and how we do it is scary. Training is a problem for a lot of people but for them to be trained they need to work at a company where someone has the knowledge to train them. With a lot of these new banks and ISO's that are popping up, I feel many of them don't have a single person with any real knowledge on the industry, the products we sell, or the proper way to go about selling them.. I could be wrong but seeing the questions asked on this forum and some of the statements made I think Im right

No Johnny, you're right. These new places, the senior guys have 6 months' experience

[Franklin]

Thanks for elaborating and sharing, Kingsley.

"Sift Out" - There are many reputable lenders that have been out for a very long time. Have you noticed lately the other companies that come out of left field and want to fund your deals? Where does there money come from? Can they show a proven track record of the deals they funded, default rates, what is their rates? I have a philosophy that if a company solicits and doesn't have a professional package and has complete transparency with you- they are not a real lender. I won't name names, but I've been solicited by many of these. I believe all direct lenders should be apart of NAMAA. All Brokers or Tech companies should be approved by NAMAA. You may disagree but it will happen eventually.

2- I worked for companies that keep socials and tax documents everywhere. You take that and hire without training, don't pay people (which half the time they don't) and you have an "Identity Theft" disaster. I managed a few currency exchange stores a few years ago and audited everyone all the time. Not only money, but scenarios and knowledge. Yes, it was a pain, but I had the highest grossing location and my team kicked butt when the big guys came through and shut down 3 outside locations for not storing bank information correctly. Again, this will probably happen eventually.

3- Everyone attacks those who try to make things better. Jay is a very smart man with an enormous vision of how to implement change. 99% of those who attach are too scared to take the first step. I gladly open my doors and answer my phone/email to assist anyway I can. What many Sales focused people don't realize is that there is many pieces to the puzzle. You have Sales, Submissions (who work hard), UW (who work hard too), marketing teams, content writers... everyone plays an important part and to do things effectively you need MORE THAN ONE PERSON. If you want to do it all, you have to learn it all but some don't want to.

[CreditGuy]

I believe all direct lenders should be apart of NAMAA...You may disagree but it will happen eventually.

I disagree and it won't happen eventually. CAN never joined NAMAA, and OnDeck was a member then quit. Without the two largest funders in the space as members, NAMAA is missing massive amounts of data and clout needed to make it effective and/or give it leverage as an industry licensing body. If the two largest players are where they are without NAMAA, you can't make a case that it is necessary and inevitable.

[JayBallentine]

I disagree and it won't happen eventually. CAN never joined NAMAA, and OnDeck was a member then quit. Without the two largest funders in the space as members, NAMAA is missing massive amounts of data and clout needed to make it effective and/or give it leverage as an industry licensing body. If the two largest players are where they are without NAMAA, you can't make a case that it is necessary and inevitable.

Playing Devils' advocate here... As much respect as I have for Mrs. Kingsley, I disagree with her, here, and agree with you. NAMAA is a joke. NAMAA serves to protect the interest of NAMAA with little regard for the little guy (brokers) who account for 50% of their customer acquisition.

I can say for a fact that 2015 will be a test for NAMAA... They will be forced to choose; "do we serve the interests of those who provide us half of our customer acquisition, or do we treat them like disposable objects?"

How NAMAA responds to this challenge (only very partially issued by us) will be the tell tale sign.

I've done "business" with guys in NAMAA. A "well respected NAMAA leader" tried to rob me, before I outfoxed him. I got all my bread - believe that. I chronicle the story in my book.

If the rest of the leadership of NAMAA (MINUS - ONE) is anything like it, then there's a lane for NAMAA to be capitulated. To that ONE, if you are reading this, we consider you Family. We protect our Family. That said...

We have exactly ONE ISO agreement with a NAMAA for a reason... They don't respect brokers. They don't respect your hustle. They spit on your grind. They demand from you without giving you an ounce. Do you really want to put your faith there. All of NAMAA UCC's are free for life from here on out.

We're putting up - or shutting up. They hide, we find them. We protect our friends though. They can either stop filing, or be found. That's it. We spent 3 whole months 12 hours a day working on methodology state by state.

NAMAA - now you guys will have to sue everyone. En masse. For stacking. If you hide I PROMISE WE HAVE METHODOLOGY TO FIND YOU. NO ONE'S UCC'S ARE SAFE.

Thank one of your leaders for trying to rob me, instead of trying to hire me (instead tried to hire an alcoholic) for a short cut.

Get ready to sue a lot of people NAMAA. Get those legal fees up. We're democratizing info, UCC's and much much more to come.

[WhoisKingsley]

So maybe I was wrong because I don't have a full understanding of NAMAA.

So what type of organization will be above and beyond all to make sure the industry is up to par? This should lead into a totally different thread because now I am interested and probably everyone else too.

[Sean Cash]

Jay what you're saying is foolish.

[Eddie.deangelis]

Jsl23, lendini offers free training and education in the industry to all of it's ISO's. We teach our inexperienced ISO's the business, how to read a deal and understand the deal before it's submitted to lenders. That's half the battle, the average broker shop just shot guns deals without knowing a damn thing about them to so many lenders only hurting he selves and their merchants credit , we at Lendini work with our brokers daily to educate them and help with training and also offer closing help as well, all free of charge to build our relationships and loyalty with all our ISO's !! Send your deals to submissions@lendini.com. Paying 10 on funded and commissions paid same day of funding !! 1-2 hour same day approvals..... Lendini.com

[JayBallentine]

Jay what you're saying is foolish.

Sean. I respect you. You know that. My actions have shown as much. But, perhaps here we may disagree.

[CreditGuy]

So what type of organization will be above and beyond all to make sure the industry is up to par?

There will likely never be an industry body that self polices, at least not effectively. The ecosystem is too fractured with few barriers to entry. It will likely evolve into a system where there is a de facto self governance. The good folks will play by one set of rules and the bad actors another. Those that work for or with bad actors will be pariahs and there will be little capital (real or human) flow between good and bad actors. The merchants will catch on too in the long run. Think about what has happened since the mortgage meltdown. How many more consumers are now cognizant of the fact that being qualified for a certain amount of credit doesn't mean that it is prudent to accept the offer? The good players in the space will serve as credit coaches as much as they will act as sales people. Building longevity and solid foundations for the businesses being served is mutually beneficial. That's relationship based sales 101.

As a thought exercise around this idea: Does anyone here honestly think that Pearl (or any other stacker/bottom feeder) will eventually become a legitimate and forthright lender?

Government will get involved eventually as well. Likely CFPB, The C stands for Consumer, but that is a technicality. If anyone is serious about being a long term player in this space, they should be thinking about hiring lobbyists sooner than later to make an attempt at optimizing whatever policy outcomes inevitably transpire.

[ADiamond]

--


1 - Can you clarify what you mean by "sift out"? Is there an issue with syndication (which would reduce stacking)

how does syndication reduce stacking?

[J.Celifarco]

how does syndication reduce stacking?

if an iso has money in the 1st position on a deal they will be less likely to go out a get the merchant a second position that could jeopardize the merchants ability to make payments on the first

[Sean Cash]

FACT: Chewing gum has been clinically proven to reduce stacking

[channin19]

how does syndication reduce stacking?

Because who wants to stack on their own deal?

Having skin in the game means you're not just looking at the upfront commission.

http://www.fooledbyrandomness.com/sais.pdf

[channin19]

FACT: Chewing gum has been clinically proven to reduce stacking

But you'll always have those "special" merchants

[ADiamond]

Because who wants to stack on their own deal?

Having skin in the game means you're not just looking at the upfront commission.

http://www.fooledbyrandomness.com/sais.pdf

No, I get that - it was said to sound like direct lenders who use syndication to fund their deals wouldn't be interested in stacking.

[channin19]

No, I get that - it was said to sound like direct lenders who use syndication to fund their deals wouldn't be interested in stacking.

You would know.

[Chambo]

You would know.

oooh, shots fired

[channin19]

oooh, shots fired