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8th Annual NACLB Conference

Bridge Loan Network is attending the 8th Annual NACLB Conference at Caesars Palace November 1st through 3rd. The National Alliance of Commercial Loan Brokers (NACLB) conference is dedicated to serving the commercial loan and mortgage broker community and lenders who rely on brokers for deal flow. Over 900 of the nation’s top commercial loan, leasing and mortgage brokers will be converging to meet the top lenders and service providers that cater to the brokerage community. These brokers are responsible for over $5 billion in small business and commercial financing each year.

This NACLB annual conference will provide education and networking between brokers lenders and service providers.

In addition to exhibiting, our Business Development Specialist, Jacob Therrien, will be presenting on two panel discussions: “Resources for Today’s Brokers” and “Technology for Today’s Broker”. Be sure to add them to your calendar and stop by our booth to meet with Broker Account Managers Jordan Wells and Pamela Blakes!

You can find more information about NACLB by clicking HERE, and find the full schedule of conference events HERE.

We look forward to meeting you there!

AAPL 13th Annual Conference

Bridge Loan Network is proud to announce that the team will be returning to Vegas for AAPL’s 13th Annual Conference from October 19th through October 21st.

The American Association of Private Lenders is the oldest and largest national association for the private lending industry. Each year we host the nation’s largest private lending event at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, featuring the right mix of comprehensive education (no sales pitches here!), networking, and of course plenty of classic Vegas fun.

The AAPL Annual Conference is 3 days filled with more than 45 speakers, 65 exhibitors, and over 600 attendees. AAPL Annual brings together owner-operators and c-suite executives from across the private lender, broker, capital, and service provider spaces. If you are serious about your involvement in the private lending industry, the AAPL conference is the place to be.

Be sure to stop by the Bridge Loan Network booth to talk to Marketing Manager Erica Sikoski and Broker Account Manager Jordan Wells.

Find more information on AAPL’s 13th annual conference by clicking HERE.

NAMB National 2022

The Bridge Loan Network team is preparing to return to Vegas for this year’s NAMB National at Caesars Palace October 7th through 10th. Join thousands of others for three days packed with hands-on instruction, networking, and shockingly refreshing fun! The National Association of Mortgage Brokers is the voice of the mortgage industry, representing the interests of mortgage professionals and homebuyers since 1973.

NAMB members include small business owners, loan originators, account executives and other industry professionals. NAMB is committed to promoting the highest degree of professionalism and ethical standards for its members. NAMB is setting the industry standard and setting you up for success at every level.

Be sure to stop by our booth and talk to Marketing Manager Erica Sikoski, Broker Account Manager Kristina Pfau, and Operations Manager Matt Volz! We look forward to meeting you!

Find more information about NAMB and the full schedule for NAMB National by clicking HERE!

Social Media Presence: Tips and Tricks

Being active on social media is important in many industries, including the real estate industry. And keeping your social media pages like Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, for yourself as a real estate professional and your company’s social media pages, up to date shows that you are an active member in the industry as well as your company. Updating your social media pages allows your followers and clients to stay in the know about your company, new features, programs, events, sponsorships, and partnerships you are involved in. 

Holiday Promotion: 

Holidays are a great chance to showcase important updates like holiday hours or closures and also have a little bit of fun in the posting. If there is a national holiday that is “on brand” for your company, get creative! Our company, Bridge Loan Network, recently posted celebrating National Video Games Day, which matched other promotions we’ve published throughout the year. A quick search on National Holidays can turn up fun and easy ways to add content to your social media profiles each month.  

Event Participation

Events are a great opportunity to network and make new business connections and partnerships, so it’s a great idea to promote these to your audience! Sharing the general timeline of the event, the educational content and how you and your company are participating are great ways to create engagement online. For example, our company uses headshots of our team members who are attending in our content so that if people go to the event, they know who they are looking for if they are interested in talking to us. When possible, it’s also a great idea to link to relevant pages in your post for more information on the event, even if it’s a blog post on your own company’s website. That helps push potential customers to your website from your social media pages and from there, people can choose to learn more about your company, and then decide they are interested in working with you.  

Meet The Team Showcases:  

Show off the faces that your followers and clients are working with or could work with. It helps to make it a more personable experience, and it is always helpful to put a face to the name. It also helps for tradeshows and events to know who you are looking for if you want to connect with someone at the company. If clients want to talk to the featured person to learn more about the company, this is a great opportunity to send a LinkedIn request and start that professional connection!  

Hashtags: 

Don’t be afraid to use keyword hashtags to help reach more people. Even just a handful of keywords that relate to your content can help it reach a relevant audience, full of potential clients. You can even search hashtags of relevant content to make connections with other folks in the industry and set up potential partnerships.


Now that you have some ideas about how to stay active on social media, go out there and share some content! And feel free to follow Bridge Loan Network on INSTAGRAM, TWITTER, FACEBOOK, and LINKEDIN.

Geraci Captivate 2022

Bridge Loan Network is looking forward to being a sponsor for this year’s Captivate Conference held at Encore at Wynn in Las Vegas August 21st through 23rd.  

Geraci Conferences’ Captivate is designed to attract attendees who are ready to fund and close their next deals. The show features industry legend-led presentations, countless potential new relationships, guided networking opportunities, and thousands of proved connections from years’ past, this event is one you can’t afford to miss. 

We are also proud to be a sponsor for the Women in Private Lending Cocktail Party on Sunday, August 21st starting at 5:00pm. The Women in Private Lending Group is a network for women in the private lending industry, across all aspects, to inspire, collaborate, mentor, and to hold each other up. At its core, The Women in Private Lending Group is a forum for sharing ideas, solving obstacles, and promoting innovation. 

You can find more information about Geraci’s Captivate Conference by clicking HERE.

Be sure to stop by the Bridge Loan Network booth and talk to Business Development Specialist, Jacob Therrien, and Marketing Manager, Erica Sikoski. 

Originator Connect 2022

Join Bridge Loan Network for Originator Connect August 19th through 21st in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino. Originator Connect is a 3-day weekend event filled with workshops, sessions, product showcases, and plenty of networking opportunities. Come early for the pre-conference events happening Thursday, August 18, specifically the Private Lender Forum, of which Bridge Loan Network is a co-host alongside Private Lender, RCN Capital. 

Our Business Development Coordinator, Jacob Therrien, will be also presenting “Deal Transparency – How Tech Pulls Back the Curtain” on Saturday August 20 at 8:45am. During this informative session, Jacob will discuss how mortgage brokers are utilizing technology in their process to create deal transparency, the different tech solutions to add to your broker toolbox and how to be involved in the entire lending process. 

To end the conference with a bull ride and cocktail, join us as we co-host Wagon Wheelin’ & Dealin’ Saturday August 20, 8:00pm-11:00pm. Join RCN Capital, Appraisal Nation, & Bridge Loan Network at PBR Rock Bar & Grill for the Official Originator Connect After Party! Wrist bands & Invites are available at any of the host’s booths: RCN Capital at booth 309, Appraisal Nation at booth 218, Bridge Loan Network at booth 207. 

Stop by to visit the Bridge Loan Network team! 

Learn more about Originator Connect and find the full schedule of events by clicking HERE.

55th National Private Lending Pitbull Conference

Bridge Loan Network is looking forward to being an exhibitor at the 55th National Private Lending Pitbull Conference in Miami, FL.  The event will be held July 31st through August 2nd at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel and is the largest private lending conference in the country. 

The 3-day event includes networking opportunities, a golf tournament, as well as many informational speaking sessions from private money industry experts. Our Business Development Specialist, Jacob Therrien, will be a panelist on the Data, Valuation, Automation – Advancing your Lending Platform panel. This group of real estate service providers specializes in servicing you and your unique needs as a private lending professional, giving you an advantage over your competition.

Aerial view of city buildings near Miami shoreline, Pitbull Conference hosted in Miami FL

Stop by to visit our Marketing Manager, Erica Sikoski, and Business Development Specialist, Jacob Therrien, at the Bridge Loan Network booth! 

You can find more information about the 55th National Private Lending Pitbull Conference by clicking HERE.

Tips for Navigating a Networking Event

In the real estate industry, whether you are a private lender, broker, or investor, networking is a key factor of growing your business.

Networking Event

Conferences, local meetups, and networking events are everywhere in our industry and will help you stay ahead of the curve if you are a contributing member. Plus, they are an investment in yourself and your company, and you’ll want to make the most of the time spent away from the office.

And as you’ve undoubtedly gathered, networking entails a lot more than just showing up, grabbing some free food, and exchanging business cards. It’s about connecting with people, sharing about yourself and what you do, and collecting valuable contacts and knowledge to grow professionally.

To make the most of it, all it takes is a little preparation and practice. Here’s what you need to know before you grab your business cards and head to your next industry event.

BEFORE

Set Reasonable Expectation

When preparing for a networking event, establish goals for your time there. Is your goal to find a specific service in which your company has a need for? A goal to meet five new people in the industry? Or are you hoping to connect with one particular person or company? By setting specific goals you can better prepare yourself and use your time wisely at the event.

Dress to Impress

Research the event you’re going to attend, the location, and the general theme of the event. First impressions matter, and this way you can set yourself up for success in putting your best foot forward. Think of it as a more informal interview, you’ll want to dress the part.

Bring Business Cards

This one seems obvious, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people say they’ve forgotten their cards at home, or that they just gave their last card away. Bring more cards than you think you may need and keep them on hand for the entirety of the event. One sided business card exchanges can leave a bad taste in folks’ mouths and could hinder their desire to follow-up with you in the future.

DURING

Focus on Making a Connection, Not a Sale

The overall goal for any event is to grow your network and allow for follow up with the appropriate folks after the event. With this in mind, don’t focus so much on making the sale right on the spot, but on making a connection. Show folks that you’re interested in more than just your opportunities. The best questions you can ask are ones that can’t be answered by just “yes” or “no” and allow for more fluid conversation.

Take Notes

After you ask for someone’s card, take notes on the card after they walk away or immediately after the event. This will help you to be more specific with your follow-up efforts. Even if you can’t write on their card, utilize your Notes app on your phone to highlight key topics and important information from your conversation. This can be as simple as the product or service they are looking for more information on, to favorite local food spots you discussed, to times that work best for follow-up.

Don’t Spam People with Cards

The closest thing to you throwing all your business cards away in the trash is by just passing them out to everyone you meet without having the actual conversations. If you haven’t built enough rapport with someone to encourage them to ask for your card, and vice versa, don’t just offer one because you think it’s what you’re supposed to do.

AFTER  

Follow-up

Making the connection is just the first step. To cultivate the relationship, you need to follow up with the folks you networked with. Make sure to personalize each phone call or email, letting each person know you enjoyed meeting them and mention something specific you talked about. A quick tip: One of the fastest ways to stop a connection in its tracks is to send everyone the same generic follow-up or LinkedIn connection request.

One of the best tools you can utilize in your career is networking, and you can make the most of it by preparing in advance, acting professionally during the event, and being proactive with your follow-up. Beyond that, simply try to enjoy yourself!

California Mortgage Expo 2022

Bridge Loan Network is looking forward to being an exhibitor at this year’s California Mortgage Expo hosted by the Originator Connect Network at the Hilton Irvine/Orange County Airport in Irvine California on May 5th

This expo is filled with informative speaking sessions throughout the day. Topics include technology solutions for brokers, marketing strategies, business and growth strategies for the current market, and more!  

Join our Broker Account Manager Kristina Pfau for her presentation, “Deal Transparency, How Tech Pulls Back the Curtain” on Thursday, May 5th. In Kristina’s session folks will learn about new technology solutions and how it can help you streamline and simplify your business operations to help you keep up with the competition. Kristina will discuss how mortgage brokers are utilizing technology in their process to create deal transparency, the different tech solutions to add to your broker toolbox and how to be involved in the entire lending process. 

Stop by the Bridge Loan Network booth to meet our Broker Account Managers, Kristina Pfau and Jordan Wells while at the show. 

For more information about the California Mortgage Expo, click here!

Geraci’s Innovate 2022 Conference 

Newport Beach

Hosted on April 11-12, 2022 at the Balboa Bay Resort.

Bridge Loan Network is exhibiting at Geraci Media’s upcoming Innovate Conference hosted in Newport Beach, California. The agenda for the conference is filled with compelling speaking sessions and panel discussions from industry leaders.

The Innovate Conference prides itself on connecting lenders, brokers, investors, and service providers through ample networking opportunities and educational sessions to grow our businesses in the private lending space. Bridge Loan Network will be alongside the exhibitor hall showcasing our Loan Origination System for Private Lenders who are looking to streamline and organize their lending process.

“We’re looking forward to our first Innovate Conference in California,” says Marketing Manager, Erica Sikoski. “Connecting with industry leaders, and networking with new folks in private lending helps our industry grow.”

Be sure to visit the Bridge Loan Network booth at the show.

For more details on the Innovate Conference, click here.