We’ve all experienced the perks of being a “regular”. Whether it’s a “regular” at the local coffee shop so your order is always ready when you walk in or a “regular” at your favorite restaurant so they can always squeeze you in last second, it definitely comes with some bonuses. Let’s call it the “regular” bonus.

It’s the reward of building a consistent relationship that they can rely on for repeat business. But, have you ever applied this to how you run your own business?

I’d guess that, like we’ve discussed before, all you’re focusing on when you sell loans is best price.  Sounds great at first. You fund 100 loans and choose to sell 20, but break it up across investors so one investor gets 6, one gets 5, two get 3, and then 3 different investors get 1. Sure, you got a great price on them and squeezed a little extra profit. But, here’s the problem. You’re now spread too thin. Where’s the partnership? Where are you a “regular”?

Price is important, yes, but if you really want your business to thrive in today’s market, you’re going to need some help. You’re going to need the “regular” bonus.

Say you have a compliance question on one of your loans or maybe you’re trying to roll out a 203K program to expand your product offerings, no investor is going to want to squeeze you in to help if you only reach out to them once in a blue moon.

Favors come in different formats, and to outshine your competition this year, you’ll need a strong relationship that comes from steadily partnering with an investor.

Stop throwing away a partner who can help with explaining sellability issues, reviewing guidelines, and giving access to product offerings. Investors are a resource, so when you don’t have the capabilities to research something, you can leverage your investor to get an answer.

This will be the key to successfully navigating this tough lending environment because when you’re trying to figure out how to make your business thrive, you’re going to need a partner to help keep you fueled through the night.