It is no secret to anyone who hasbeen following the mortgage market that it is becoming increasinglypurchase-oriented. Rising interest rates show the refinance daysare over. The Mortgage Bankers Association predicted that purchaseswould make up 48% of originations by the end of the year, up from amere 26% at the beginning of 2013.

However, it has also been predicted that the total number oforiginations will decrease, which it why it is important tocapitalize on your relationships with members, prospects andreferral partners to generate purchase business.

The healthy state of the purchase market creates an opportunityfor credit unions to increase their return on assets and speed uprevenue growth.

According to a study from the Filene Research Institute titled“Mortgages and Credit Union Performance: 1980-2011,” credit unionsthat offer mortgages are more profitable and grow more quickly thanthose that do not. The report shows that a 10% increase in mortgageshare elevated credit unions' return on assets by approximately sixbasis points on average since 2000.

Providing mortgage services enables credit unions to moreeffectively meet their members' product demands and helps toprevent losing members to competitors. Credit unions must take anall-under-one-roof approach and serve all needs of their members,especially mortgages, or they risk becoming a second tier financialpartner to their members. They will eventually lose opportunitiesas a mere part-time provider.

Purchasing a home is the biggest financial decision anyone canmake. Being engaged in that process ensures the credit union isproviding the bulk of its member's financial products andpositioning itself as the primary financial institution.

Credit unions' main differentiator is member service. Offeringmembers a well-rounded set of financial products and guiding themthrough the home-buying process only strengthens their corecompetency of superior service. It can also be an opportunity tocross-sell additional products to members and capture a greatershare of their wallets.

Competition for purchase market dollars is fierce and creditunions cannot afford to make costly mistakes that can cause them tolose out on opportunities. As with solving any problem, the firststep is awareness. Credit unions must be aware of three commonmarketing mistakes to avoid in order succeed in today's purchasemarket.

Mistake 1: Not clearly defining the objective of themarketing plan

Credit unions that want more purchase business need to clearlydefine what success looks like. How many new mortgages do theywant? Will they come from members, referrals from customers orreferral partners? Establishing clear objectives enable creditunions to effectively evaluate marketing results and focus internalresources on achieving a specific goal.

Next Page: Not creating, notmeasuring

Mistake 2: Not creating a plan to match thoseobjectives

Credit unions must be able to match the message and thefrequency of that message to their objective. A targeted marketingapproach intelligently uses relevant data for one-to-one marketingpurposes. One-to-one marketing customizes and personalizes themessage specifically to the individual's situation, whichdemonstrates to a homeowner that the credit union is still activelymanaging their account. Blasting generic newsletters to all theRealtors you can find with the hope that one calls you is not onlywishful thinking, it is wasted energy and money.

The duration or frequency of the message also plays an importantrole. If the objective is to generate business from past members itis necessary to reach out to them more often than on a popularholiday.

On average, people move every seven years. Routinelycommunicating throughout that seven-year span with helpful adviceabout their loan and the changing market conditions will helpmaintain more consistent top of mind awareness.

If your objective is to gain referrals from past members, givethem something of value. Act as a counselor to your members. If ahomeowner continues to be impressed with their own experience, theywill refer business to friends and family.

Mistake 3: Not measuring marketing results

How do you know if your marketing efforts are meeting yourobjectives? Many credit unions do not know how to measure theirresults. They are using outdated technology that sends outmarketing collateral but doesn't measure the program'seffectiveness.

By measuring results, credit unions can focus on what is workingor re-adjust the plan when something does not work. The key is are-imagined CRM – one that is more complete and includes moresophisticated database management and an automated marketingsolution.

Credit unions can track results the hard way by manuallydownloading data, making calculations and wasting several hourswith a spreadsheet, or they can effortlessly measure results bysimply pressing a button with a sophisticated system. If you do nothold marketing accountable to deliver tangible results, you may bewasting valuable marketing dollars.

The purchase market offers a lot of potential opportunity forthe credit unions who care to grab it. Those capitalizing on thepurchase market by having an effective marketing plan and solutionwill deepen member relationships, boost profitability and becometheir members' primary financial institution once and for all.

Jim Blattis co-founder and CEO of Mortgage Returns in St.Louis.