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Bill Rice is the CEO of Kaleidico, a leader in lead management systems. Prior to founding Kaleidico he was the VP of National Home Equity and the Home Loan Benefit program at Quicken Loans and one of the founding executives of DeepGreen Bank, an Internet-only bank that was one of the first and (at that time) largest buyers of LendingTree leads in early 2000.

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What if I Bought Mortgage Leads in the UK?

March 18th, 2008 • Related • Filed Under

Filed Under: Buying Leads • Lead Company • Lead Market News • Selling Leads

Tags: internet leads • lead exchange • leadbay • leadpoint • mortgage leads • UK mortgage leads

Recently, I have been following the LeadPointUK blog with great interest. Not all lead markets are built or evolve in the same manner. Here are a few notable differences:

• The UK lead market did not grow up on the “When Banks Compete, You Win” LendingTree consumer mantra
• The resulting expectation of exclusive leads is subject to debate and incredible lead prices (average of £150 per lead that is $302!)
• The lead exchange appears more prevalent with LeadPointUK and LeadBay as two solid competitive lead marketplaces

Some would assert that the UK mortgage leads market is behind the US’ leads market. Is this the case? Will it mimic the US market over time? Or, will it evolve into its own unique paradigm?

There Are 4 Responses So Far. »

1. 

   Comment by Simon B on 18 March 2008:

   The contrary opinion can be found at:

   http://www.mortgagesolutions-online.com/public/showPage.html?page=743557

   It is incorrect to say average lead price is £150 per lead. Peak sub prime remos were £300 per lead but a realistic average lead price now is around £25. The UK market is very different to the US market and not ahead or behind. Legislation and high broker expectation is the reason for this.
2. 

   Comment by Bill Rice on 18 March 2008:

   I appreciate your comments Simon, even if they are a bit snip. I find the International lead market very interesting to study and cover.

   It seems as peculiar that although the Internet is generally ubiquitous and border-less marketing/advertising still preserves clear lines of national delineation in technique and business models.

   Best of luck to the LeadBay folks!
3. 

   Comment by Simon B on 19 March 2008:

   I did actually make a full response but on submission it errored on validating my mail address and then lost all my comments which is probably about the most annoying thing in the world. I then redid the post but it never quit sounds the same when you type something up twice.

   I think one of the other major differences is the percentage of lending that occurs via a broker in the UK which I belive is higher than the US where lenders compete more directly for business. I think there are things Uk can learn from US. Certainly I’d not heard of ‘ping trees’ before speaking to several large US affiliates trying to break into the UK market and I’ve been doing a lot of thinking around how lead market that deliver the same or similar propositions can exist together.
4. 

   Comment by Bill Rice on 19 March 2008:

   Oh, I know that frustration Simon.

   Yes, you are correct that a larger amount of lending occurs with brokers in the UK (although about 65% of our market is broker driven at high points). The organization of loan advisers into “networks”–compliance and regulatory in nature I understand–is very interesting and important too, right?

   Globalization is certainly a overwhelming force. I think the best companies will learn to work effectively on both sides of the pond. Open, learning dialogues like this are a start.

   Thanks again for the insights! You guys should get a blog so I can learn more. Are there any UK mortgage or marketing blogs you recommend?

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