Initial Contact — Benchmark Mortgage

Trigger In

New inquiry received via any channel: phone call, online form, referral, booked appointment (Calendly or similar), or submitted application with no prior contact.

Immediate Client Care

B1-1

Receive and log the inquiry

Open or create the client card in EP and record what you know from the initial inquiry. What you have upfront depends on the channel:

Channel	What you have at this point
Phone call (live)	Whatever is said in the conversation — note deal type, client name, contact info, any urgency flags
Voicemail	Name and number only — log it and call back immediately
Online inquiry / web form	Name, contact info, sometimes deal type — captured in the form submission
Referral (via text or email)	Referrer name + client name/number — note the referrer in EP for source tracking
Booked appointment	Name, contact info, and any notes they left in the booking — review before the call
Submitted application	Full application data already in EP — review before first contact, no intake call needed for basics

⚙ EP auto-creates a triage prompt note when a new card is opened — review it before calling the client.

Always log the referral source in EP, regardless of channel. This is used for tracking where leads come from.

⚠ GAP — confirm which EP fields are required at intake and how referral source is recorded

Within 5 min Client Care

B1-2

Call the client — initial qualifying conversation

First contact by phone. Aim for within 5 minutes of receiving the inquiry — speed is a key differentiator at this stage.

Determine deal type: purchase, renewal, refinance, pre-approval, or info request
Assess basic eligibility (residency, income situation, credit — high level)
Set expectations about the Benchmark process

Persistence: make up to 3 contact attempts over a 2-week window. If no response after the window, remove from active.

⚠ GAP — triage call script to be documented

After call Client Care

B1-3

Classify deal type and route file

Based on the call, assign the deal type in EP and route accordingly.

Classification	Route to
New Purchase (incl. New Build, Purchase Plus)	App Pending — New Purchase process
Renewal / Switch / Transfer	App Pending — R/S/T process
Refinance	App Pending — Refinance process
Pre-Approval	App Pending — Pre-Approval process
Info Request / Misc	App Pending — Info Request process
Clearly doesn't qualify	DNQ (Parked)

Existing R/S/T clients (past Benchmark clients entering from the After phase — Renewal Opportunity process) skip Initial Contact entirely and enter at App Pending directly.

EXIT →

DNQ — Initial conversation reveals client clearly doesn't qualify (e.g. residency, credit). Exit before creating a full file.

Trigger Out

Qualified → App Pending (B2) — deal type classified, EP card active.
Not qualified → DNQ (Parked) — reason noted in EP.