Carol Pryor is the director of marketing for Fleming Mortgage Services in St. Augustine.
WHAT DO YOU DO?
“I am a licensed mortgage broker, but for the most part my role with the team is to be the marketing director. I go into the community and introduce them to the company since it is new to this market.”
WHEN DID THE COMPANY OPEN?
In March. She and her partner, who is also her sister, Madelyn moved to St. Augustine from Atlanta to open the St. Augustine branch of Fleming Mortgage Services. The company’s corporate office is located in Ocala. There is also another office in Ponte Vedra Beach.
MARKETING AREA?
Primarily in Northeast Florida.
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS?
St. Augustine Sunrise Rotary Club, St. Augustine Chamber of Commerce, St. Augustine/St. Johns County Board of Realtors, St. Johns County Builders Council, Really Caring Campaign for the St. Augustine YMCA, Northeast Florida Builders Association and its Sales and Marketing Council. She also will be attending the St. Augustine Women’s Council of Realtors and the Clay County and Nassau County Builders Council meetings. Since she left Georgia, she is now an adjunct member of the Metro Atlanta Regional Board for Mental Retardation, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases.
WHO ARE YOUR CLIENTS?
Builders, Realtors and banking institutions.
HOW DO YOU LIKE THE JOB?
“I am an adventurous person and I like the newness of the situation. This is very similar to what I did in Atlanta.”
BEFORE THE MORTGAGE BUSINESS?
She worked for Coca-Cola for 10 years in senior management. She assisted in coordinating the Olympic Team for Coca-Cola USA in 1996. “From there, I became the marketing director of an electrical contracting firm. When I took the job, they hired me to build the service division with another gentleman who was already there. With the marketing efforts and his expertise, we tripled the size of the service division. Some of my clients there were Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, Lowe’s and Clear Channel.”
HOW DID YOUR PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE HELP YOU NOW?
“The experience that I had with the electrical contracting firm was the first opportunity that I really had to use my creativity, my skills in marketing and to develop a plan to grow a business. Now, I will transpose those skills into what I am doing now.”
WILL YOU GROW YOUR OFFICE?
Yes, she’d like to add more people to their office.
WHAT IS THE TOUGHEST PART OF THE LOAN PROCESS FOR THE CUSTOMER?
“My experience has been just getting through the loan process itself. There is a lot of documentation that is required and just making sure that we have all the information that the lender needs. We are like a second set of eyes for the lender so that before we even send it to a lender that we have as much information as we can, so that it minimizes the stipulations. We want to expedite the time and streamline the process.”
WHAT IS ONE BEST THING THAT YOU COULD TELL A REALTOR?
“Being the liaison is so important. Communication is very important. Precise communication and making sure we have all the information needed so we can really move the loan through the process. It’s a team effort between the Realtors, the loan officer and the client.”
HOW ARE REALTORS IMPORTANT TO YOU?
“They are one of our clients and one of the channels for our business. They are a networking source to a client. When a client comes to a Realtor, they can make a referral to a lending or funding source and we would like to be considered. Funding mortgages is more than just that, its customer service. Our team goes beyond just the funding.”
WHAT HAS HELPED YOU MOST TO GET YOU WHERE YOU ARE TODAY?
“The enjoyment that I have from working with people.”
LESSONS LEARNED?
“Be positive, see people in a positive light and to just be a positive person because it emanates in to all that you do.”
COLLEGE
She has a bachelor’s degree in sociology with a minor in psychology and a master’s degree in marketing from Georgia State University.
CHURCH
Anastasia Baptist.
BIRTHPLACE
Blakely, Ga.
FAMILY
She has three daughters. Jamie, 33; Julie, 26 and Jenny, 23.
FAVORITES
A movie she saw recently and would recommend was “Bruce Almighty.” “What I saw is this man wanted to play God and be God and he realized he cannot do it. He is only human.” Books that she would recommend are “Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren and a devotional book titled “Wait.”
When traveling, she enjoys anywhere in the Caribbean.
- by Michele Newbern Gillis