The way the world looks, the way things are going, it looks very bleak, but not for notarizing those who are owing (borrowers).

I looked into my crystal ball, and it was revealed to me. And no, I didn’t get the cheap kind at crystal balls for less. I saw a world of chaos, turmoil, crime, strife. Perhaps inflation would go way up, and interest rates too. People would be dying in mass from the long term side effects of the vaccine that was supposed to keep us “safe”. Where is your safety now Fred said looking down at his demised wife Sylvia lying in her grave three years after taking one of the vaccines. Did the FDA approve it? Was it tested in the long run? No, because there was no time. We had to administer it to as many young and middle aged people as possible who had a one in ten thousand or less chance of dying from Covid, and that was to keep them “safe.” They were more in danger of dying from being struck by lightning or being molested by a variety of politicians in NY or NJ whose names we won’t mention. But, I digress.

Then, it seems that God is upset with the world and upset with America. He has retracted his blessings. But, what does that mean for the Notaries of America? Is that good or bad for us they ask? Here is my thought.

Between disasters, war, vaccine related deaths, and economic chaos, there will be more people buying and selling properties. Notaries these days do lots of “buyers” and “sellers.” Foreclosures often require a notary too. Refinancing tends to be higher when interest rates are low, but in this crazy reality we are entering, people might get refinances if interest rates go up in anticipation that they would go up much more.

I don’t know exactly what the future holds for us other than WW3, Armageddon, The Messiah, and hopefully a store near me that sells powdered Mexican style pequin pepper (goes great in stir fries). But, I see that Notary work will be busy probably for the next ten years or more.

I believe that the angels got me into this business partly because they knew it suited me. And partly because in 2000 when they got me into this, they saw the shutdowns and quarantines coming and wanted me to have a job I could do from home so I would be economically stable. Well, I am feeling very fortunate and grateful for the good graces of these higher beings who saved my rear that time and many other times.

My only advice to you Notaries out there is:
Get more reviews
Get a catchy business name and register it.
Become an expert at writing a compelling notes section
Stay close (or closer) to God, so when he destroys the planet he’ll consider saving you as an individual even if he sacks your community (no joke).
And try the Thai green curry on Wilshire — it’s really excellent; just the right amount of spice.

I keep hearing that the type of business people get on 123notary is better than on any other directory. I work hard to keep 123notary good. I do this by quizzing people, and helping people with their notes section. I weed out listings with dysfunctional phone numbers and those who are not responsive too. All of this is the basic nuts and bolts of quality control.

But, I have heard from several Notaries that they get a lot of out of state work from 123notary.com, and mostly from title companies. This is great news. My hard work has paid off if people get great jobs. I feel like I accomplished something. But, honestly it is time for a long vacation.

123notary has always specialized in selling high placed listings. We are the most popular directory with Title and Escrow and they like the top rolling Notaries as a general rule. However the landscape has changed. Certain places used to be popular, but those spots are not as popular anymore.

In the old days, Miami, Broward, Palm Beach, Tampa area, Jacksonville, Southern California Bay Area, Phoenix Chicago, Seattle, Dallas, and Houston were booked solid in terms of top spots. New York was also somewhat busy but not as much as these other areas.

Now, the Florida and Texas areas are still popular. But, California has almost fallen off the map in terms of top listings. We have so many availabilities. Did people pack up and leave the state or did they just get depressed and stop trying? Chicago lost of a lot of steam as well. Seattle area lost some steam too. We had a top spot for a while and still might. Note — that both the Democrat areas lost steam while the Republican areas held their ground. I am a Libertarian so I don’t like either party, but at least the Republicans function which is a lot more than I can say for their competitors.

But, now Idaho has its top listings booked up in many areas. That never used to be the case. So, the Californians moved to Idaho and the New Yorkers to Florida.

But, for some reason, the top spots in New York City are still taken despite that New York is a disaster area. So, NY is the only democrat state to hold its ground in the Notary industry on our site. Hmm. I’ll have to reflect on that one. New York has always been an odd ball as far as Notary marketing is concerned.

SUMMARY
To sum it up:

Which areas are doing worse:
CA, IL, WA

Which areas held their ground:
AZ, FL, NY, TX

Someone asked if there were any spots left in San Diego City area. I explained that high placed listings in San Diego are like men. The good ones are always taken.

On the other hand, I am not taken. Does that mean I am not good, or that nobody recognizes my greatness other than Mrs. Meao. She gets it. Her assessment of value is based on whether you know how to scratch her back in just the right place and in just the right way. If you get her KFC then you will get kisses too. For some reason she liked my orange shampoo. I got 30 kisses (nose kisses) every time I used it. Oh my goodness.

Maybe I should walk around with a sign saying, “High quality man on board.” Or I could wear a suit to show the world how important I am. But, I work at home in my underwear. I don’t need to look important to do my job. Mrs. Meao doesn’t care what I wear just as long as she can sniff it.

On the other hand, sometimes there are high placements in popular areas on 123notary and the market doesn’t demand them at particular moments of time. Sometimes a particular area will be slow for a few years and then booked up for a few years.

Really seasoned notaries are also like good men. They think they are too good to be listed on 123notary in many cases. They have enough regulars that they don’t want new clients. These notaries usually have at least 15,000 signings under their belt and are older. They represent far less than 1% of the notaries on the market, but I bump into them and they let me know how they don’t need me. Gee thanks!

When I talk to new sign ups, many were referred from a course, an agency, or a friend. Word on the street is that Snapdocs, 123notary, and a few others are good places to sign up. However, I had to explain this to someone on a sales call, and I explained it differently.

I informed this nice lady from Ventura County that each site has its own personality. Whether you gel with that personality is something to think about before getting involved.
SnapDocs and 123notary both come highly recommended. But, if your personality doesn’t match, you are barking up the wrong tree in my opinion.

SnapDocs is for the snappy. It is for people with snappy personalities who answer texts at the speed of a millennial hooked on pumpkin frappachinos. It is for those who are caffeinated to the peak, whose jittery fingers snap into action whenever a text goes out. Those who are sluggish even by a matter of nanoseconds will get left out on Snapdocs unless it is for a job that nobody else wants.

123notary is for those who want to be treated like they are more than just a person. At 123notary, you are more than just a person, you are also a number, and we are three numbers. Those that do well on 123notary have particular personality traits. See if these match your traits.

1. You like logging into their listing every few months and manicuring their notes sections so that their factual, detailed, and unique information will interest and intrigue the readers (who read everything by the way just so that you know.)

2. You like asking for reviews and sending links to their review page so they can get more reviews to stand out.

3. Some like passing our certification test. This is more critical for new people on the site who do not have name recognition in the industry.

4. You like answering phone calls and emails for job offers(old school) rather than responding to texts or using apps (millennial B.S. in my opinion).

There are other options for advertising. Notary Rotary is old school and some people do well there. Less is required. Just put your name on a list and they have fewer requirements to do well than 123notary does. Notary Cafe gets some people work and they are not as caffeinated as SnapDocs despite their name. And then signingagent.com gets work for some, but not all. Don’t overlook Yelp, Google Local and other options.

The goal of 123notary is to keep title companies who use us happy. 123notary gets more title and escrow searches than any other directory out there. I have to compete as an individual human with 100 million dollar companies. They only way I can do this is because we live in a talent market these days rather than a purely capitalistic system.

I focus on having the best notaries, filtering out free listings that don’t measure up, filtering up good listings that deserve higher placement, etc. All of this is to give the best search results for title.

I quiz people, help them with their notes, coach them on getting reviews, teach industry competency, and even help people choose business names from time to time.

The goal is not to have the most listings, but to have a critical mass of Notaries who are worth calling and who have very complete looking listings. And I feel I have achieved that goal, although it is a lot of work to maintain!