January 2022 Notary Trends Results: Finding new customers, COVID issues among biggest challenges

Posted on April 21, 2022

According to comments from survey participants, one reason it’s tricky finding new customers is that face-to-face marketing is harder due to COVID-19 restrictions. For example, venues like nursing homes and hospitals where Notary services are often needed commonly limit visitors, which makes introducing yourself and offering Notary services more challenging.

One Notary, Phyllis Denison, says she is not performing notarizations for unvaccinated signers due to health concerns for herself and her husband. “I am 84 and my husband is 86,” she said.

Marjorie Hunt said she has been offering to perform notarizations outdoors to help reduce COVID risk. “I got a portable bar table to do a Notary job outside. I just need something to weigh the papers down so they don’t blow away and a clipboard to make sure I have a smooth writing surface.”

Some Signing Agents said online signing services — agencies that offer loan appointments to multiple NSAs at the same time via bulk texts or emails — are their biggest challenge to finding new customers. Because these offers are first come, first serve and go to the Signing Agent that responds fastest, NSAs said they often can’t reply in time because they are driving or in the middle of another assignment. 

“It seems so strange that a company would rather take the first response from a new Signing Agent instead of calling or texting an experienced NSA directly,” said Signing Agent Shelly Dyer.

Original article: https://www.nationalnotary.org/notary-bulletin/blog/2022/01/january-2022-notary-trends-results-challenges