A BDM shares his insights into the often-overlooked industry
The construction finance space has not been immune to the challenges of the last two years, particularly when it comes to getting finance from traditional banks and alternative funders, but this just strengthens the opportunity for brokers to help their client base.
Having recently joined lender Capify as a BDM for Queensland and Western Australia, Dino Pacella says with brokers writing six out of ten mortgages in Australia, brokers can play a key role in the SME market.
Despite the challenges, Capify expects increased competition in the market and it plans to become “more broker-centric than ever”.
With the numerous changes in the lending landscape, the complexity of applying for finance has increased; add that to the number of lenders now assisting brokers in the commercial finance sector, Pacella expects to see a greater proportion of business clients seek out the services of a broker.
Working with brokers for construction finance
Pacella, who helped found National Finance Broker Day, says he is bringing his experience of the residential market to his new role to help brokers.
“Building new relationships across the Brisbane market is certainly a driver for me and is for many great BDMs; but being able to assist brokers with having in depth discussions ranging from residential lending through to unsecured short term funding and even through to social media marketing all of sudden becomes a lot more valuable to brokers whose time is precious,” he says.
“Imparting new knowledge that can help amplify their business becomes critical especially from a trusted, reliable and ever growing professional dedicated relationship.”
In order to help the brokers it wants to partner with, Capify has recently expanded its broker team and continues to liaise with brokers through its BDMs along with a dedicated team of broker relationship managers.
The lender is also educating brokers by ensuring they are aware of how it can assist SME clients with a number of features in its product offering.
Three tips for brokers in business lending
Pacella says he has three key tips to share for brokers who are either in business lending already or who are wanting to learn more about it.
1 – Don’t forget the needs of your SMEs.
These are clients who require the guidance of a dedicated trusted advisor given the number of business finance facilities that are available and are sometimes forgotten given the strong light that is shone across the mortgage market. Be proactive with your touch points for these clients. SMEs can sometimes find it a lonely road so having a broker who cares and shows this, goes a very long way in creating a client for life.
2 – Get in front of your Business BDM.
All BDMs want to help. They are a wealth of knowledge for brokers to dig into and each BDM comes with their own set of skills and experiences that can assist in varying circumstances.
3 – Align yourself with strong referral partners.
Being strategic with your referral partners will see you align with the right mix of businesses such as accountants who specialise within the small business sector.
