OK. The market is tough. But isn’t this the time to let great brokers shine? You have been in the game long enough to have built a long list of past clients. With so much turbulence in the financial world right now, that list is mana from heaven
Almost everyone you dealt with in the past is – right now – concerned about their mortgage. A call from their expert broker could be just what they need to help them consider refinancing options or for you to cross-sell other products to them.
A story that a colleague of mine tells me is a stark, and not uncommon, reminder of why many brokers struggle when the market gets tough. He used a broker from one of the leading broking groups to settle a plain and simple loan on an average LVR on a Sydney property 5 years ago. He is a director-level salary earner with a perfect credit history. The very last time he heard from his broker was the day the settlement went through.
What broker, in their right mind, let’s a client like this go? We know that people cycle their properties, on average, every 4-5 years.
Five years in to a loan, there are plenty of options for refinancing, moving the client to a professional or higher-service package, offering additional investment lending options, etc, etc. Yet not once has this colleague heard from his broker. He regularly questions the value of a broker as a result – in fact, he could have tracked down the loan himself using one of the many market services.
His case is a salient reminder of why good brokers must have great databases of their clients, and use good CRM practices to follow-up their clients and open up new marketing opportunities.
Here are just some of the things that brokers can do with their databases:
Interest rate changes – a letter or email to your clients when interest rates change, outlaying other options in the market is always powerful. A smart mail-merge can make a form letter look brilliant (put in some comparative data about their loan and then show a variety of other options in the market at the moment). Use this time to talk about new product offerings as well…sell, sell, sell!
Six monthly reviews – Send a letter to your clients on the six monthly anniversary of their mortgage being settled. Mention their product, what rate it is currently charging and then, as above, make them aware of other products.
Newsletters – their not hard to do. There is so much information out there that you can write about…and here is a little tip: take the information that other write and re-write it! Don’t plagiarise (ever), but there is nothing stopping you putting it into your own words. Think of the sources such as the many industry email news services, the major bank’s website (see their economic reports), broking industry magazines, etc. Send them every quarter.
Anniversary messages – a short email, letter or card on birthdays or at Christmas time is always a nice touch. It lets clients now you still ‘think’ about them and increases the likelihood of them doing business with you again…not matter how clichéd it seems, it works!
If you want to be a truly successful broker treat your clients as though you appreciate their business. Show them your expertise in the mortgage industry. Portray yourself as the lending professional that you are. Suddenly, tough times, won’t be so tough.
Michelle King is managing director of Solution4
