"I think brokers can do [a lot of things] over the next year to help them keep the keep the taps going, the business flowing"
For Vivianne Gauci, senior vice president of customer experience and chief marketing officer at HomeEquity Bank, the mortgage broker fulfills a role that no other professional or technology can hope to match.
“Brokers’ key competitive advantage in the market is the relationships that they have with customers,” Gauci told Canadian Mortgage Professional during an episode of CMPTV. “I think brokers can do [a lot of things] over the next year to help them keep the keep the taps going, the business flowing.”
Building on these existing relationships is core to the value that a broker brings – and that was a core focus for leading mortgage professionals as 2022 turned to 2023.
“Just reach out to your customer base, find out how they’re doing,” Gauci said, highlighting HomeEquity Bank’s “Warm Hug” program as a good example of this approach.
“We do it when our phones tend to slow down,” she explained. “In December, the conversations tend to start to slow down. And so we use that time to actually just place calls out to our existing customer base and just check in and say, ‘Hey, how’s it going?’ ‘How are you planning on spending your holidays?’”
This is a golden opportunity to determine the client’s financial situation at that point in time, and provide solutions accordingly.
“You’re one of the financial experts in your clients’ lives,” Gauci said. “And you’ll be surprised … at what might come out of that conversation, maybe some opportunities that arise out of it. Mine your database.”
Establishing a constant and reliable presence in social media will also be reassuring to clients.
“In times of uncertainty, people are looking for sources of advice and expertise,” Gauci said. “And you, as a broker, are a key source of that expertise. So don’t be afraid to use social media to share all that… You never know when a situation that you’ve helped another client with can actually help another person that might be watching you on social media or being subscribed to your feed. So leverage those examples of times where you’ve helped clients.”
For more insights on what industry professionals should be prioritizing as the year goes on, click here.
