MPA brings you advice from the industry's successful brokers on their biggest business challenge and how they tackled it.
MPA: What has been one of your biggest challenges in business to date and why?
HH: Keeping a strong relationship with clients who have not met you face to face as they are interstate or overseas. When dealing with a client face to face you build a strong bond with them going through their loan application, but when dealing with a person over the phone and overseas you lose this effective in your sales. Clients will forget who you are if you do not have a face to the name.
MPA: How did you overcome this challenge?
HH: I learnt a long time ago from an experienced broker a 21 touch point program which he implemented. Throughout each year you need to have some point of contact with the client be it call, SMS, email, cards. What I have in place is:
- My marketing systems from Connective which send as monthly info an email newsletter which is specially tailored with all my details. This is very effective and gets to the client each month, giving them a reminder that I am around and they in most cases reply back with a client or question.
- RBA rate annoucnements - all automated by Connective's My Marketing.
- Birthday SMS and cards.
- Birthday cards for children that they have.
- Anniversary call of the home loan / check up.
- I also add most clients on Facebook which in turn builds a very strong relationship as they can see my personal life. Referrals here are effective.
MPA: What are some of the key lessons you learned from this experience?
HH: Even if you do the best job for the clients and get them the approval for the hardest deal possible, if you don’t keep the ongoing servicing they will leave or be enticed elsewhere. You need to still show that you care for them and it was not just a one night stand transaction.
MPA: How have those lessons benefited you in business since?
HH: It doubled my book and helped with obtaining referrals. I am very lucky I learnt this in my first year of broking. Biggest lesson is to respect and learn from brokers who have been successful before you and be very humble. Don’t be that annoying kid on the block who may have done well and walks around with a flash suit as there are always bigger fish then you.
MPA: If you were to tackle this again would you do anything differently?
HH: No, it was a perfect experience.
MPA: What advice would you give to other brokers facing a similar situation?
HH: Be Humble, confident and respectful of older brokers as they will teach you one thing that can increase your business drastically.
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