Advice from the Arctic: the essential broker toolbox

As suggested by Canadian brokers: 10 simple tools to improve your business

As suggested by Canadian brokers: 10 simple tools to improve your business

MPA’s icy sister publication, Canadian Mortgage Professional, has compiled a list of what brokers think are the most important tools to help them do business. Thanks to the internet, almost all these time-saving solutions are also available to Aussie brokers – take a look at our highly-condensed version.

1. E-signing – a client can sign once with a tablet computer and stylus – so save your shoulders and ditch that bulging pile of documents.

2. Mobile apps – Brewster draws together Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn in once contact information list. Biz tells you when your LinkedIn contacts are close by. And Hootsuite combines your social media accounts, so you can broadcast on all channels with one message.

3. Revodoc – a cloud-based mortgage collaboration system which lets brokers and their assistants work on documents, and handle workflow, all in one place.

4. Online faxes - the fax is dead; long live the fax, suggests CMP. Using traditional phone numbers, but having faxes sent as emails, is the offering of services like MyFax.com.

5. Third-party CRM – customer relationship management tools make it even easier stay in touch - there are several available.

6. Cloud computing – already utilised by aggregators here, storing documents on the cloud means you can access them everywhere (as well as being a vital backup). Dropbox is a simple example.

7. Social media – no it’s not new, but that doesn’t mean you can ignore it. Facebook, Twitter and the like are for far more than sharing pictures of cats, and with long-term strategies can really pay off.

8. E-newsletters and E-Cards – jazz up your monthly email (or ditch the withered pamphlet) with a variety of tools like Punchbowl and iMambo.

9. Your book of business – don’t forget about past clients – an obvious suggestion, also highlighted by many in our forthcoming Top 10 Commercial Broker special.

10. Australia Post – CMP harks back to the good old-fashioned letter to clients, which they argue implies a closer and more thoughtful relationship.

Want to read more about technology? MPA is running a full length feature on technology in issue 14.9, featuring interviews with the best in the business, on desks this month. Or read the original CMP article here.