Podcast #87 - Broker Talks: Building Referrals

In episode 87 of the Growth Series podcast, Sian Varone, Business Development Manager at Accord Mortgages, speaks to Ken James, a Mortgage Broker at Contractor Mortgage Services, about building referral relationships with other businesses, such as estate agents, accountants and solicitors.

Sian begins by asking Ken what he believes are the key components in building and maintaining good relationships in the financial industry. Ken states that it’s really important for brokers to be quick and responsive, and that if they don’t get it right, a relationship with a customer can fall apart very quickly.

He goes on to discuss how he seeks to build strong relationships with other brokerages and businesses, and how engaging with like-minded people at networking events has opened up many opportunities.

The conversation moves on to the importance of maintaining strong relationships with existing clients in generating referrals, and how brokers can incentivise clients to refer them to friends and relatives.

Ken says delivering good service is the key, as clients will want their friends and family to benefit from this good service too, and adds that he offers discounts to clients who have previously referred others to them, as a thank you.

He goes on to admit that brokers are reluctant to sound salesy and that he personally aims to avoid going in for a hard sell. However, he notes that since clients are often euphoric when they get the keys to their house, this can be a perfect time to ask them to leave a Google review and subtly plant the seed in their mind to pass on their details to others who might need their business.

Sian then asks how mortgage brokers can track and measure the success of their referral efforts, and Ken advises using CRM software to capture data such as where leads are coming from, as businesses can then see if they are getting a good return on their marketing investment.

Ken adds that customer service trumps everything else, and if brokers get this right, they will naturally get people referring them to others.

00:48 to 43:53

• Introduction to guest
• Key components in building and maintaining good relationships in the financial industry
• Challenges that affect building relationships
• An example of a successful relationship
• The importance of maintaining strong relationships with existing clients
• How brokers can encourage client referrals
• The role of excellent customer service
• How brokers can proactively drive referrals
• How brokers can track the success of their referral strategies