What every great broker does every day

Originally Published on 23 May, 2018

Filling the hopper with new leads, meetings, submissions and completions can be one of the main challenges for brokers. So we thought we‘d take a look at some of the habits which great brokers follow every day to make this happen. 

Fundamentally, it’s about nurturing past, present and future clients.

Past clients

Good brokers regard their mailing list as though it was gold. They will use this list to nurture leads, but will do it sensitively. The worst thing anyone can do is bombard their contacts with meaningless communications so that they all gradually unsubscribe.

Instead, a proactive broker will send what is known as ‘valuable content’. This is anything that the contacts will consider to be of use. They think laterally about what they could send;  ‘The top 10 things to consider when moving house,’ ‘The 7 best mortgage deals this month,’ ‘What you need to know about equity release’. They share pictures and videos. They publish interesting articles about house renovations or the housing market in general.  

It’s all about positioning themselves as a trusted source of useful information. Rather than being seen to be ‘pushing stuff’ at their contacts, they ‘draw’ them in with things to arouse their interest.         

Technology is there to be exploited. Forward-thinking brokers capitalise on email automation and Customer Relationship Management software to tell their clients when their remortgage is due and to keep them updated about new developments.

They’ll also build on the relationship with past clients to ask for positive reviews they can use in future marketing.

Learn more: How brokers find value in a CRM

Present clients

Good brokers keep in close contact with their existing clients and engage with them on a regular basis. This could simply be sending emails to keep them updated of where their mortgage is up to. Or it may be sending out an enewsletter with topical and interesting articles; ‘The 7 essential things you need to obtain a mortgage’, for example, or ‘5 top tips to get a mortgage provider to say yes.’  Another useful practice many try is to run a survey to find out what their customers think of their service.

Learn more: Boosting Customer Retention with CRM

You’ll find enterprising brokers will also be active on social media, taking pains to be a ‘talking’ broker not just a ‘sharing’ broker, commenting on posts and getting involved in discussions. This increases their notifications from other people they might not know on a similar topic, all the time widening their net. They keep themselves front of mind by posting regular updates on all their social media channels.

Learn more: How social media can help scale up your business

Future clients

The best brokers will be doing everything they can to make their funnel as wide as possible for future clients. This will include posting as many online reviews as they can, ensuring their business can be found on Google, being active on social media by posting regular updates, experimenting with ‘paid for’ adverts on various social media sites and sharing case studies. 

They may offer guides to download, such as ‘The ultimate guide to negotiating a house purchase’ or ‘Inside tips and tricks of getting a mortgage’. If the information is perceived to be valuable, contacts will share them with their friends and colleagues and the net will spread even wider.    

It all comes down again to positioning themselves as someone with something useful to say. The most visible brokers will be the ones that gain the most new business.

Learn more: The Brokers' Guide to Customer Experience