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Going Commercial with Stuart Donaldson From Accendo Financial 

Today we’re talking about “Going Commercial” and diversification with equipment finance, asset finance and commercial lending and what will that mean for you with Stuart Donaldson from Accendo Financial. 

• Commercial is a different beast! 
  
  
• Firstly you need that commitment that you want to diversify, then find ways through workflow, automations and other things to find capacity in your week. Then once you have capacity, you can start to diversify. 
  
  
• It is a commitment and brokers are so busy, and you might think “I want to do it, but not now”. I would ask them; “If not now, then when?”
  
  
• You need a plan. Understand what are you strengths and weaknesses, what are your capabilities, what is the plan or who are the people to help you make this happen. 
  
  
• Commercial lending does come with its own skills, knowledge and accreditation. How can someone get to the next stage to be a commercial writer? 
  
  
• “Going Commercial” doesn’t happen overnight. Attend the PD days, get specific training about commercial lending and cashflow and pulling it all together and join a mentoring program. 
  
  
• Do you find that most people going through the training business owners or brokers? It’s more the mortgage brokers themselves. We deal separately with business owners.
  
  
• Building a client base for commercial is different than residential. So the first few months of the training we do, some of the topics we walk through; “How do I create awareness, how do i build relationships, how do i build a database, how do i present on social media…” which is all about building trust and awareness with your client base. 
  
  
• If you lack experience, but not desire you can definitely get experience with SME. Pick a partner who is able to work with you and educate you as you go. 

Top Three Tips To Attract more SME and Commercial Clients: 

1. Pull the trigger: Do something about it. 
2. Be prepared to have a plan: Do your research and know where you will get your skills to achieve it. 
3. Explore your database: Understand your database, who is in the list, what is the potential there. 

And - get a mentor. 

Accendo runs a small group, intensive mentorship and can help with gaining accreditation for commercial lending. It is definitely a partnership more than a coaching relationship. We also have an alumni program with the Accendo group of experts. See here for more details: accendofin.com.au 

Key Quotes

“What is the difference between a broker doing both residential and commercial and a broker to specialise in one or the other?” - Marissa 

“What are the implications o

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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The stats don’t lie: the mortgage industry is not representative of the clients we serve. There is a lack of diversity and females in the industry, currently sitting at 25.6% of the total market. Today we're taking a look at how to attract and retain more females into our industry with Jane Counsel. 
 

• The biggest challenge we have right now is around retention.
• We need to try new and innovative ways to attract and retain women into the industry.
• We won’t see a massive shift if we only focus on monetary or financial success for brokers and loan writers.  Women value different elements.
• We also need to stop just talking about the lack of women in the industry, and thinking it’s a ‘women’ issue to solve. There’s a lot of talking - we need to move and try different things.
• We need to prioritise this as an industry issue.
• What are the three things that need to be done?
  1/ One of the biggest things that will make a difference is male leaders actually getting involved in solutions. (And it does happen - Darren Little from smartmove has a great story around this.)
  2/ Innovation and courage in taking greater risks and doing things differently.
  3/ Making female brokers a strategic opportunity.
• Women working in flexible or part-time positions are actually more productive workers.
• If we don’t move beyond the barriers, build trust and respect with our diverse client base and move beyond just talking about the lack of women representation, there’s a massive lost opportunity in this industry.
• The women opportunities initiative with the MFAA is about starting the conversation, starting the change and building the blocks for closing the perception gap, changing the way women are viewed in the industry and increasing the value of women as business owners in the industry.
• We have to look at the small messages we send every day to women in the industry about seeing them as equals.
• It’s up to the business owners to create solutions for more part-time brokers, then you will attract more women brokers, and the business owners need to create systems to support this, so clients are still looked after when that broker isn’t working.
• There also needs to be a willingness to change, and do things differently that might not see an immediate return.
• A huge opportunity for the industry is to attract women into the industry as they leave university, as they leave school and get them trained and active in the industry before they start their families.
• Having families is the most challenging time to retain women. So there needs to be an attraction and a retention strategy.

Please take a look at The women opportunities initiative with the MFAA here. 

Please see m

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The 5 C’s - well, they stand for: Compliance, Control, Communication, 

Common Sense and Client. 

Compliance is there to protect you - that’s how you can think of compliance. Follow the system that protects you and it will protect the client as well. 

Control is about how you present the package, the platform, your offer - everything to your client. 

Control is non-negotiable. This is how business needs to be done. These are the parameters of working with me. 

With control comes communication. 

If you think you may have communicated something or you think the client would automatically know something - just recommit it to them. You don’t know, what you don’t know. 

Compliance is first because it’s so important - but all the 5 points are really about Communication. 

Common Sense is a big one, because it’s sometimes forgotten. If you feel like something hasn’t registered for the client, pick the phone back up and just reiterate that point. That client will most likely love the fact you’ve double-checked with them. 

The client engagement and experience is going to be exceptional if all the other C’s have been ticked off.

The 5 C’s model really hits the nail on the head of what every mortgage broking business should be covering off and doing well. 

All of the 5 C’s work together in a union. Start using the 5 C’s every day!

Key Quotes

“Are you able to say “as per”. As per my text, my email, my conversation - can you tick the box on you being able to communicate along the way?”  - Ruan

“Clients are going to hold you to what you’ve told them.”  - Ruan

“We forget what people don’t know. The longer you’re a broker, the worse you can get at this! Remember: Not everyone will know the ins and outs of loan writing.”- Marissa.

“How do I  make the clients feel? Like clients or customers?” - Ruan 

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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• Think ahead - be strategic - look at where you’re wanting the business to grow. 
• What will your role look like in 5 years or 10 years? What will your team’s roles look like in 5 years or 10 years? Think about when and who you will need. 
• It’s not easy for a small business to know the money coming in vs the money going out and financially not feel ready.
• It is difficult to let go of that money and take responsibility for someone else’s wage when you look to grow your team. 
• Think about building your team long term and the long term return. 
• When you contemplate where they’re going to fit into the business, what role they will have, how will that free up your time, and the time of the people already on your team? 
• Accelerate the higher income earning duties and delegate the lower-income earning duties. The growth of the business financially will outweigh the cost of investment of that person’s wage. 
• When thinking of adding another admin staff member, think about how much time that role will save you - say 10 hours a week - and how that time can be reinvested. 
• It’s difficult to find a team member that is great at everything and can do everything exceptionally well. So you can support different team members in different ways. 
• There are so many ways that you can find the right people, even in your own database and your clients. 
• If you make the decision to grow - be consistent with it. And knowing where you want to go will help you find the path to get there. 

Key Quotes

“You either recruit to grow, or you recruit to fill. If you recruit to fill, you’re too late. Think about recruiting to grow.”  - Ruan

“You can only grow so much without recruiting. You need to consciously think about this.”  - Ruan

“Most businesses wait until they’re desperate. And when you’re working from this place, it’s easy to make the wrong decision.”- Marissa.

“It’s still scary every time you bring on new people, it’s another wage, another expense, another obligation”. - Marissa 

“Whilst it’s scary to take the leap - every single person I’ve ever spoken to about this - has said ‘I wish I took on staff earlier”. - Marissa 

“A lot of our team members actually started as clients!” - Marissa

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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• Offshore vs onshore employment - how it can increase productivity and support your business goals. 
• As your business grows and you do need more admin support, there are many advantages of offshore teams. 
• The biggest advantage is a lower cost for offshore teams. Or is it? Sometimes it takes time, a few failed starts to find the right offshore team members. 
• There is an increased risk for data security that you must consider when working offshore. You must consider this and mitigate this when you make this decision. 
• Think about the jobs you don't want to do, and what is the cost to passing them on?
• Career paths for your team is something to consider; the training and support you can give an onshore admin team to grow and develop with you is usually not an option for an offshore team.  
• Think about your bigger business goals; and plan to recruit for growth, not to recruit to fill a position. 
• You can find incredibly skilled, motivated and reliable people offshore; you must make the process really bulletproof to see a high return on your investment.
• Some businesses can use offshore team members really successfully, it comes down to planning and expectations. 
• There is no right or wrong answer here; there are pros and cons for both options. 
• The one thing you can’t do is shortcut any solution. You can have goals and expectations but it comes down to testing what is working for your business. Growth opportunities do come from having a local team. You can recruit from within and use your local admin team as a training ground for future mortgage brokers. 
• Local teams mean that you have increased face to face time, and increased training and support for our team. 
• Big message: Think about what type of business you have now, what type of business you want in the future, your customer experience expectations and then decide whether offshore or local recruitment is for you.

Key Quotes

“If you recruit to fill, you’re too late. Think about recruiting to grow.”  - Ruan

“Getting the right person is easier said than done.”  - Ruan

“Explore the type of business you are, and what capacity you have to train someone. If you don’t have the to invest, you can still get great admin support they may just need to shadow you.”- Marissa.

“All these decisions impact your customer experience expectations and impact how you interact with your client base”. - Marissa 

“It comes down to a gut feeling, your comfort level and what you feel Ok with”. - Marissa 

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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Loan decline is something that every mortgage broker wants to avoid because getting a loan decline for a client is pretty upsetting (not only for the client but also sharing such news is also something that you want to avoid).

So, how can brokers handle loan declines better?

Communication is Key! 

As a mortgage broker, you can educate your client about the possibility that declines can happen. Be upfront about the lender’s expectations, do your research and prepare the loan offer in such a way that it’s methodical and you’ve checked off all the subtleties of the loan procedure in depth (for that lender).

Then go one step further and explain the process of what happens when a loan is rejected. Have a Plan B and share it with your client upfront. So that if a decline happens both you and the client are aware of the next steps. 

Do your forensic research upfront. 

Do the investigations into what could be rejected by the credit assessor, get the appropriate credit reports of the respective client, collect bank statements and review them appropriately. Think ‘what could come up’ and deal with it. This will ensure that there are more chances of a loan being approved if all the documents meet the creditor's and lenders criteria and hence the chances of loan decline will be much less.

When A Decline Happens: Deal with it. 

When a loan is declined, don’t complain about it and don’t stick your head in the sand.  Find out why it got declined and get a solution so that you and the client is prepared for the next attempt. 

Learn from your mistakes and take action to get the right decision in the next attempt.  If you don’t “learn from your mistakes”  you will repeat those errors.

Control the relationship with the client whether the loan is approved or declined. The way you handle a decline can give you big credit towards how the client views the relationship. Share all information you have with the client, tell them what went wrong with the loan, and what can be done better.

These things go a long way in winning the trust of the client and it can also ensure the client stays with the broker for life. 

Transparency, honesty, professionalism - it matters a lot in a decline situation. 

Key Quotes

“If you treat every deal as a decline, there is a better opportunity of one being approved.” - Ruan

“If you get a decline - deal with it. Fix it. Don’t complain about it. It happens to us all.” - Ruan

“Own that moment. It’s up to you to ensure the client gets that experience that they signed up for”. - Ruan

“Look at every deal and review everything forensically as to what could the credit assessor find? Do that forensic assessment upfront and you will reduce the number of

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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• Success and balance mean different things to different people because we’re all wired differently. 

• The broking industry gives you the capacity to build something that works for you and your circumstances. 

• Flexibility is one of the best and worst things about our industry. It means we could work all the time - but that can lead to burnout and deteriorate your relationships.
  
  
• Use a diary and schedule the things that are important to you and your family. 

• Research, Planning, Implementation and Review. 
  
  
• Transitioning to a point of pushing back on clients and saying “no” to when you are less flexible with your time is a scary point to come to, however when you make this shift you will not lose clients. 
  
  
• Set up very clear expectations at the beginning of a client relationship about time, response time and meeting times. 
  
  
• Work to an ideal week and have allocated time for lead generation, referral partners, client meetings and callbacks. 

• When you’re just starting out in the industry it’s important to set boundaries and be clear with yourself and your family on what is work time and what is family time. 
  
  
• It’s very easy to get caught up in low-value tasks that will waste time and not get you anywhere. 
  
  
• Even if you’re just starting out, you have to spend time working ON your business, not IN your business. 
  
  
• Big message: Focus on what is going to work for you. Find the family and work balance that is going to help you feel energised and work long-term for you. 

Key Quotes

“Choose your ‘fighting’ days. When you have a commitment to your clients, you need to fight for them, be of value to them, be present for them. Then the next day, you may  have a rest day. Find your own balance.”  - Ruan

“Am I addicted to the phone? I’m addicted to the ring. I have to answer!”  - Ruan

“This is a topic close to my heart - I started broking when I was nine months pregnant with my first child!.”- Marissa.

“When you value your time more, your clients will also value your time more”. - Marissa 

“Create boundaries and no what is important to you and your family from the beginning.”  - Marissa

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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• Whether you are starting out or well established: find a counsel. Find a mentor. Find someone you can speak to on a regular basis that will give you honest feedback that will help you to move forward. 
• Be clear on your goals. This will help your mentorship and your counsel. 
• When you are clear on your goals, you can help to self-inspire and self-motivate. 
• Be willing to grow, to learn and remain vulnerable. Otherwise, any help you gain will fall on deaf ears. 
• Allow your counsel to empower yourself. 
• The Broker Journal™ is about becoming a bigger, better broker. It’s built on habits and consistency. We call it the exercise program for finance professionals. Just like a gym, if you don’t go, nothing changes. 
• The Broker Journal™ is built as a 52 week intentional habit process because these changes take time. 
• Having time to work ON your business, rather than IN your business. Most brokers don’t take the time to work on your business to create a better business. 
• Just because your business grows, doesn’t mean its sustainable. 
• Challenge your status quo and challenge what it is to grow. 
• Clients can see the difference between brokers who are coasting along, and brokers who are striving to be better. 

Key Quotes

“Everything in life is about mindset.”  – Ruan

“If you are on a journey of continuous improvement, it is hard to get feedback but it’s something you need to move beyond where you are now.”  – Marissa

“It’s easy to take small steps, harder to take bigger steps”. – Ruan

“At the end of the day, habits are everything. To be able to change those habits, no matter how small the change is, can have dramatic results. ”. – Marissa

THANK YOU TO OUR PRESENTERS: RUAN BURGER AND MARISSA SCHULZE

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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Today we’re talking all about females in the industry and diversity in our industry; what we’re doing well, what can improve, and why it matters.  Take a listen now. Key points include:

• Ultimately our industry should represent the people we serve in the community – unfortunately, what we have seen in recent times is the percentage of females in the industry is decreasing instead of increasing. 
• How do we get more females into mortgage broking AND keep them here? 
• The reality is: Females make great mortgage brokers! We can focus on giving females more resources to stay in this industry and promote the industry to a younger generation. 
• We are lacking the ability to offer part-time or flexible hours for all mortgage brokers. 
• We need to do a better job of promoting a mortgage broking career for all young Australians, not just females. 
• The responsibility comes to the business's need to create an infrastructure to support female part-time finance brokers. Keeping on top of compliance, making sure the client is receiving an exceptional client experience (even though they’re not there every day). 
• Businesses need to consider the onboarding and mentoring process to attract and retain great female brokers. 
• Clients choose brokers based on who they feel comfortable with; so if you can make your team more diverse, you can appeal to a wider variety of people. 
• This conversation is not a seasonal conversation, we need to be having this conversation every day.

Key Quotes

“We go into this business because we love helping people. What you do for your clients, you can do for your staff.”  – Ruan

“If you have a diverse team, you will attract more clients, it’s as simple as that”. – Marissa.

“I think we still have a long way to go.”  – Marissa

“Are we making allowances for females who want to work flexibly and want to work part-time? ”. – Marissa

THANK YOU TO OUR PRESENTERS: RUAN BURGER AND MARISSA SCHULZE

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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A controversial topic for our hosts today all around cash back offers: why lenders use this strategy and how it affects you as a broker, and your client! Take a listen now. Key points include:

• The timelines, the service the client gets, the process – it can be hard to keep the client motivated to say with the bank when a cashback offer is there but takes so much time and effort to gain.
• Typically, cash-back offers aren’t great because the banks don’t have the capacity to process the application quickly. So this leads to a poor customer experience and is disappointing for everyone.
• I feel there are better ways of managing the customer experience here. I think banks should reward customers with lower interest rates and look after existing customers.
• The cash-back offer is a quick client grab, trying to fill their bucket with new business all the while the bank’s existing clients are feeling left behind.
• Cash back or a reduced interest rate? We see this in the market now and more clients are opting for the redacted interest rate which ends up being better in the long term for everyone.
• Lenders need to make sure they have the back-end systems and processes to support their new business promotion. Otherwise, you risk long-term damage to the brand and reputation.
• As a broker, you need to assess what is best for your client in the long run, and present the best long-term value for them. If it’s all about the cash back, there needs to be a deeper conversation.
• Be clear with the client at all stages around the timelines and experience of the cashback offer because you have an obligation to be a part of their client experience with every step of the process.

Key Quotes

“Look at the lenders who don’t offer cashback offers and still maintain a high market share – they’re the ones who are putting in their effort to customer retention strategies.”  – Ruan

“Think about your client experience. If I was to evaluate this at the end of the settlement and see if it was a great experience and outcome, should I even put it on the table?” – Ruan

“I think banks should reward customers with lower interest rates and look after existing customers.”  – Marissa

“Banks are not putting their client's needs first. They’re focused on the transactional side, and the new customer”. – Marissa

THANK YOU TO OUR PRESENTERS: RUAN BURGER AND MARISSA SCHULZE

Thank You To Our Hosts: Ruan Burger and Marissa Schulze

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