In this episode of In Focus, brought to you by RateSetter, host Annie Kane is joined the platform's national sales manager, Nicki Olds, to explore how brokers can diversify their service offering.

Nicki outlines the core products offered by investment and lending platform RateSetter and explains how these offerings can provide brokers with more services to solve their clients' finance needs, which can help retain customers while expanding revenue sources. In this episode, tune in to find out:

• Why the consumer finance customer demographic aligns with homeowner customers
• How new calculators can support customers throughout the home purchase cycle (pre-purchase, application and post-settlement
• Why brokers should be embracing fintechs

And plenty more!

With the finalists of the Better Business Awards now announced, The Adviser's events team discuss this year's peak event for the mortgage and finance broking community, run in partnership with principal partner NAB.

Host Annie Kane is joined by Jennifer Hardy and Jesse Maslen on this episode of Elite Broker to outline what makes an award-winning submission, provide further details of the event, and run through the key sessions and agenda of the Better Business Summit 2020.

They also reveal:

• The importance of including supporting documentation in your application
• Why the panel will include judges from outside of the broker industry
• How the summit will help brokers improve their service offering

Matthew Johnson is the managing director of Sydney-based brokerage Simplicity Loans & Advisory as well as Marketplace.finance, a new digital solution for commercial finance.

In this episode of Elite Broker, Matthew joins host Annie Kane to explain what prompted his switch from banking to broking, why his brokerage consciously chose to focus on commercial finance, and how his businesses have implemented new technology to enable more efficient communication.

Matthew also reveals:

• His step-by-step process for getting a loan over the line
• The major trends he's noticed in the commercial lending sector
• His top tips for new brokers

Nick Reilly is the co-founder and managing director of mortgage broking and financial planning firm Inovayt, a finalist in this year's Better Business Awards Victoria in the Best Independent Office (5 brokers or more) category.

Nick joins host Annie Kane on this episode of Elite Broker to share why he opted to take the independent route, the benefits of having different service offerings within one business, and how the structure of his team delivers optimal efficiency and productivity.

Nick also details:

• How the business ensures offshore staff feel part of the team
• The systems used by Inovayt to simplify the loan-writing process
• The importance of post-settlement correspondence with clients

And plenty more!

Loan Market Bayside's Josh Bartlett recently reached the major milestone of settling $1 billion of loans, a major achievement for his nine-year broking career.

Having last appeared on the Elite Broker in 2017, Josh now returns to the podcast to discuss with host Annie Kane how he has fine-tuned his business strategy to consistently hit targets, why he considers himself a "mortgage psychologist", and how he applies his skills from his previous career as a personal trainer to write loans.

Josh also shares:

• Where his client referrals come from
• How he divides work amongst his team
• Why he shifted his focus to first home buyers in the last year

And plenty more!

As the year draws to a close, Annie Kane reviews some of the award-winning brokers that were providing excellent customer service in 2019. Recounting some of the recognised brokers across both the Better Business Awards and the Australian Broking Awards, Annie reveals the leading brokers operating in Australia in 2019 - and those who are up for awards in early 2020, too.

In this episode of In Focus, host Annie Kane is joined by Michael Johnson, head of strategy at Momentum Intelligence, to delve into the Consumer Access to Mortgages report.

Annie and Michael recap the findings of the inaugural report, which took place during the royal commission into banking misconduct last year, and unpack the key areas of interest for the industry and how this year's report will aim to shape the discussion around the upcoming best interests duty.

In this episode, find out:

• What the Consumer Access to Mortgages report entails
• How brokers can benefit from the findings
• When findings of the report will be available

And plenty more!

Aussie St Marys franchisee and mortgage broking mentor Kim Horan transitioned from writing car loans into the mortgage industry and now operates a full-service brokerage covering residential, commercial and home loan protection needs.

In this episode of Elite Broker, Kim joins host Annie Kane to discuss what she loves about being an Aussie broker, her main takeaways from The Adviser’s EU Study Tour, and her major goals for her business in the coming year.

Kim also reveals:

- Why she now offers mortgage insurance - How she sources new leads - Her top tips for new and experienced brokers

And plenty more!

In this episode of In Focus, host Annie Kane is joined by Sam White, executive chairman of Loan Market, to delve into the value of paperless broking.

Loan Market was this year's winner of the Australian Broking Award for Technology Platform of the Year for its MyCRM platform and also took out #1 overall satisfaction in the Aggregator of Choice survey. Sam breaks down the benefits of tech-platforms in increasing efficiency, transparency and data accuracy for brokers and their clients. In this episode, tune in to find out:

• How software helps brokers meet ever-changing compliance demands
• Why brokers that adapt to new technology will replace those who don't
• Where brokers should begin digitising their process
• Plus, hear from mortgage broker Jacob Decru, who has made the move to be paperless!

And plenty more!

Domenic Cassisi set up his brokerage, Funding Options, while he was still captain of the Port Adelaide Football Club, and has since become an award-winning mortgage broker in his own right.

Host Annie Kane is joined by Dom in this episode of Elite Broker to reveal how he's kicking goals in his transition from AFL into broking, the sense of culture and community he fosters within his firm, and the time-saving tools he has integrated into his business.

Dom also shares:

- How his firm markets its brand using social media and radio advertising - Why he chose to begin offshoring - How he chose his aggregator

And plenty more!