However, over half of brokers feel confident that they have always worked hard and do not need to change their strategy.
Mortgage Solutions’ latest poll asked brokers whether they are working harder to prove their value to the clients.
Around 36 per cent replied positively, while 55 per cent replied negatively.
Around nine per cent of brokers were unsure.
Robert Winfield, managing director of Chartwell Funding Limited, said that the real demonstration of value is delivering a mortgage offer to a client in a timely manner to enable completion to take place.
He added that brokers are not working harder to demonstrate value, the job has become more laborious.
“I would not say we are working harder to demonstrate our value per se, however we are working harder to obtain results for our clients when having to submit mortgage applications numerous times following bizarre underwriting decisions or clients withholding information.
“In a typical scenario we would discuss the mortgage process with a client, explain why we charge a modest fee for our services and explain what we will do for it. This would be agreed upfront and we would apply for the best value product for our client. We add value to the transaction by giving advice based on the whole of the market, providing easy access to our mortgage brokers and having an efficient administration team backing them up. We work with all parties throughout the whole transaction and add extra value by ensuring a swift/smooth completion.
“As mentioned earlier, things can go wrong and we may need to revisit our advice. Normally a re-submission would be seen as a failure but we see it as an opportunity to reiterate the importance of using a whole of market broker. We always deliver bad news promptly and have a plan B ready for use in the conversation. We would reapply for the loan the same day and the admin team would prioritise the application to ensure it gets assessed promptly.”
Brokers need to show care to retain customers
Mark Stallard, managing director of House and Holiday Home Mortgages, said that brokers must show that they really care about each and every customer’s circumstances, standing more chance of retaining them in the future, despite the lures of Alexa, Siri and Robots.
He added: “If I am a customer and I want a mortgage or remortgage and at completion stage if the transaction has gone smoothly in terms of time and effort on my part and the speed and effort and success in terms of the brokers involvement and I am happy with the whole outcome including what I was charged, then I will think I have added value.
“In simple terms, we brokers must prove our worth to our customers and never leave them thinking ‘I should have done that myself on google’. We always know we should add value in a complex specialist transaction. We demonstrate value by being straightforward, honest, timely and having that product knowledge most customers don’t have.
Brokers need to work hard to maintain customer engagement
David Hollingworth, associate director of communications at L&C Mortgages, said: “Equally positive though is the proportion that are consciously putting more effort into making sure their customers understand the value of the advice that they’ve received.
“There is certainly no room for complacency though as savvy customers will look for the right solution that appeals to them at the time, whether that comes from an adviser, comparison site or lender. Brokers cannot rely on blind loyalty and will need to work hard to maintain customer engagement at all times rather than expect to revisit every two, three or five years.
“An initially surprising finding is that almost 1 in 10 are not sure whether they are working harder to demonstrate their value. There’s perhaps a positive to take from that stat as at least they are questioning whether they have done enough and that awareness should only help drive improvements in the longer run.”
Value is in designing a plan
Dominik Lipnicki said: “It is imperative that as mortgage advisers we go that extra mile to deliver a superior service. We must always be in search of excellence, this should never end as there is always room for improvement and those that stop improving will be taken over by others.
“In today’s race to the bottom marketplace, unless you want to offer a budget service, you must show value for money. We all know that client acquisition is key to success, hence once we have a client, we must do all that we can to ensure that it is a client for life and for that our service must be so good that it is memorable. Clients more than ever appreciate a tailor made, personal service which is so often missing in our industry.
“Value is not just giving the client the cheapest rate, anyone can do that. Real value is in designing a plan, meaning that the decisions that your clients have made today will still be the right ones in the future. Quality over quantity is key. Going that extra mile and always trying to improve will yield personal recommendations as well as repeat clients.”
