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to increase the number of people we speak to through Whilst the guidelines are still not fully confirmed one point
referral, marketing and other resources. Traditionally, that is clear is the need for client permission to continue to
many Brokers have been quite short-sighted, looking for contact. This will require you to contact ALL your clients to
new clients as a source of business without considering obtain their permission for ongoing contact.
the more obvious source – existing clients.
You should ensure you have your processes and
This brings us back to our first topic – GDPR. You can procedures in place to continually work your database -
embrace the new regulations in two ways; if viewed as a the most successful of Brokers will tell you that most of
hindrance and handled incorrectly it could have a negative their business comes from their existing clients through
effect on your business levels. However, if it is used as repeat business and referrals.
an excellent opportunity to make contact with all of your
clients, it could prove a positive way to IMPROVE your David Ewing
business levels. Managing Director

2018, And What a Year We Have Ahead of Us!

Compliance Update

With robo technology continuing to dominate their programs, algorithms and other voodoo technology
the headlines, and the only real challenger being that the likes of you and I have little knowledge, we will
GDPR, it’s clear that we are in for an interesting see a genuine competitor in robo advice.
2018. Service and standards are the basis for any successful
business and now more than ever it is imperative that you
Let’s Start with GDPR look at the service you offer to clients and ask yourself the
question; “could I do better?” A qualified and experienced
GDPR may seem like a headache for some and a painful Broker is far more valuable than any computer and can
project for others, but stripped away for the average fully justify both the service they offer and the price they
Broker out there it’s about how we continue to generate charge.
business and ensure customer retention and loyalty with
yet another EU directive.
Service = Sales
GDPR is not an initiative to confuse businesses, but simply
an expansion of our current Data Protection rules, largely Some Brokers are currently seeing a continued increase in
based on common sense and no more than the protection business levels and others are commenting on the start of
you would want for your own data usage and privacy. a slow decline. As the country continues to spiral towards
another potential recession, it’s understandable why there
The servicing of existing clients is still alien to some Brokers is so much hesitance in the market today.
- even with the assistance of continually improving CRM
systems. GDPR, however, will ensure that you contact all I am regularly asked how to ‘grow my business’ and how
your clients or potentially lose them forever. to ‘retain my client’.

Before considering this you first need to consider what
Robo Advice Continues to Pose a Threat you are looking to achieve. Is it sales growth or business
growth as these two are fundamentally different, however,
Aside from reducing Broker’s opportunities, robo advice people have a tendency to confuse them.
also hinders the Broker’s ability to charge, empowering
increasingly educated consumers to source and apply for Sales growth is about generating additional volume with
their own mortgage online without the need for a Broker your current resource whilst business growth is about
and the fees they charge. increasing resource and taking the business to the next
level.
Be under no illusion, whilst robo advice is currently part
smoke and mirrors, with a need for back-end Broker Sales growth is the area most asked about by the average
resource, it is here to stay. As the ‘computer geeks’ improve Broker and the immediate answer to this is naturally

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