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Embracing technology offers brokers a chance to make the customer lending experience better than ever. We sit down with Aaron Hockey, Lendi Group’s general manager, network development, to talk about how the group’s broker brands – Lendi and Aussie Home Loans – have embraced technology and what new brokers need to do to succeed in an ever-changing world.
Q. Aussie was one of the original broking brands, founded in 1992. How has the broker channel evolved over that time?
If you think about 30 years ago, it was paper-based applications and there were very few lenders to choose from. Now, 30 years down the track, there are so many different lenders out there that our brokers can choose.
The emergence of technology through that time has also significantly changed the way that our brokers do business and the way that the brokers have had to adapt to become business owners themselves.
Q. What key skills do modern brokers need?
As the landscape has changed, so too have our brokers. The one thing that hasn’t changed is that our brokers are seen as guides for their customers through significant transactions. Yes, we support our customers on the lending side, but it’s a relationship business. They have to build strong relationships with their customers, which is the most important part.
Technology has made brokers more efficient and productive, but the role has become more complex with multiple lenders and products to keep up with.
For a broker, staying updated with all the policies is challenging, and for a customer, it’s very daunting. That’s why brokers are so important; they guide customers through these transactions.
Q. What tools and technologies does Lendi Group use to assist brokers?
Many people fear the role technology will play in the future, but brokers will always manage the customer relationship. At Lendi Group, we’ve embraced technology and were recently named Innovator of the Year in the industry as well.
We have several tools, including our platform, which is the nerve centre for brokers. It helps them focus on the customer while technology supports the transaction.
We also have an AI tool, Meet Leeni, which helps brokers with policy questions by returning relevant information from lenders. These tools are crucial because we can’t expect brokers to keep up with everything on their own.
Q. How else are you supporting brokers?
Platform Plus is a model that Lendi initially deployed, and post-merger, we’ve integrated it into our Aussie [Home Loans] business.
Brokers can opt into this program to become more productive and focus on customers. It includes our Sales Associate team, who pre-qualify leads, and our Client Solutions team, who assist with the loan process. This system ensures brokers receive qualified customers ready to transact, reducing the time they spend nurturing leads.
Q. What prompted Lendi Group to invest in this tech stack?
If you think about what Platform Plus is, it’s about making sure that our brokers are dealing with customers when they’re already qualified. And then our Client Solutions team is taking them from that lodgement phase all the way through to settlement. The ambition is to make our brokers more productive.
We’ve made a massive change within our business, particularly in our Aussie retail business, over the last 18 months to help our franchisees to be the CEO of their business. Today, almost 70 per cent of our loans within our retail stores are written by our franchisees. We ultimately see our franchisees getting off the tools and really elevating themselves to that CEO role within their business. So, they need all the processes and packages around them that allow them to bring in new brokers, whether it be new-to-industry or new to the group, and allow them to be productive from day one.
Q. How else does Lendi Group support the next generation of brokers?
A lot of the brokers who come to the Aussie brand are relatively new to the industry. Our graduate program is an eight-week intensive program where we’re training them in the processes and the systems required but also giving them soft skills to deal with our customers.
Those brokers that are coming in could be sitting on an appointment on day one and know that the customer is ready to transact. They [the grads] are sitting side-by-side with our grad manager to give them the confidence to have that discussion with the customer straight away and start to put that transaction into Platform Plus.
Q. Do you think now is a good time to become a broker?
It is an interesting time to come into the industry. We know the market’s really challenging right now. We know customer expectations are changing as well. They’ve got access to more information than they’ve ever had. So, they’re looking to our brokers more than ever to guide them through that and help them understand the information they’re seeing.
Q. What advice would you share with new brokers entering the industry or looking to build their business?
This industry is unique in that what you put in is what you get out. Commitment to customers and business building is key. It’s a challenging market, and customer expectations are changing. Embrace technology, as it will complement rather than take over your business.
For those looking to build their business, focus on best practices, maintain strong customer relationships, and don’t be daunted by technology.
You can hear more about Lendi Group in The Adviser’s In Focus podcast.
Tune in to the episode with Aaron Hockey, here:
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