Talking the talk

“You need to see as many people as you can,” she says. “Sometimes, on the face of it, it doesn’t seem like you’ll be able to help some customers, but even if that’s the case, if you go and see them now there’s a good chance that you will get their business when they are in a position to do something.”

This ‘out and about’ attitude has helped Ms Maxwell build a successful broking business under the Aussie brand, even though she has just six years’ experience in the industry.

And the 2011/2012 financial year looks set to have been her best yet.

FLEXIBILITY AND INCONSISTENCY
According to Ms Maxwell, the flexibility that brokers have in their day-to-day work is beneficial, both to the borrowers and to the brokers themselves.

“I enjoy being able to help people – I think brokers are providing a really worthwhile service,” she says, “but I also enjoy the fact that there’s flexibility in the hours that I work. It’s not a 9 to 5 job.”

On the flipside, this flexibility can present some challenges. For all its benefits, flexibility can easily translate into inconsistency in terms of workflow.

“Sometimes you’ll have a rush where everyone’s buying houses in the same week; other weeks you’re not so busy,” Ms Maxwell says. “Brokers need to be good at managing workflow and managing their time.”

She concedes, however, that no matter how good your time and other management skills, dealing with lenders can sometimes be frustrating.

But she believes brokers can overcome this if they have a certain skill set.

“Brokers need the ability to be patient,” she says. “It can be frustrating at times dealing with lenders – especially when you’ve got people on a fixed timeline, which doesn’t always work out.

“You need to have good people skills and the ability to work well under pressure.”

CAREER AND COMMUNITY
Ms Maxwell moved into broking after being caught in a quandary over what to do after starting a family.

“I moved into broking as a career change after having a baby,” she says. “I was looking for something where I could be flexible with my hours and potentially work from home.”

She admits that broking is not quite her dream job – “I’ve always had a desire to be a TV or radio producer, even though I’ve never done anything in the field,” she says, but adds that she still loves being a broker.

Clearly Ms Maxwell’s passion is helping her to grow her business’ bottom line. Now on track to have had her best year yet, about 20 per cent of her business is also generated by repeat customers.

On top of this, about 30 per cent of her business is from referrals – even though she doesn’t have that many referral partners.

“A lot of my referrals come from existing customers,” Ms Maxwell says.

An activity which takes her out into the local community is her sponsorship of the Balmain Dockers, a women’s AFL team, and this has generated referrals and business.

She is also active in the local school community and in May, she sponsored a quiz night at Yates Avenue Primary School in Dundas, in Sydney’s northwest.

Such sponsorships and community events are Ms Maxwell’s favourite marketing channels; they also provide her with plenty of opportunities for her to pursue her strategy of just talking to people.

By working for Aussie, she gets the support of the Aussie marketing team, which reduces her workload and assists her with regular communication with clients.

This, in turn, supports her favourite client retention technique: keeping in touch regularly.

“I try and contact my customers around the anniversary time of when their loan was settled,” she says. “Keeping in touch is important.”

THE FUTURE
Ms Maxwell used to work in IT project management, had dreams of working in TV or radio, but is now happy with where her broker business is going.

In the year to date, she has settled $28 million in loans, including her largest loan so far – $1.8 million – and she has her sights set firmly on increasing those numbers. Her strategy for the remainder of 2012 is to continue to grow her business.

“I think that being a broker, you’re working in a growth industry,” Ms Maxwell says. “More and more people now are aware that they can shop around and get a better deal.

“Ten or 20 years ago, people would get a mortgage for life. Now, people are aware that they can look elsewhere. If they’re not happy, they can go and get a better deal and brokers facilitate that.”

Ms Maxwell believes the greatest challenge that brokers who aim to grow their business face in 2012 is increased compliance and regulatory requirements. She adds, however, that this is something to which brokers are learning to adapt.

Borrowers, she says, are increasingly appreciating what brokers have to offer.

“People come to brokers because it gives them the opportunity to review the offerings from a range of different lenders,” she says. “They appreciate the impartial advice.”

With increased interest from borrowers in the broker proposition, however, how does a broker ensure their business is the one that people come to?

Ms Maxwell has a simple tip: “Just give the best advice possible,” she says.

That, and just talking to people, is what she does, and it’s why 2011/2012 is likely to be her best year yet.

BROKER FACT BOX
NAME: Lisa Maxwell
COMPANY: Aussie
TIME IN THE INDUSTRY: 6 years
CLIENTS SERVICED: Over 300
BEST MAJOR LENDER AT THE MOMENT: CBA
BEST NON-MAJOR LENDER: Bankwest
LARGEST DEAL EVER WRITTEN (BY VOLUME): $1.8 million
BEST YEAR (BY VOLUME) TO DATE: This year (about $28 million)
BUSINESS GENERATED BY REFERRALS: About 20 per cent
BEST THING ABOUT BEING A BROKER: I enjoy being able to help people. I think we’re providing a really worthwhile service
WORST THING ABOUT BEING A BROKER: Managing the fluctuating workflow
IF I WASN’T A BROKER, I WOULD BE ... I used to work in IT, but I’ve always had a desire to be a radio or TV producer