We’re proud of our brokers and we want to shine a light on the fantastic work they do to help their customers. In this edition of Broker Focus, we speak to Keiran Dunne, Director of Vanguard Mortgage Solutions about is passion for helping his customers.
Which types of customers do you help most?
To be honest, we’re very fortunate as we have a diverse customer base. Due to our ages and social circles, we help a broad spectrum of clients across a wide range of scenarios, be it young couples getting onto the ladder for the first time, or a family moving to a bigger property. We have excellent relationships with introducers who give us opportunities to help investors with Buy-to-Let purchases, whether that be on an individual basis or through a Limited Company. This includes single dwellings, houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) and multi-unit blocks (MUBs). We can also help customers with later life lending, such as retirement interest only mortgages, or equity release. Our existing customers are our bread and butter, so we are constantly touching base with those with regards to renewal options and protection opportunities. We also help business owners with their protection requirements.
Why is it important to help your customers?
Helping customers understand the value of the advice you give is at the heart of a thriving, sustainable business. Everyone, regardless of their financial knowledge or experience, deserves access to expert financial advice, and being that trusted first point of contact builds lifelong relationships. By consistently staying up to date through continuous professional development (CPD) and remaining accessible, you create a foundation of trust that encourages customers to rely on your guidance not just now but each time they require advice. This commitment not only builds a business meant to stand the test of time, but also ensures you’re genuinely empowering people on their financial journeys.
What has been your most significant success story since joining PRIMIS?
For me, it’s how we’re transitioning from mortgage brokers, to advisers our customers approach for all their financial needs, almost becoming a one-stop shop. We love the responsibility of customers choosing us as their first point of contact. With the support of PRIMIS, we have tweaked our fact finds and processes, thus becoming more skilful. We can confidently identify more needs as we have more solutions at our disposable, so we can be braver with our conversations. Our protection conversations are more impactful, plus we can refer customers for second charge lending, commercial finance, conveyancing, surveys, general insurance, wills, the list goes on! With one of our introducers having a fantastic brand in the financial advice arena, we can also refer customers for pensions, investments and inheritance tax (IHT) advice. I have a background in wealth management so understand the value of doing a thorough job. My aim is for my customers to think of my business any time they need any form of financial advice, not just mortgage advice, and pick the phone up to us. We can then either help them ourselves, or refer them to a trusted provider. We’re starting to see that more and more. I look forward to continuing that journey.
What challenges did you face early in your career, and
how did you overcome them?
I would say a lack of practical knowledge. As great as the CeMAP qualification is, I very quickly realised it was a minimum requirement to get into the industry. Learning how to do the day-to-day job was a level up. I built strong relationships with Business Development Managers (BDMs) from lenders and protection providers, and got them to tell me about the key unique selling points of their products / lending criteria. I also spent time shadowing other advisers / principals to see how they made a success of the job. CPD is still important to us today. Despite being knowledgeable and experienced, we are still learning every day, even more so in a challenging market.
How do you build lasting relationships with your customers?
I believe in clear communication with customers and putting them at the heart of everything I do. It sounds cliché, but I genuinely treat my customers like my own family. I’m always on their side and deliver on my promises. I understand no two customers are the same, so I’m happy to tweak my process dependent on their knowledge and experience. From the very first time we meet a customer, we signpost the customer journey, and what will be happening when. We also explain we will be in touch in the future, whether that be to conduct annual protection reviews or touch base six months prior to their deal expiring to discuss a new mortgage deal. We encourage all customers to follow our social media pages to stay in touch with the business. I have also been known to randomly ring customers when I’m driving to see how they’re getting on, and if they have any questions. One thing we did during 2022/2023 when rates were increasing was to check in with customers who are on a fixed rate to reassure them not to worry about what was being said in the media, as they were still in a fixed rate. This went down well. We are also relentless with reworking cases. We maximise every opportunity to save a customer money when products change. We can either bring their payment down or reduce the term. This is always remembered.
What message would you like to share with new brokers
who have recently joined PRIMIS?
You’re in the right place to grow your business, whatever growth looks like to you. The support is second to none. Not only are there fantastic teams that can support you over the phone, you also have Area Supervision Managers (ASMs), Regional Sales Directos (RSDs) and Regional Sales Managers (RSMs) who genuinely care about your business and want you to do well. Additionally, there’s so much experience in the network and everybody is happy to share best practices. Jump onto the Monday morning Zoom sessions, register for events on Training Matters, and attend the Excellence events, as you’ll get loads out of it. When you pick up a best practice or new idea, be brave enough to try it.
What tips would you share on navigating the current market landscape?
Firstly, you need to ensure your knowledge is up-to-date. Things are changing all the time, whether that be with criteria or affordability, so stay on top of your lender and provider updates. Keep in touch with BDMs regularly, plus use the support via PRIMIS such as Lemonade. Secondly, have a really robust process in place for amending applications. Products are changing regularly, and it really does make a difference to your customers when you can go back to them with a more competitive deal. They’ll remember the difference you made to them, which will build loyalty and trust.
Thank you Keiran for sharing with us. If you’re a PRIMIS broker and you’d like to feature in a future Broker Spotlight, get in touch at marketing.team@primis.co.uk.
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