Verity Finance founder Nicole Kennedy reflects on how she got her start in broking, her focus on construction loans, and the importance of communication in building lasting client and referral relationships.
How did you get your start in broking?
I moved to Perth with ANZ, tried broking a few times and then finally went out [into full-time broking] in about 2014.
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I met up with Matt [Cusworth] from Connective and he introduced me to one of the larger groups in Perth. I worked with them for probably three years and then I skipped around a little bit to a few different places trying to find my home. As a new broker, I felt that the team was really important and I chased that. It gave me a really good basis to understanding and structuring deals, understanding the broker process, because even though banking is very similar, it's different.
With the last group I worked with, I realised very quickly that the hard work I was doing could have been better served for me. So I went out and formed Verity Finance as its own entity.
As a brokerage that specialises in construction finance, are there any key differences in what you do compared to typical residential finance?
One thing that I think we do quite well is liaising with land agents etc. So we've got all the dates put in so we know when the finance is due, whether we need to ask for extensions etc. We do all of that work for the client and the rep, so they don't have to worry about it. If we know that if we're not going to hit that finance timeline for whatever reason, then we can ask for an extension and we're just on top of those things. I think that that goes down really well with the referrals.
How do you go about building your referrals and cementing those relationships?
It's just being available… So just being available on the weekends. We're still getting 15 to 20 calls on a weekend. So, it'sjust about being able to take the call and speak to the client quickly.
A lot of my clients are from my referrals database, which is really nice because they're actual leads. They always say: ‘Such and such referred you and they said you were fabulous and that you kept us informed’. And that's really nice to hear. From a construction point of view, that referral source is referring us as the construction specialist.
What's the mark of good customer service for you?
When you call the client before they call you. If you've got an active file and you're communicating when the client's next going to hear from you, then even though they might try and contact you, at least you've let them know. Not that you want to bombard people with too much information, but just to let them know that things are progressing!
If we've spoken to the client before they've asked us what's happening on a file, that's a good marker of customer service for the client to me.
Is there anything in the industry that you find particularly challenging?
Keeping on top of things. The constant bombardment of emails and policy changes and all of those things is really difficult to keep up with.
But I think that's the beauty of having a team, everyone's sharing information and if there's something that's out of the ordinary, they're all sharing the information to say: this is what I did, this is where I went and this is why I went there.
Since you started in the industry around 14 years ago, how has broking changed?
The level of anxiety from clients has changed; people being frantic about finance. I've had to really focus on not getting wrapped up in that anxiety. Communication's a big part of that.
What advice would you give to brokers starting out?
Always ask for the business. If I've got a contract to sell on my desk, I ring the agent, introduce myself, keep them informed all the way through, then ring them at settlement, and say ‘do you want to catch up for a coffee?’ Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn't. But just basically ask for business.
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You can find out more about Nicole Kennedy and how she runs Verity Finance in the Elite Broker podcast here:
