The other side

While this may not quite be the case, the question can still be asked: what does a typical day look like for a BDM?

Is it more about lattes and long lunches?

To answer these questions, The Adviser hit the road with Australian First Mortgage’s national head of sales Clint Hawthorne, to get an understanding of what a typical day looks like for a business development manager.

Early rise

The day starts early, with a breakfast meeting out in the Sydney suburb of Liverpool.

Mr Hawthorne meets with two brokers to discuss AFM’s product suite. After his spiel is over, he kicks off a discussion with the brokers.

What do they want from AFM? Will they use AFM? What products or services would they like to see AFM provide?

Being a small non-bank lender, Australian First Mortgage doesn’t enjoy the same level of business as the banks do. Its BDMs are forced to sell their products to brokers.

They have to be able to articulate clearly what the benefits of using a non-bank lender are, as well as the benefits of writing their specific products.

As Mr Hawthorne explains, many brokers don’t even offer non-bank products to their clients in their opening discussions.

“When a broker meets with a client, they will complete a needs analysis and then, depending on the broker’s needs, they will offer a handful of products from a variety of lenders that are ‘not unsuitable’,” he says.

“More times than not, this selection of lenders and products doesn’t include a non-bank, which is why it is so important for non-bank BDMs to hit the road and form relationships with brokers.

“The stronger the relationships we have, the more likely we are to win business. Once a broker has used us once, they tend to re-use us time and time again because they witness first-hand just how good the service and turnaround times are.

“They know they can call us and speak to a credit-assessor directly, which can often be invaluable.”

Mr Hawthorne says another misconception many brokers have about non-banks is that these lenders only cater to “difficult” or “specialist” borrowers.

This misconception is one Mr Hawthorne addresses at the beginning of every broker meeting.

“I not only highlight what products we have, but show how these products can cater to mums and dads with good credit ratings and deposits,” he says.

At his first meeting of the day in Liverpool, Mr Hawthorne goes to great lengths to show how AFM’s product suite could be appropriate for a range of clients, not just specialist or credit impaired borrowers.

More than a coffee meeting with two brokers, this catch-up gives the loan writers the chance to ask their BDM any questions they might have about anything and everything.

These questions are not limited to AFM’s product suite, but span everything from market expectations to how they can handle certain problem clients.

After a couple of hours talking with the brokers, Mr Hawthorne is back on the road again to another appointment in Penrith.

During the 20-minute drive, he calls the office to ask a few questions that the brokers have just raised with him.

Once he finds the answer, he is straight back on the phone to the brokers to let them know the results.

Every minute is a working minute

The next 15 minutes are spent checking in on loans in the pipeline and following up with other brokers who may have called earlier.

Not one minute is wasted, as Mr Hawthorne spends the entire car journey dealing with various broker enquiries and loan submissions.

At the next meeting, Mr Hawthorne starts his spiel once again. He chats to his broker about what AFM can do for him and his business.

He explains the product suite and how these products are suitable for a range of borrowers.

It is clear from the meeting that Mr Hawthorne has developed a strong relationship with his brokers.

More than a product salesman, a BDM is a soundboard for their brokers. They form relationships that are based on trust and excellent service.

As a result, brokers feel comfortable asking them for more than help with a particular loan. They become a business mentor.

And more than selling a product or brand, BDMs find ways to help their brokers build their business.

After the second appointment of the day, it is time to meet with several more brokers at Sydney’s Norwest Business Park.

Once again, on the drive there, Mr Hawthorne spends the entire journey responding to broker enquiries, following up deals and asking his credit team questions (all on hands-free phone, of course!)

At the last appointment, there are more than 10 brokers present, so the meeting goes for “a lot longer than normal”, according to Mr Hawthorne.

Once the meeting has come to an end, it is time to finish up for the day, but not before he sends a few final emails, makes a few more calls and checks up on a few more deals currently in the pipeline.

While three appointments may not seem like many, they easily chew up the time.

After starting at 6am, we finally finish for the day at approximately 5pm, though Mr Hawthorne confirms he still has a few “more hours of work ahead of him”.

“I’ll probably follow up on a few more emails and respond to a few broker enquiries before I officially log off. I usually finish off at around 8pm, then it starts all over again the next day,” he says.

Such is the life of a BDM.