The Intermediary – January 2026 - Flipbook - Page 31
BUY-TO-LET
Opinion
TO RETHINK
like me. I found a beer balance that I
have since carried into my work.
Lender communication
As the day went on, it became clear
just how oen those of us who work
in a sales capacity, or talk every day
to you, the broker, may well talk first
and think second.
Of course, there’s no malice in this,
we may talk fast or engage quickly,
because we want to help and move
things forward, but might that
sometimes mean the message becomes
muddled or incomplete? I have a
feeling it might.
It also reminded me there is a
big difference between an official
communication we as a lender might
send out and the real conversations
that follow. Emails, product notes
and updates are absolutely necessary
and work.
However, the moments that may
maer more are the conversations
between brokers and the people who
work at lenders. If those conversations
are inconsistent or rushed, you’re
likely to be feel it straight away.
From my experience brokers want
clarity and honesty. They want one
message, not three different versions
depending on who they speak to. This
is a longstanding issue in the market
and something many lenders have to
keep working on.
can have would be useful for anyone
who deals with brokers in any part of
the business.
Role play is never the most
comfortable activity, but it works.
It gives people the chance to hear
themselves, reflect on how they come
across, and adjust before they go back
into the real world. And in a market
that relies so heavily on trust and
confidence, that extra layer of thought
makes a marked difference.
A call for consistency
With the new year underway,
businesses may feel this is right time to
look at their overall communication.
You may think you have consistency
across your teams, but in practice this
can slip without anyone noticing.
A broker may get one message from
a BDM, a different wording from
an underwriter, and something else
again from a case manager. Even small
differences can cause confusion.
Brokers want clarity
and honesty. This is [...]
something many lenders
have to keep working on”
If we want broker trust, we need
to close these gaps. It means slowing
down, thinking through what we
want to say, and making sure our
messages match across the business.
So, as we move further into 2026,
I would suggest a simple aim: talk
beer, with more thought, and with
more consistency. It is still good to
talk, but the talk should have purpose,
clarity and a shared understanding
behind it. ●
Broker-facing business
This is why I think every lender, or
indeed any business which is brokerfacing, may want to revisit how
they train their teams. Our day with
Square 1 Media may have been labelled
as media training, but the lessons
reached far wider than that. The
focus on conscious thinking, clearer
structure, and the impact your words
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