The Broker’s Guide To Lead Generation

The Broker's Guide to Lead Generation

For mortgage brokers, generating a steady flow of leads is the bread and butter of maintaining a healthy pipeline and, ultimately, a successful mortgage business. While some brokers excel in this area, others find lead generation to be one of the most challenging aspects of their work.

Generating Leads: The Permanent Challenge Brokers Face

The unpredictability of acquiring new clients, the pressures of competition, and the stress of keeping up with changing market conditions are ongoing concerns. Fortunately, we understand these challenges and we’re here to help you address them. It's worth noting that once your clients are onboarded, they offer significant long-term value, making lead generation a critical and rewarding aspect of a broker’s work.

Lead Gen Will Help Fill Your Client Pipeline

The mortgage market has grown more competitive than ever, with increasing numbers of clients turning to brokers for their mortgage needs. According to the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA), brokers' share of the morket is predicted to exceed 90% by 2025. While this growing reliance on brokers presents huge opportunities, it also intensifies competition.

To stay ahead, you need to think beyond traditional lead sources such as referrals. This is where lead generation tactics and marketing strategies come into play. By adopting modern marketing methods, brokers can attract more leads and strengthen your position in the marketplace.

Within this article we have provided links to various external sources of guidance. Please note, we are not responsible for the content or availability of any external linked sites.

We've Given Guidance on Marketing Yourself Before!

We’ve long been providing you with guidance on marketing methods, from email strategies to social media engagement. Here’s a recap of some of our most valuable resources to help you market yourself more effectively:

Email marketing: Our comprehensive guide on crafting effective email campaigns that drive leads and nurture existing relationships.
Social media: Tips on leveraging platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram to engage with potential clients and build your brand.

Don’t underestimate CRM

We have already covered the value of CRM, in our guide, here. This details how to maximise CRM tools to streamline lead generation, manage contacts, and track interactions. With this marketing channel, you can create a much more holistic view of your leads, how they’re progressing and the specific services they require from you as a broker. As you expand your volume of leads, using a CRM to collate and manage them can help to free up your time from admin heavy tasks.

There is great guidance in these guides, but beyond these foundational elements, have you considered expanding your lead generation through more advanced digital marketing methods?

Have You Ever Considered SEO or PPC?

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising are two powerful tools brokers can use to generate high-quality leads. These methods are especially valuable in today’s digital world, where potential clients turn to Google to search for brokers, services, and mortgage advice.

SEO is all about optimising your website to rank higher in organic search results. When done correctly, it can drive consistent, long-term traffic to your site. PPC, on the other hand, involves paying for ads to appear at the top of search engine results or on social media, providing immediate visibility.

These methods complement traditional lead generation strategies by capturing audiences actively seeking your broker expertise.

Pros and Cons of SEO and the Type of Leads It Drives

When it comes to implementing an SEO strategy, it’s important to understand the steps involved:

Keyword Research: Identifying the words and phrases potential clients use when using Google to search for mortgage-related services. There are some helpful guides that can take you through the basics of keywords.

The best place to start is by making a list of topics that are relevant to your business. For a broker, this might include “broker services”, “mortgages for self-employed”, etc. You can then try using some free keyword research tools to build a list of phrases related to being a mortgage broker that you can include in your website content.
On-Page SEO: Creating website content pages and articles that answer the questions that people ask Google when looking for a mortgage broker. Your keyword research might reveal these to be things like “what does a mortgage broker do?” and “how can a mortgage broker help me?”.
Off-Page SEO: You can build trust to your website by gaining backlinks from other authoritative websites. When you get a link from another website, it acts like a vote and means that it’s more likely that a person will see your site at the top of the results page in Google when they search for mortgage broker keywords.

Technical SEO: Ensuring your website is easy to use and search engines like Google can find and “read” all the articles and content on it. Implementing Technical SEO means Google will have a clear idea on what helpful information is on your website and they will subsequently serve your site in search results when people use broker-related keywords.

Pros of SEO:

Organic rankings provide a steady flow of traffic over time.
It’s cost-effective compared to PPC, as you aren’t paying for each click.
Users trust organic search results more than paid ads.

Cons of SEO:

Results can take months to materialise.
Creating valuable, unique content requires time and expertise.
Gaining traction in a competitive market can be tough.

Leads generated through SEO often come from clients who are in the early stages of their research. They’re seeking general advice or looking for mortgage options, so while they may not convert immediately, these leads can be nurtured over time.

Within this article we have provided links to various external sources of guidance. Please note, we are not responsible for the content or availability of any external linked sites.

Pros and Cons of PPC and the Type of Leads It Drives

PPC allows you to place ads directly in front of potential clients who are actively searching for mortgage information. The biggest and most popular platform for this is Google Ads. While there are some in depth guides that can take you through the process of setting up a campaign, here's a breakdown of the steps involved:

Keyword Research: Selecting high-intent keywords that your ideal clients use.
Ad Creation: Writing compelling copy with a strong call to action (CTA).
Landing Page Optimisation: Ensuring your landing pages are relevant to the ad and designed to convert site visitors into leads.
Bid Management: Adjusting keyword bids to stay competitive against other brokers bidding on your keywords without exceeding your budget. This can sound complex, but if you take the time to research tutorials on bidding strategies, you will be able to optimise your campaigns.
Tracking and Analytics: Using tools like Google Analytics to monitor performance and refine your strategy.

Pros of PPC:

Instant visibility and traffic to your website.
Precise targeting options based on location, demographics, and behaviour.
Clear metrics to track performance and return on investment (ROI).
You can control your spending by setting daily budgets.
Remarketing capabilities to target users who previously interacted with your site.

Cons of PPC:

Continuous investment is required; once spending stops, so does traffic.
High competition for keywords can drive up costs.
Ad fatigue can lead to diminishing click-through rates over time.
Managing a successful PPC campaign requires ongoing optimisation.

PPC generally drives more qualified leads because it captures users actively searching for specific services like mortgage quotes or consultations. These leads are further along in their decision-making process and more likely to convert quickly.

Using Lead Gen Networks

Another option to consider is leveraging lead generation networks. These networks connect brokers with prospective clients, offering an alternative to more time-consuming marketing efforts. Networks present themselves to brokers with a service that promises to enhance both local and online reputations and ultimately increase the volume of referrals. Brokers can sign up to these services and the network will send referrals and leads in for a fee.

There are a few considerations to take when buying leads.

A few things to consider before buying mortgage leads:

Set your budget: Determine how much you’re prepared to spend and go with a network that aligns with that amount.
Prioritise quality over quantity: Don’t be tempted by a larger number of cheaper leads. Focus on getting high-quality leads that are more likely to result in viable opportunities.
Choose between exclusive or non-exclusive leads: Exclusive leads come at a higher cost but ensure you’re the only broker working with them. Non-exclusive leads are more affordable but will be shared with other brokers, giving the client more options to choose from.
Review their return policy: If the leads you purchase aren’t satisfactory, look into the seller’s return policy to see if you’re eligible for a refund.

The Pros of Lead Gen Networks

Lead gen networks can save time and effort, delivering leads directly to you.
They provide access to potential clients you may not have reached through traditional means.

The Cons of Lead Gen Networks

The quality of leads may vary, and not all may be a good fit.
Networks typically charge a fee, which can become costly.

There’s less control over the lead generation process compared to SEO or PPC. While lead gen networks offer a shortcut, they should be used as part of a balanced lead generation strategy that includes your own marketing efforts.

Don’t Forget FCA Guidance

Lead generation can be a powerful tool for mortgage brokers, but it needs to be used in the right way. All promotions must be compliant with FCA guidance. This means all promotions, regardless of media, must be:

Clear, fair and not misleading
Balanced when explaining the benefits and risks of a product
Careful when providing predictions on future performance
Supportive of consumer understanding

When creating a campaign to generate leads, it’s important to word your copy carefully. You shouldn’t include promises or predictions; only clear, unbiased messaging is needed. For more information, visit the FCA website.

Lead Generation as an Ongoing Strategy

Generating leads will always be a challenge for mortgage brokers, but by diversifying strategies — from SEO and PPC to lead gen networks — you can build a stronger, more resilient pipeline of clients. As the mortgage market continues to evolve and competition intensifies, adopting these tools will help brokers not only survive but thrive.

Remember, we’re committed to supporting you with the tools and resources they need to grow your businesses. Whether you’re just starting out with digital marketing or exploring new ways to generate leads, we’re here to help provide mortgage solutions to many types of leads that comes your way.

Within this article we have provided links to various external sources of guidance. Please note, we are not responsible for the content or availability of any external linked sites.