In a world where everyone's talking about personal branding, leads are generated on social media, and content needs to be shared across multiple platforms, you'd be forgiven for neglecting your business website. 

And you're in good company, with the vast majority of brokers relying on their aggregator to produce a cookie-cutter website that does little to attract or win new business.

Here are three reasons why it's crucial to invest in a high-quality website that converts.

To meet customer expectations

When customers do their due diligence on you - as they invariably will - they expect to see a high-quality website.

Don't disappoint them.

A good website will communicate your credibility in an instant, showcasing your expertise and social proof.

Looks matter, and a slick website shows the world you know what you're doing. In fact it takes just 50 milliseconds to form an opinion of a website, and by extension: a business.

To be found by people when they search Google

Make it easy for your future customers to find you when they Google 'mortgage broker in [suburb]'.

A website (provided it's been setup with local SEO in mind) should improve your visibility to new audiences. 

For tips on how to improve your search rankings, check out our three quick and easy methods you can do yourself.

To keep ownership of all content and audience lists

We are big fans of social media for its potential to help brokers (and us!) attract, win and retain more business.

HOWEVER...the aim should be to add your followers to your CRM so you can keep in touch outside the social media platform.

Your website is where you can convert followers to prospects with the help of lead magnets and mailing list signup forms.

Did you know: We produce high-converting, SEO-friendly, responsive websites that are tailored to finance and legal customers - and that breathe life into your brand and help you win more business. Find out more here.

1 in 3 Australians use Instagram, with 9.5M monthly users Australia-wide. It’s the social media platform that gets the most engagement and fortunately it is relatively easy to quickly build a decent-sized audience (in contrast to its sister-platform, Facebook).

There’s immense opportunity for mortgage and finance brokers to build a niche brand on Instagram. However, how can you realistically be expected to create high-quality content alongside mastering the core functions of your role? After all,  you’re in the business of finance broking, not social media marketing.

In response to unmet demand, we’ve developed Social Broker, which provides fully-customised Instagram content to enhance your brand, attract followers, and keep you top-of-mind.

However, if you’d rather go down the DIY route, read on for some practical suggestions of what to consider when crafting content for social media.

Persona

Tone is absolutely everything. It’s about striking the balance between authoritative and engaging. It’s an opportunity for you to showcase your expertise, brand values and your personality. Your audience needs assurance both that you’re competent, and that they’ll enjoy working with you. This is why generic, head office-generated content often doesn’t get the cut-through and often won't be relatable or compelling - simply because it doesn't showcase you.

We suggest defining your persona before creating your content. Write down the attributes you want your brand to personify. Is your brand ambitious, chic, intellectual / conservative, strong, stable / approachable, helpful, direct / confident, witty, playful. Your brand persona should align with the experience that customers can expect to receive from you.

Targeting

While Instagram can help you cast your net wider (than traditional word-of-mouth referrals), try avoid taking a scattergun approach. This means identifying who your target audience is. Are you seeking to connect with a certain demography, profession or buying-behaviour? Be clear on who your ideal customer profile, and then design every piece of content with them in mind.

Messaging

Your Instagram account presents an opportunity to showcase your values, highlight your expertise, educate people, stay top-of-mind and give insight into your personality – so they know what it might be like working with you.

And, to keep you Instagram feed engaging for the long-term, think about what other finance-related topics you could cover. For instance, real estate, interior design, small business/entrepreneurship, financial empowerment for women, growth mindset thinking, financial literacy. The topics you cover will depend on your target audience, and your own expertise and interests. By covering a range of topics you’ll make your account appealing to more people, and improve visibility (via hashtags).

Including a call-to-action in marketing material is something that is drilled into us at every turn. Yet, we need to remember Instagram is a social media channel – so we've got to be social, not 'salesy'. Be very purposeful with your CTAs. Not every post needs to include one, and it doesn’t always have to be a ‘Call me today on 0406 BROKER’. Consider asking questions to build engagement, or provide links to useful tools or articles.