Yesterday, 21 August, marked the fourth official National Finance Brokers Day.
Since its inception in 2015, NFBD’s mission has been to raise awareness of the value that brokers bring to those in their communities.
This year, brokers were encouraged to do so through providing a glimpse into their lives and sharing about themselves across social media platforms using the hashtag #BrokersAreYou.
“It was all about highlighting the person behind the application,” explained founder of NFBD, Dino Pacella.
“Brokers may be a part of a sporting club. They may have children. You see them out at the movies, at restaurants, doing grocery shopping. It’s understanding that yes, these people run a business, but they’re just like everybody else in the community and they want to do right by their clients.”
Yesterday, brokers were challenged to intentionally engage with their communities above and beyond the norm, whether through hosting a tea for clients, planning a fun event out with the team, or volunteering at a local charity.
NFBD was born when Pacella realised that consumers’ lack of awareness of the value brokers provided was a potential barrier to the growth of the channel.
“As such, I wanted a day, as well as a build up throughout the year, where we could share what it is finance brokers actually do and their full service offerings,” he said.
According to Pacella, the events of the last twelve months “put brokers in the spotlight.”
He commended the industry associations who engaged with the government and the media, righting misconceptions and making sure Australians understood “what the industry actually does and can do, and what it stands for.”
“It all comes down to understanding that brokers are not just dealing with clients from a numbers perspective. It really is a relationship business,” said Pacella.
“It’s not just, ‘Hey, let’s do this transaction for you now.’ It’s a relationship they’ve built so that, when finance comes up at a barbecue on a Sunday, they say, ‘Ring my person up, they can do what you need them to do. They take the heartache away, and do all the legwork.”
The celebration of NFBD has shown “organic” growth year to year, with brokers, industry associations, lenders and aggregators alike taking part in the festivities yesterday, both in their offices and on social media.
