Gary Dickson | Broker Development Manager at The Lending Channel
Tell us a bit about The Lending Channel and what your company goals are for 2024?
We [The Lending Channel] are a mortgage brokerage specialising in second charge mortgages, development finance, buy-to-let portfolios, holiday lets, bridging finance, commercial finance, equity release, and complex first charge lending based in Scotland.
Since joining the team in January, I’ve focused on developing our first charge lending operations. We’ve gone from having no self-employed advisers to establishing a robust team of 15, with plans to expand this to 25 by the end of the year. The plan for this is to create a mini-network that fosters organic growth and enhances our service offerings.
For 2024, a significant part of our strategy is to increase business awareness and maintain our strong presence in Scotland while also expanding beyond this. We plan to leverage social media platforms like LinkedIn to bring attention to our specialised services and overall expand our reach, increase our visibility, and continue to offer personalised, high quality mortgage solutions that cater to complex financial needs. This is something we’re excited about continuing to work on in the future and look forward to helping more clients achieve their property and financial goals.
Why did The Lending Channel decide to partner with OMS?
We chose to partner with OMS because we needed a system with a focus on flexibility to meet our specific needs. Unlike other CRMs we looked at, OMS offers a customisable tool that can be tailored to accommodate the unique requirements of our business, particularly for our many self-employed advisers. This flexibility is crucial for our particular growth, allowing us to integrate various functionalities and cater to individual needs, making it not only an efficient tool for us but also a powerful recruitment tool for getting individuals with specific requirements onboard.
Can you highlight specific features or aspects of the OMS that attracted The Lending Channel?
One of the standout features of OMS is its streamlined and common-sense approach to processes. Again, we found OMS to be unlike other systems we’ve encountered. Other systems have mandatory steps for running cases, whereas OMS provides flexibility, this allows each adviser to work through the system in a way that suits them best while complying with our regulations. This adaptability is particularly appealing to our team members, who appreciate not having to completely readjust to a new system.
Could you provide examples of how the OMS platform has improved the efficiency of your workflow or client interactions?
Again we want to shout about the customizability and flexibility of OMS, which have significantly improved our workflow efficiency. Advisers can customise their workflows to fit their individual preferences, and the platform allows us to include a central template for documentation, ensuring consistency without imposing uniform changes across the board. This means advisers can work independently within the system, enhancing productivity and client interactions in a way that suits them best.
What distinguishes the OMS platform from other options in the market, and how does it cater to the unique requirements of your industry?
The key distinguishing feature of the OMS platform is its flexibility, customer support and integration capabilities. Unlike rigid, one-size-fits-all systems, OMS is adaptable and understands different working styles, allowing for tailored configurations that meet the specific needs of our advisers and clients. This flexibility ensures we can provide personalised solutions, making OMS a perfect fit for the diverse and complex requirements of our industry and our individual advisors. Another advantage that both we and our advisors appreciate is the responsiveness of OMS’s support team. When we raise a ticket, we typically receive a response within a few hours, which significantly contrasts with competitors who may not respond at all.
We also appreciate the wide range of integrations within the OMS system. OMS being partnered with so many integrations allows us to manage everything within a single system while also allowing each user to utilise tools they are most comfortable with. This is especially important as we offer such a diverse range of services such as first and second charge mortgages, development finance, buy-to-let portfolios, holiday lets, bridging finance, commercial finance and equity release, so this ensures that every aspect of our operations is efficiently managed.
What role does technology, particularly the OMS platform, play in ensuring compliance and security The Lending Channel?
For us the OMS platform plays a crucial role in ensuring compliance and security. In the OMS system we can set compliance parameters centrally, which means that we can seamlessly integrate them into the advisers’ workflows without disruption. This ensures that all advisors are secure and compliant with regulatory standards, allowing advisers to focus on their work without worrying about compliance issues.
what’s in store in 2024 for The Lending Channel?
Moving forward into 2024 and beyond, we aim for more of the same: continued expansion and growth in both brand awareness and overall reach. Our goal is to expand our lender network and refine our services to streamline processes for our advisers, making it easier for them to consistently deliver exceptional service to our clients.
Want to find out more about The Lending Channel? Head to their website here: https://www.thelendingchannel.co.uk/