How to Win More Broker Business as an Account Executive

Question

As a broker I receive more than 10+ calls a day from Account Executives at direct lenders. Everyone is competing for business, but I find that everyone has the same approach. They pitch rates, loan programs, etc.. Never really getting to what Brokers actually NEED.

Below is a thorough list that will help you win Broker business. I know it has worked very well, since a lot of the account executives I've developed a relationship with, all follow the same list.

1. What is your unique value proposition? Did you research the top 10 NonQM lenders, before you called? What do YOU offer, that they don't?  A step above is even checking who this broker regularly send deals to. What are their weaknesses? How can you come in and provide value?

2. What is your policy on circumventing? If I refer you a client and they try to double dip, will you do the right thing and protect your brokered relationship?

3. Are you asking for the turn-downs? What deals have brokers passed on? How can you help them save and structure the deal with your firm?

4. Be honest with your closing and review times. Don't say you can close in 10-15 days, if you know you will stall. Make sure the expectations are established upfront.

5. How do you compensate? Are all deals borrower paid? Can the broker get paid a Yield Spread?

6. Ask for the email. You won't believe how many times I went through my gmail search and sent a deal to an account executive, just because they promoted that they offer a certain program that my current pool does not offer.

Mark Dusseau · Answer

This is a masterclass list, Erik. Point #4 about honest closing timelines is the one that resonates most from the operations side.Here's the uncomfortable truth: most AEs aren't lying when they promise 10-15 day closes. They genuinely believe it. The problem is downstream—their ops team is drowning in manual document chasing, data entry, and back-and-forth with borrowers. By the time the file actually moves through underwriting, the timeline has already blown past what was promised.The AEs who consistently deliver on their timelines are the ones whose shops have invested in automating the back-office workflow. When document collection, scrubbing, and funder matching happen systematically instead of manually, the AE can make promises they can actually keep.To your point #1 about unique value prop—the real differentiator for an AE isn't the rate sheet. It's the operational infrastructure behind them that lets them execute faster and more reliably than the next 10 callers on the broker's phone.— Mark