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"West Oak’s success has come from always putting our clients’ best interests first and always finding ways to improve and add more value to them"
Andrew mcquiston,
west oak family office, wellington-altus private wealth
How many sales calls have you made in the last year? Chances are they are not as many as Stephen Croll’s.
The business development manager at Credit Connect Group (CCG) reckons he made around 3,000 calls in the last 12 months all over Australia to get word out to brokers about CCG’s lending facilities.
“It was a lot of hard work,” he says.
But clearly worth it. The firm, which focuses on construction and bridging finance, has increased its business by around 40% compared to the year prior, and Croll is now finding he doesn’t need to pick up the phone as much for business to continue ticking over.
“Once the inquiries started coming in, it was just a matter of doing them with a really fast turnaround and giving them great service.”
He acknowledges that market dynamics are currently favouring non-bank lenders like CCG as traditional lenders tighten rules for either fiscal or regulatory reasons.
“It’s something that the banks and your traditional lenders are just not doing.”
In the bridging side of the business, CCG fills an important safety valve role in the lending ecosystem by helping people who don’t qualify for traditional lenders.
“That might be because of their age, or they just don’t have their tax returns done,” he says.
“We can usually get the loan set for them at a slightly higher interest rate, but at least it helps them to either downsize or do what they want to do.”
CCG offers short-term lending of between six months and three years and is also snapping up business in other areas as gaps open in various markets.
“Particularly in construction finance – people who are small developers wanting to build two, three, or even up to six townhouses – the banks just won’t play in that market anymore. We still do.”
Success didn’t come overnight, and the first few months of the phone marathon dragged. He says it was around the nine-month mark that he started to feel the tide rising as it became clear that brokers were talking among themselves about what CCG could do for them.
Croll says he’s constantly surprised by the number of solid propositions that come his way after running into roadblocks at traditional lenders.
“They’re all good deals, they’re all successful, they all made money.”
He sees business at CCG growing over the next six months as some people get caught out by rising interest rates and need to use non-bank lender services.
“I think our segment of the industry will increase.”
This will become an important dynamic in the bridging finance arm of the business, especially as construction activity appears likely to fade due to the supply issues bedevilling the market.
While different markets ebb and flow, the main attraction for him is working with a wide range of brokers and being able to learn from their expertise.
“I just love working with brokers,” he says.
“The way they make a living, they’ve just got so many skills, they’re across the rules and regulations of multiple banks and lenders, they’ve got great marketing skills, sales skills… I just enjoy helping them grow their business.”
The satisfaction from being able to help a broker midwife a project that otherwise might not get off the ground is a key motivation, he says.
Some might say it’s the quiet enablers like Croll who can spot a good opportunity that keep the Australian economy humming.
“I just love helping those guys do a deal that they would never have been able to do if they hadn’t come across me,” he says.
60/1 Arbour Avenue, Robina, QLD 4226
07 5593 1300
katika@ccg.com.au
linkedin.com/company/creditconnectgroup
ccg.com.au
Stephen Croll
Business Development Manager
Credit Connect Group
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2020–present
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Deputy Principal at Australian Christian College - Southlands
Doctor of Education
2020–present
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1994–1999
1999–2005
2005–2012
2012–2016
2020–2022
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Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
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Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
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Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
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1994–1999
1999–2005
2005–2012
2012–2016
2020–2022
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2020–2022
2012–2016
2005–2012
1999–2005
1994–1999
2020–2022
Insurance Business Magazine | Key Media
Business Development Manager at Credit Connect Group
2020–2022
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2012–2016
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Built the business by cold calling bookkeepers, accountants, mortgage brokers and financial advisors around Australia to have them introduce tax-related work to Etax Local Accountants. Increased the number of introducers from 430 to more than 1,490. Converted inbound enquiries into internal sales. During his time with Etax, the conversion rate of sales rose from 23% to 53% and the Group’s income grew by 25% each year.
2012–2016
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2005–2012
Human Resources Magazine | key media
Generated leads and converted them to sales. Settled over $20m in loans per year, mostly for first home buyers and property investors. Also involved in 177 investment property sales.
2005–2012
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1999–2005
Human Resources Magazine | key media
Turned the business around by building a network of mortgage brokers and financial advisers who introduced home loan business to Nationalcorp. Trained, mentored and managed the sales team of 30 mobile loan writers, as well as maintained his network of introducers. By the end of 2003, the team was consistently settling 60 loans per month and he settled 94 loans in his best month.
1999–2005
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1994–1999
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Became No. 1 mobile loan writer and set up the company’s Queensland operations. By the end of 1997, the Brisbane office was processing more loans than the Parramatta, Melbourne and Liverpool branches combined. The following year, his sales surpassed the Melbourne and Sydney offices in both number of loans settled and dollar volumes.
1994–1999
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Milestones
Business Development Manager at Great Pacific Financial Group
Sales Team Leader and Business Development Manager at Nationalcorp Home Loans
Mortgage Broker at his own business
Business Development Manager at Etax Local Accountants
Responsible for cold calling mortgage brokers from his database of over 4,000 brokers and encouraging them to give their business to Credit Connect. So far, over 1,000 brokers have consistently run scenarios past him and are willing to do business with the company.
Business Development Manager at Great Pacific Financial Group
Sales Team Leader and Business Development Manager at Nationalcorp Home Loans
Mortgage Broker at his own business
Business Development Manager at Etax Local Accountants
Responsible for cold calling mortgage brokers from his database of over 4,000 brokers and encouraging them to give their business to Credit Connect. So far, over 1,000 brokers have consistently run scenarios past him and are willing to do business with the company.
Business Development Manager at Great Pacific Financial Group
Sales Team Leader and Business Development Manager at Nationalcorp Home Loans
Mortgage Broker at his own business
Business Development Manager at Etax Local Accountants
Responsible for cold calling mortgage brokers from his database of over 4,000 brokers and encouraging them to give their business to Credit Connect. So far, over 1,000 brokers have consistently run scenarios past him and are willing to do business with the company.