KNOW YOUR PARTNER
TAKING PRIDE IN CLIENT PARTNERSHIPS

LANTERN

You wouldn’t get married at first sight (unless of course you’re on the reality TV show of the same name), nor would you choose a builder to renovate your house, without first doing research. It’s important you knew about their background, their quality levels, their culture and moral compass – and that they are aligned with yours. They are all the same reasons for choosing a partner to look after your most important asset, your customers.

With the impending Consumer Duty, it’s important to choose a partner you can trust, who will be transparent and supportive of your focus on ensuring customers have the right experience.

GETTING TO KNOW YOU
A good partner will spend time working with you and learning about your business and customer base. It matters that the customer doesn’t feel like they’ve had a disruptive journey, and that your selected partner understands what they have been through and what their current circumstances are. You should also be actively encouraged to ask questions; you have your area of expertise, and your partner has theirs. After all, that’s why you are working with them. Ask any questions you have and where possible make an onsite visit to get a feel for the business and the culture within it. A slide deck can paint any picture the creator wants, but a physical visit to meet a cross-section of people across the business really gives you a feel for what they’re about.

CAN I WORK WITH THIS PERSON?
As much as that might sound like going back to school and choosing your friends, it is important to build up a relationship of trust with your partner. Transactional is all very well, but it doesn’t help when things get sticky, or a collegiate approach is needed. Find a partner you like, and who you know you’ll be able to have honest conversations with around service and performance, without it jeopardising your future working relationship.

GET FEEDBACK
Do they have any case studies? Can you speak to any of their existing clients? Your partner needs to be transparent from the outset and should be delighted to share contacts across their existing client base, assuming they are delivering what they said they would. One point here though – once you’ve chosen your partner, please also support them in offering to be a reference if they need one.

HOW ARE THEY GOING TO ACHIEVE THEIR RESULT?
Potentially a contentious point, and pricing will always be an important factor, but you know the saying; “if something seems too good to be true, it probably is”. When you are getting low servicing rates or high sale prices, ask yourself, ‘how are they going to compliantly and fairly get their returns based on the valuation they’ve given?’, ‘what controls do I need to put in place to ensure my customer is protected and I’m continuing to follow the Consumer Duty rules and guidance?’

At Lantern Group we take great pride on our client partnerships. We are supportive and transparent every step of the way because we’re all in this together. Your brand is our brand!