Top of the League - October
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This month’s Player of the Month is Richard Alton, mortgage consultant at Alton Mortgages
Do you know the next player of the month?
Top Of The League – the competition that seeks to reward the best talent in the broker market – has returned for another season. Launched by Woolwich mortgages from Barclays in 2010, the aim is to offer intermediaries an opportunity to scoop fantastic prizes, such as the Barclays Premier League Player Of The Month trophy. But this season has an exciting twist. Working with Barclays and last season’s judges, who have signed on for another year, the competition will concentrate on networks and clubs. Each month we will focus on a different network or club and look for a Player Of The Month exclusively from that company.
Player of the month
NAME: Richard Alton
COMPANY: Alton Mortgages
JOB TITLE: Mortgage consultant
WHY JUDGES PICKED ALTON
- Increased turnover at Alton Mortgages by 34% over the last year
- Despite losing money when his previous network failed, has a can-do attitude and is often in the top 10 brokers at Mortgage Next
- Helps mentor and develop other brokers
- Ran his first half marathon in September 2010 and over the course of two further races raised £3,000 for Thames Valley Hospice
WHAT DOES BEING CROWNED TOP OF THE LEAGUE MEAN TO YOU?
I’m proud to have won. It has not been easy doing business through the credit crunch and it is great to have come through it and to be recognised by my peers – I feel privileged.
IN YOUR NOMINATION THE JUDGES PRAISED HOW YOU INCREASED YOUR TURNOVER BY 34% OVER THE LAST YEAR – HOW DID YOU ACHIEVE THIS?
A lot of it is down to using social networking and forum sites. We have also increased our online marketing and created strong links with local businesses.
YOUR PREVIOUS NETWORK, NETWORK DATA, WENT BANKRUPT. HOW DID THAT AFFECT YOU?
It was devastating and losing £25,000 hurt. But in hindsight it was probably the best thing that happened to us. It was a wake-up call and made us realise that all our income was coming from just one area – mortgages. We are now involved in property investment and schemes such as The Utility Warehouse.
HOW HAS THE MARKET IN YOUR AREA OF MAIDENHEAD, BERKSHIRE CHANGED SINCE THE DOWNTURN BEGAN?
For the first time since the credit crunch, we are starting to see more activity on the purchase side. Some local areas have taken a bigger hit than others. But there are great purchasing opportunities at the moment, especially for buy-to-let.
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO GET INTO FINANCIAL SERVICES?
I was made redundant in 2003 but was lucky because my wife had a good job so money was not the key driver for me. I just love financial services. It is a massive learning experience and I enjoy helping people.
WHAT’S THE BEST PART OF THE JOB?
It’s stressful in the current market but you get great job satisfaction from helping people.
FINALLY, IF YOU COULD BE ANY FOOTBALLER FOR A DAY WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?
I would be a mid-fielder. I’m a Manchester United fan so it would have to be someone like Ryan Giggs. He is a team player and a loyal one. It is not just about the money for him.
Alton a winner in spite of past adversity
Jonathan Cornell, Industry Consultant
October’s Top Of The League saw a high standard of entries from Mortgage Intelligence and Mortgage Next.
Well done to Richard Alton, who sent in his nomination himself. He is a worthy winner who has achieved excellence in each of the four categories, something we have not previously seen.
Having lost a substantial amount of money when his previous network failed, Alton has shown that through hard work and dedication, you can succeed after facing adversity.
There is a guide to nominating which is on the Woolwich Intermediaries website so I recommend you read it as it will help you to prepare your nomination. The biggest tip is to include figures showing excellent performance as comparing dozens of nominations without any figures is near-on impossible.
It is taken for granted that everyone works hard, loves their clients, treats each client individually and puts compliance at the heart of their business, so unless you use figures to demonstrate these it is hard to compare entries.
It is also important to tell us how you achieved your success with details and background information as well as the figures.
Sally Laker, Managing Director, Mortgage Intelligence Holdings
Unstinting focus on increasing business
Congratulations to Richard Alton of Alton Mortgages, a top-producing appointed representative of Mortgage Next Network, for winning this month’s Top Of The League.
Alton has continuously been among our top-performing brokers and is always striving to increase business in this tough climate. His attitude to customers is exceptional and he works hard to deliver beyond expectation.
He is also innovative in his approach, gaining incremental income with clients, cross-selling life cover, protection, building and contents and also helping them save money on utility bills.
At Mortgage Intelligence and Mortgage Next, we put our members first alongside compliance we also support our brokers to build their business through marketing help, training and the latest technology.
This is driven by our commitment to service and we are firmly established as one of the UK’s leading intermediary networks.
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