Key takeaways
- Networks approve suppliers for their member firms; directly authorised brokerages buy on their own.
- Principals decide at small firms, while network directors and compliance heads decide for many firms at once.
- Rate moves, lender withdrawals and firms changing network are the moments brokers look for help.
- Anything that touches what a broker tells borrowers is read by a compliance lead before anyone buys.
Who are the decision makers at a broker firm
At a small brokerage the principal or managing director makes the call; at a larger one, the head of operations, the compliance manager and the heads of specialist desks all have a say. In a network, the proposition or network director chooses which suppliers members may use.
Many brokers are appointed representatives of a network, which takes regulatory responsibility for their advice. That is why the network's compliance team carries so much weight over what its members buy, and why a yes from one network can open doors at dozens of firms.
- Principal or managing director: budget and the final word at small firms
- Network or proposition director: supplier panels and member offers
- Compliance manager: reviews anything that touches advice or client messages
- Operations or practice manager: case administration, CRM and admin tools
- Head of a specialist desk: protection, buy-to-let, later-life or commercial finance
Should you target mortgage network prospects or single firms
Target networks when your product needs approval before member firms may use or recommend it, and target single firms when they can buy without asking anyone. A network deal is slower and heavier on due diligence, but one approval gives you a route to every member through its supplier events, newsletters and member portal.
Directly authorised firms decide faster, and each is a separate sale. A practical sequence is to run a small pilot with a handful of directly authorised brokerages, then take what you learnt to a network's proposition team as evidence that advisers want it.
Which triggers make brokers open to new suppliers
Brokers look for help when the market makes their work heavier: a base rate move that floods them with remortgage enquiries, lenders pulling products overnight, or a wave of fixed-rate deals coming to an end. Each one means more cases per adviser and more paperwork per case.
Firm-level changes matter as much. A brokerage leaving a network to become directly authorised has to set up its own compliance, systems and suppliers; one switching networks reviews everything it uses. Job adverts for advisers or case administrators show a firm that is growing and stretched.
How to sell to mortgage advisers within the rules
Sell to mortgage advisers by keeping your own claims factual and leaving advice wording to them. The FCA regulates mortgage advice in the UK, and its rules on financial promotions and on how firms treat customers shape what brokers can say to borrowers, so any product that writes or sends client messages will be reviewed by compliance.
Your own emails to brokerages follow electronic marketing rules too. In the UK, sole traders and some partnerships are treated as individuals rather than companies, which changes when you may email them without consent. Check the legal form of each firm and confirm your approach with your adviser.
How to find and approach mortgage broker leads
Work from the route to market down to the first message, and record which network each firm belongs to.
- Choose your route: networks for panel approval, directly authorised firms for direct sales, or both in sequence.
- List target networks and brokerages by region and specialism, such as buy-to-let, later-life or commercial finance.
- Name the principal, compliance lead and operations contact at each firm, and the proposition team at each network.
- Watch for triggers: rate moves, lender withdrawals, adviser hiring and firms changing network or becoming directly authorised.
- Check the electronic marketing rules for each firm's legal form before the first email.
- Open with the trigger you noticed and one specific way your product eases the extra work it creates.
Where Pebbles Ai fits
- CapabilityProspecting & customer recordsName up to ten brokerages or networks with roles such as principal or compliance manager and a location; Find fresh leads returns people from Pebbles Ai's own growing B2B contact database, GDPR compliant, with work emails where found and a confidence score.
- CapabilityResearch & analysisAsk an assistant to read a network's or brokerage's public website and recent announcements and summarise its specialisms, with numbered citations you can check.
- CapabilityOutreach contentEmails are drafted into your connected Gmail or Outlook mailbox, so a colleague can check the wording before anything goes to a compliance-minded reader.
Common questions
Is it better to sell to a mortgage network or to individual brokers?
It depends on whether your product needs approval. If network members may only use approved suppliers, start with the network; if firms buy freely, individual brokerages give you faster feedback.
How do I find out which network a broker belongs to?
Most brokers state it in the regulatory wording on their website. The FCA Financial Services Register also shows whether a firm is an appointed representative and who its principal is.
Can I email mortgage brokers without their consent?
In the UK it depends on the firm's legal form, because sole traders and some partnerships are treated differently from limited companies under electronic marketing rules. Check each firm and confirm your approach with your adviser.
What do mortgage broker principals care about most?
Usually adviser time, how fast cases move and staying compliant. Lead with the admin you remove or the risk you reduce, in their words.
About this page. Written by the Pebbles Ai team for people who run sales, marketing and growth. Last updated .
