By:
Dalibor Ivkovic
Salestrekker CEO and co-founder
Technology has changed almost every profession, but few have evolved alongside it quite like broking.
As brokers have developed from loan originators into credit advisers, technology has grown alongside them, saving hours of manual work, strengthening compliance and opening the door to informed advice, deeper relationships and new areas of diversification.
But as tech and broking have grown together, have they always served up the best solutions?
A proliferation of platforms can bring its own complexity, with disconnected systems adding to an already demanding process. And while AI is revolutionary in its capabilities, it brings fresh compliance and safety challenges when deployed incorrectly.
At the heart of this relationship sits the CRM: a platform that can make or break the way brokers work.
For Dalibor, the launch of the new CRM, Salestrekker 2.0, marks the next stage in how technology supports the broker proposition, moving beyond loan processing to help brokers manage the wider client journey and add true value.
With Salestrekker already processing around 15,000 settlements across a network of around 5,500 brokers, getting the next iteration right is crucial.
The growing range of technology available to brokers has created opportunities to automate tasks and improve the client experience. But more tools do not necessarily mean a more efficient business.
“What we’re seeing now is that a lot of high-profile brokers understand technology and combine a range of different components. But sometimes they start tinkering with solutions that don’t really add value, simply because they like them,” Dalibor said.
“We know brokers who use 10 different solutions. Salestrekker can do the majority of the work, while the other nine might each do 2 per cent of the job. When you look at the value they add, there may not be much there.”
The problem is not just the number of systems, but how well they work together. Disconnected platforms can leave brokers juggling client information, compliance and communication, adding to the workload technology is supposed to reduce.
When you see a business using 10 different solutions, you have to ask whether that’s holding them back rather than helping them.
- Dalibor Ivkovic
“When you see a business using 10 different solutions, you have to ask whether that’s holding them back rather than helping them.”
Dalibor said fragmented technology can also leave the people involved in a loan working across disconnected systems.
“There are a lot of people involved in putting a loan together,” he said.
“They all need to be able to work together in one space – a safe, secure and sufficiently transparent environment where everyone can coexist, with the broker at the centre.
“That’s what technology needs to do for brokers. It needs to be that connecting piece. There will always be one or two tools alongside it, because no single solution can provide everything.”
Some of the challenges facing brokers today stem from how technology has evolved to meet their changing needs.
Dalibor said two shifts had pushed brokers beyond the role they played when Salestrekker’s first platform launched: diversification and a greater focus on client relationships.
“I think we’ll inevitably see a shift in diversification,” he said.
“We’ve hit 81.6 per cent in broker market share for mortgages. I think we’re clearly reaching a peak.
“But in other areas, such as car loans and commercial lending, there’s a lot of room to grow.
I also think a shift is happening when it comes to nurturing and developing client relationships. Here, I don’t think any other channel can match brokers.
- Dalibor Ivkovic
“I also think a shift is happening when it comes to nurturing and developing client relationships. Here, I don’t think any other channel can match brokers.”
For Dalibor, the opportunity is to build on those relationships by helping clients with needs beyond their home loan. Technology can support this by allowing brokers to reuse client information, rather than treating every transaction as a separate exercise.
That wider role has shaped Salestrekker 2.0, which builds on Salestrekker; a platform that changed the industry itself through the digitisation of the broking process.
“The CRM initially focused on lodgement, compliance and commission processing. But it has since become an interactive tool for brokers to collaborate with clients and referral partners, helping them work towards a solution and digitise the process,” Dalibor said.
As Salestrekker grew, so did brokers’ expectations. The original platform was built around the broking environment of 2016, and Dalibor said that by 2020, the business recognised that those needs were changing.
“Our first Salestrekker platform achieved what it set out to do; digitise the broking process. It’s an incredibly robust platform and got us where we are today,” he said.
“But by 2020, we could see things were changing. The scale was different, and so were the things people wanted from the platform. We realised we needed to start building a new one and began that process in January 2023.
“Three and a half years later, we not only have a have a finished product, but we have rolled out Salestrekker 2.0 with full AI capabilities, newly designed Client Portal and hundreds of additional features requested by brokers along the way.”
Salestrekker 2.0 combines loan origination and CRM capabilities in one platform, with cross-device access, AI tools, real-time audit checks and automation for brokers and their teams. It also offers personalised portals for clients. Customisation for clients for Portals, Templates, Workflow and AI features.
For Dalibor, its development has been driven by what brokers want, rather than simply adding more features for their own sake.
“The future Salestrekker is a power tool – a Swiss Army Knife of origination tools that covers everything from initial client engagement and data collection through to loan processing and predictive capabilities,” he said.
The future Salestrekker is a power tool – a Swiss Army Knife of origination tools that covers everything from initial client engagement and data collection through to loan processing and predictive capabilities
- Dalibor Ivkovic
“These were all features brokers asked for, and we focused on the things people use all the time.”
The broader proposition is particularly relevant as brokers look to diversify. A client who has provided information and documentation for a home loan may later need finance for a car or business.
Dalibor said brokers should be able to build on that existing relationship rather than make clients repeat the process.
“Think about a client who has just taken out a home loan and is now looking to finance a new car. They might go to someone else for that loan, only to face the same data collection, privacy documents and credit proposal process all over again,” he said.
“But they’ve already completed that process with their broker. The broker can reuse most of that information to offer them a solution in minutes.”
The original Salestrekker lasted almost 10 years, a remarkable lifespan in tech. But building a platform for the next decade required a different approach.
“Our focus is entirely on technology. We look at what’s available now, what’s coming next and what technology might look like 10 years from now,” he said.
One of our non-negotiables with 2.0 was to use technology that would last. We didn’t want to have to change it again in the next five to 10 years.
- Dalibor Ivkovic
“One of our non-negotiables with 2.0 was to use technology that would last. We didn’t want to have to change it again in the next five to 10 years. We know we’ll have to continue to innovate the platform, but the technology underpinning 2.0 needs to stand the test of time.”
Dalibor also described the platform as an “industry engine”, with components that could underpin other solutions, from loan origination and CRM to AI tools, calculators and lender integrations.
For brokers, though, the immediate question is where these capabilities can save time without compromising service.
Dalibor said Salestrekker 2.0 targets tasks that consume time without necessarily adding value for clients.
“That could mean automating client follow-ups, using AI to write notes or predicting trends. Instead of spending 15 minutes reading reports to understand what’s happening and what might happen next, you can use tools to get that information more quickly,” he said.
“Reading reports and chasing information aren’t necessarily value-adding activities. In a manufacturing sense, the value comes from providing the client with a lending product and getting paid for that work. That’s what we’re trying to help brokers focus on.”
One example is Audit AI, the latest addition to the Salestrekker 2.0 suite, following Compliance AI, Translate AI and Policy AI.
The tool reviews loan files at lodgement, checking lender comparisons, recommendation notes and whether the proposed loan meets the client’s needs while flagging potential compliance issues before submission.
Dalibor said AI’s ability to interpret context sets it apart from traditional rule-based software.
“Traditional code can’t make those kinds of judgments because it’s rigid,” he said. “AI can interpret what the client actually means.”
But Salestrekker remains cautious about how data is used within AI tools, particularly when it comes to consumer information. Dalibor said data should be used for specific, ethical purposes, with clear boundaries around what information is shared with open AI tools.
“My view is that any information shared with certain AI tools will eventually become public. Maybe not now, but further down the track. That’s why we talk about the ethical use of AI.” he said.
Dalibor said the business had incorporated AI by identifying where technology could remove friction without adding unnecessary complexity or removing value from the broker proposition.
“We approached it by listening to where the issues are and looking at the value chain to identify the parts that don’t add value.”
Dalibor Ivkovic
Salestrekker CEO and co-founder
