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#031 - Why Graziers Need More Than The Banks Financial Advice · Dollars In The Dirt

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  On a $15 million cattle operation, the question isn't whether
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  a bank manager can help. The question is whether they're the
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  right person to guide you in the biggest decisions. Some producers
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  treat their bank manager as their primary financial strategist.
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  And the truth is, relying on a bank employee for a long-term business
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  strategy is a massive risk. After helping hundreds of
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  farmers secure over a billion dollars in finance, I can tell you that
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  the best operators don't take strategic advice from
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  someone whose job is to protect the bank. So in this video, I'm going
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  to break down the difference between a bank advice and business advice,
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  and the hidden costs of rotating relationships. and the three things
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  you need to look for in any advisor who is actually accountable to
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  your goals. The first thing you need to understand is the fundamental difference between
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  a bank advice and business advice. A bank manager is
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  an employee that paid a salary to manage a portfolio of clients,
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  ensure compliance and minimise the risk for the lender. They've
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  got internal KPI that they must hit, and their primary loyalty
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  is to the bank shareholders. They're very good at executing transactions
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  within their limited lane, and if you need to open an account, set up
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  an overdraft, or process a straightforward equipment loan,
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  They're the right person for the job, and they understand the mechanics of moving
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  from point A to point B. But business advice is entirely different,
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  and if you're running a $15 million cattle operation, you've got more
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  capital at risk than most people will ever see in their lifetime. And
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  you're making decisions about growth, timing, debt structure, and
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  commercial outcomes. A bank manager is
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  structurally incapable of giving you unbiased advice on
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  these topics because their advice will always be filtered through the lens
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  of what's safe for the bank. You need someone whose
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  job is aligned with your outcomes, not someone checking
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  boxes on a compliance form. And that's exactly where I come in.
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  As a broker, my only job is to get the right finance structure for your
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  operation. And if you're looking at purchasing a property or
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  growing your business and you want someone genuinely in your corner, book
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  a free call, 20 minutes, no cost, and the link's in the description. The
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  distinction becomes critical when you're looking at aggressive expansion. And
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  if you spot an opportunity to buy a neighbouring property at a great
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  price but it requires stretching your leverage for 24 months, a
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  bank manager will likely advise against it. Their risk matrix says
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  it's two-type. They look at the immediate debt-to-equity ratio, short-term
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  cash flow pressure and the internal systems flash red.
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  and they aren't paid to take risks on your behalf, they're paid to
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  avoid them. But a strategic business advisor will look at
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  the underlying asset value, the projected cash flow from the increased scale
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  and the long-term capital gain and how you'll structure the
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  debt to make it happen safely. They understand that in
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  agriculture, sometimes you have to stretch to secure an asset that
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  will secure your family's future for the next three generations. You
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  can't build generational wealth by only taking advice from
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  people whose primary job is risk avoidance. You
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  need an advisor who understands how to use the debt as a tool for
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  growth, rather than just viewing it as a liability that
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  needs to be managed. The second major issue with relying on
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  a bank manager for strategy is a lack of continuity. In
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  modern banking, managers rotate every two to three years. And
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  just when you finally get a manager who understands your operation, who knows the
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  difference between a good season and a bad season on your specific block, who
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  understands your breeding cycle, and who knows your family dynamic.
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  They get promoted or moved to a different region. And you're left starting
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  from scratch with a new employee who has to read your file to
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  know who you are. This rotating relationship creates massive gaps
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  in the continuance. and strategic decisions in agriculture takes
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  years to play out. And if you're buying a neighbouring property, restructuring
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  your debt and planning a succession handover, you need an
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  advisor who's going to be there for the entire journey. You
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  can't build a 10-year strategy with someone who's on a two-year rotation.
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  Loyalty to a specific bank is valuable, but only if the
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  advice and relationship are still right for your business. When
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  that manager leaves, the strategy often leaves with them,
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  and every time a new manager takes over your file, your business is
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  effectively reassessed. The new manager might
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  have a completely different interpretation of credit policy or
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  different appetite for agricultural risk. A
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  strategy that was approved and supported by your previous manager might
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  suddenly be questioned or stalled by their replacement. And
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  they might decide they want to reduce the exposure to your
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  specific sector or they might demand additional security for a facility that
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  was running smoothly for years. And this inconsistency is
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  a massive hidden cost in an agricultural business. You spend
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  hours educating a new banker, taking them on property tours,
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  explaining your production model. I need to have them leave just
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  as they become useful. You're essentially training bank
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  staff on your time. True strategic advisors
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  don't need to be retrained every 24 months. They hold the institutional
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  knowledge of your business, providing a stable foundation, long-term
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  decision-making, regardless of who's sitting in the bank manager's share. And
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  this is where you need to look for an advisor who's actually accountable for
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  your goals. You need someone who understands your business model,
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  and not just your paperwork. This is about clarity, not criticism. Banks
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  play a very crucial role, but they're not the best source of
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  long-term business strategy. And as a broker, my role
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  is entirely different from a bank manager. I'm a business owner, just like
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  you. I understand what it means to take risks, manage cash flow,
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  and to build a team. I understand the pressure of making decisions that affect not
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  just this quarter's profit, but the long-term viability of your enterprise. More
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  importantly, My loyalty is to the client, not the
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  lender. And if one bank's policy changes and
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  it no longer suits your operation, we simply move the deal to
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  another bank that does. We provide the consistency that
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  banks have abandoned. We sit on your side of the table, we
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  understand the commercial reality of your decisions, and we structure your
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  finance to achieve your specific outcomes. We're
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  dealing with significant decisions for your family, your legacy,
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  and your livelihood. Ensuring you've got the best people helping you,
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  the right broker, the right accountant and the right solicitor, is
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  critical for your success. A good broker also acts as a translator between
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  your operation reality and the bank's credit department. We
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  know how to present a complex, multi-generational farming business in a way that
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  ticks the bank's compliant boxes without compromising your strategic goals.
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  We know which lenders have an appetite for specific types of agricultural assets
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  and the ones that are quietly pulling back. We
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  handle the friction of the transaction so you can stay focused on
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  your production. When you have a broker in your corner, you're
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  no longer negotiating with the bank alone. You
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  have an industry expert fighting for your terms. We negotiate the
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  covenants. We push back on the unnecessary security
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  requirements. We ensure the facility is structured to give you maximum
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  flexibility. We don't just get the loan approved, we
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  get it approved on terms that actually serve as your business strategy.
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  That's the difference between a transactional relationship and
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  a strategic partnership. So remember guys, be careful
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  who you trust with your strategy. Don't let a rotating bank manager
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  dictate the future of your multi-million dollar beef
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  operation. Build a team of advisors who align with your
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  goals and accountable for your outcomes. If you need a consistent strategic
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  partner, to manage your agricultural finance, reach
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  out to Season Finance. As a broker, this is exactly what
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  I do for my clients. Thanks guys and see you in the next one.
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  Thanks for tuning in to Dollars in the Dirt. If you've got value from today's episode,
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  make sure to subscribe so you never miss the insights you need to grow your
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  business. And if you're ready to stop being just another number to the banks, visit
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  Season Finance via the link in the show notes. Remember to follow