Daily sales & marketing tips for insurance professionals

Now is the time to think about prospecting! This news article was posted in our insurance news section recently, and it applies well to this blog too.

Recent data collected is suggesting that customers may be willing to consider changing insurance companies.

Overall customer satisfaction with auto insurance companies has declined somewhat since 2009 according to a recent survey from J.D. Power and Associates. The organization measures current customer satisfaction at 777 on a 1,000 point scale, which marks a 10 point decline over the past year.

The study focused on auto insurance, from claims and billing to price, policy offerings and interaction.

“Now that the market has stabilized, consumers are feeling more in control of their finances and have become more aware of and sensitive to the rate increases that have started to occur since the recent recessionary period,” said Jeremy Bowler, senior director of the insurance practice at J.D. Power and Associates.

According to the data, 22 percent of customers report having had a recent increase in premiums. Last year, that figure stood at just 17 percent. Also, the report noted that about 60 percent of policy holders had seen their premiums rise without any advance notice from their insurance company.

Agents who specialize in home insurance policies may want to consider some advice offered by one of the industry’s leading organizations, in light of the five-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

According to the Insurance Information Institute (III), the effects of Hurricane Katrina left behind a number of lasting lessons for homeowners. For example, those who decided not to purchase flood insurance were exposed to thousands of dollars in costs that were not covered under standard home insurance policies.

Also, the III adds that another common mistake for individuals and businesses is to purchase an insufficient amount of coverage or a policy that does not meet their needs. With that in mind, agents are advised to work closely with clients to ensure their satisfaction as well as their long-term financial interests.

Policy holders should also be reminded to take an inventory of their valuables since this can help make things easier if they do end up needing to file a claim.

Property owners can also save on their home insurance premiums and reduce potential storm damage by taking various steps to weather-proof their home.

The economy has been showing more signs of improvement in recent months, but millions of Americans are continuing to struggle with finances while eyeing potential new career opportunities. For some, one interesting job option to consider could be to become an insurance adjuster.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there is no specific college major needed to become an insurance adjuster, and in some cases, those with a high school education may be able to find work in this sector. When it comes to working with auto insurance claims, the federal agency notes that one option may be to take courses at a local vocational college on estimating repair costs.

However, the BLS adds that people with business and accounting backgrounds may be particularly desirable to insurance companies in need of adjusters. Other fields that would likely allow a smooth transition into insurance adjusting include engineering, architecture and law. Also, those who want to work with life and health insurance claims may find that a background in medicine or healthcare is helpful.

Insurance adjusters also often work closely with investigators in incidents where fraud is suspected. In some cases, adjusters can move on to become investigators as they become more experienced. Otherwise, the BLS suggests that a background in law enforcement, private investigation or insurance examining is a good way to start working in this area.

Insurance adjusters will often find their work easier in cases where policyholders have held on to receipts for valuables, and where they have not discarded damaged items or tried to make short-term repairs to a structure.

The recession has made it more important than ever for insurance adjusters to have a sharp eye for potential fraud. This is because of the general upswing in fraud cases reported in many states over the past several years. For example, a good insurance adjuster will usually be able to tell the difference between actual hail damage on a vehicle, and the tell-tale marks left by a hammer if the policyholder is trying to inflate a claim or commit another type of fraud.

Adjusters and insurance investigators may also find themselves up against more sophisticated operations where entire criminal rings will stage phony accidents.
This field does not always require an individual to be employed by a specific insurance company. Some who get into the field may find the opportunity to work as a public insurance adjuster. With this position, an adjuster is hired by policyholders who recently suffered a loss to handle many different aspects of the claims process.

According to the National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters, workers in this sector can work with policyholders on common situations like fires, floods and theft, as well as other incidents such as riot damage, explosions and collapsed buildings. The group adds that a public adjuster inspects the site where the damage occurred, reviews a client’s insurance coverage, determines replacement costs and other things on behalf of a policyholder.

Elsewhere, the Insurance Information Institute notes that public insurance adjusters can charge as much as 15 percent of the total value of a claim settlement for their work, and this amount will not be covered under a policy. The organization also advises consumers to check an adjuster’s qualifications with their state insurance department and to be particularly wary of those who go door-to-door after a disaster. In fact, the III also advises consumers that in the event of a disaster, states will often place a limit on how much an adjuster can charge for their services.

It could be because I finally got around to signing my will last week or because some of my best friends are out of work right now.  Never the less, I wanted to point out that insurance companies are ramping up on selling life insurance policies, and need agents to sell them.

 In my childhood, the traditional life insurance salesman went door to door and had a tainted reputation.  Before that, life insurance companies hadn’t been all the reliable and there was a certain mistrust about them. 

Fortunately, life insurance companies have much better reputations now, but life insurance has become more complex.  From my perspective, life insurance requires much interpersonal selling from the agent, unlike car or home insurance which seems to be migrating to online purchases.  Life insurance still requires the agent to explain the options and benefits, and in truth, encourage the person to make the decision to buy.

…which leads me to a recent Wall Street Journal article.  The article stated that life insurance companies are building up their ranks, “Some big insurers are adding thousands of agents and planning to sign up more. They’re taking advantage of the weak job market to scoop up former real-estate agents, mortgage brokers, bankers and lawyers whose prospects have declined. “

What a lovely fact to read, during the middle of this employment crisis.

So, If you are looking for a 2^nd career, a part time job or more products to sell as an insurance agent, consider selling life insurance.

Last November we posted a blog written by Adam Peters, one of our employees who was an insurance agent before working for InsureMe.  He was emphasizing that the holidays are no time to slow down on insurance selling.  He said he was told to anticipate a slow down, and it was a self fulfilling prophecy.  So the next year, he increased his marketing efforts during those months and ended up with a record November, a good December and a record January.

As we approach the 4^th of July weekend, we at InsureMe are very aware that there are far fewer agents calling in, and the agents are more difficult to reach – they are not in their offices.  Granted, that is one of the benefits of running your own business – you decide when you want to work.  But, it is clear from our side that this is the time when the competition is slim, there are fewer agents out here competing for the business.  It seems like now might be a great time to focus on more marketing and selling, rather than less.  So get out your calling list, grab those leads coming your way.  The sale might be much easier than other times.  And you could be in for a record August and September, if you lay the ground work now.

Here at InsureMe, we pride ourselves on providing agents with great information that can help refine business processes and increase sales and profits. One of the ways we do this is through publication of our monthly newsletter, Agent Wire.

Our agent newsletter contains two types of content: general industry information and educational materials. Some originate with InsureMe, some do not. This is purposely planned to give you a wider perspective than just what we have to offer so you can decide for yourself what to use and what to discard.

These same principles should also apply to your business. In case you didn’t know it, newsletters are one of the best ways for you to present your clients with information, make regular contact and give them information to refer back to when they’re ready to make a purchasing decision about their insurance.

Newsletters also serve another purpose: they give you a great venue for announcing new products and services to your clients. If customers truly feel you have their best interests at heart, they will respond when they are ready.

You may feel you’re the last person on earth who should be attempting to write an article for a newsletter. Relax! Most agents feel just like you. But you can make it easy on yourself by doing a bit of research online, creating a simple outline and writing on one topic at a time.

If you feel you can’t even do that much, try finding valuable articles online that you can link to and just write a sentence or two that describes what that article is about. Then link your title to the actual Web page where the article can be found. This shouldn’t be too overwhelming and can help minimize the amount of writing you need to do.

Keep in mind, your goal here is to provide information and educate your readers. Anything most people would find interesting or want to know about their insurance policies usually makes good newsletter fodder.

One word of caution though: Keep it simple! Don’t use too much “insuranceez” (yes, I made that up!). You’ll turn off your readers and end up wasting your time in the long run. Instead, go for simple, easily-understandable terminology, creative titles and limited sales hype.

The more helpful you can come across in your approach, the better.

If you don’t already, try offering your customers a regular newsletter. Whether you send it to them using an email service, publish it in a mailer you send to their homes or post it on your Web site for easy access, you’re likely to establish yourself as an expert in your clients’ minds—and that’s something that can really help contribute to your bottom line.

InsureMe personnel will be at the Florida Association of Insurance Agents conference next week, so if you are attending the conference, please join up with us.

The conference is formally titled the FAIA 106th Anniversary Convention & Education Symposium and is being held June 24 — 26, 2010, at the Orlando World Center Marriott.    It is bound to be an exciting conference with many top notch speakers.

We will be at booth # 927 so please, look us up.  We’ll have great information for you, a few nice promotional items and a raffle drawing.

If you operate a privately held insurance agency and see your firm as an industry leader, the Insurance Journal is looking for you! 

Leading agencies from each of the following categories will be considered for inclusion in this year’s annual Top 100 Property/Casualty Independent Insurance Agencies report.

Just think of the boost that could give your marketing!

• Top overall independent agencies
• Top commercial lines independent agencies
• Top personal lines independent agencies
• Top regional agencies

Apply for inclusion today, and watch for survey results beginning with the August 2, 2010 issue of Insurance Journal. With a deadline of June 25, you can’t afford to wait.

Besides, you might just confirm what you’ve known all along: You’re doing a great job!

If you hate cold-calling and would rather do just about anything but, you’re not alone. An article last week from Reuters News revealed something quite surprising: According to a recent online survey, most salespeople would rather give up sex for a month than make cold calls for a week!

In fact, of all the options presented to survey takers, the only event deemed worse than making sales calls to someone you don’t know was having a root canal!

Besides cold-calling, having a root canal and giving up sex, choices for least appealing activity ranged from being a surprise guest on a reality television show to speaking in front of an audience.

In this day and age, cold calling has essentially become obsolete. It makes no sense to pick up the phone and call prospects if they’re really not prospects at all. In other words, if they haven’t already expressed an interest in what you’re selling, you’re probably wasting your time—and that’s something you can’t afford to do. 

Buying targeted leads, on the other hand, sends you directly to the right customers: those who are looking for you and the products you sell. When you purchase leads that fit that mold, you neither forfeit the pleasureable nor work unproductively.

You simply find middle ground.

Technology is constantly evolving and changing. In fact, it often seems that, just when we finally get some new program or gadget figured out, a newer technology comes out that totally postdates the systems we’re using, making them seem like centuries-old dinosaurs.

And then we have to purchase new programs, relearn everything a whole new way—and wait for the cycle to start all over again.

Though staying in a learning mode is good for us, most of us are resistant to change. That goes for everyone, from the agency owner right down to the administrative assistant or part-time receptionist.

Why? Because change is unsettling.

However, since it can also be very beneficial for business, improving processes and, hopefully, saving time and resources, it’s important to find ways to effectively manage and smooth technological transitions from the old to the new in your agency.

Author June Sousouris has some great ideas in this area, published this month in the  Insurance Journal. Some of the solutions Sousouris advocates to get agencies and their employees through changing times include:

• Sharing agency financials and other pertinent information with employees to create an environment of understanding and team building
• Highlighting the positive side of coming change by offering your vision for the future and its benefits for everyone
• Involving employees in the planning, and asking for their ideas and comments
• Demonstrating appreciation for others’ efforts and celebrating milestones

Workplace changes are often traumatic when existing processes have been in place for some time. But by making smart decisions that make sense for the future and getting everyone on board, this can be a time of growth and cohesion for all.

Additional Resource:

Managing Change in the Workplace