I received some pretty great feedback via email regarding yesterday's post and thought I'd use my blog time today to share with you some of that feedback, and clear up any misconceptions that may have arisen.

Firstly, when it comes to the agents on the InsureMe network, I should tell you that we work with both captive agents and independents, as well as with brokers. I can also tell you that we tend to look at our agent base as, well, our base, rather than divvying it up into "captives" and "non-captives".

Do special accomodations need to be made once awhile? Sure. And that's just the shape of things. At the end of the day, we've got about 60-odd people here who genuinely appreciate our agents and strive to give all of them the best possible experience. Definitely no red-headed stepchild syndrome going on here.

But enough about InsureMe. :)

I also received a great email from Ryan today (who prompted me to give my two cents about captives and non-captives last week), and thought I'd share an excerpt (with his permission of course):

I don't agree well with Tim's description of independent versus captive agent. It seems to me that he inclines to characterize independent agents as faceless and impersonal persons milling out policies, versus warm and personalized captive agents who care for their client. Even though theoretically this characterization may hold true since captive agents receive subsidies from their principals, I believe in real world the distinction is not that white and black, nor cut and dry.

Ryan's latter point is an excellent one, and is something I tried to make clear in yesterday's post (and perhaps failed at), which is that a more personalized experience may help distinguish captive agents from the independents.

I certainly don't think that it's a hard and fast fact of life that captive agents provide better service than independents. And, while I don't wish to put words in Tim's mouth, I can't imagine that he would purposely make that generalization either. (Please also bear in mind that I pressed Tim more on the philosophy behind captive agencies after having read Ryan's original comment, where he wondered if independents had the sales advantage.)

As I stated at the end of yesterday's post, it's my feeling that captives and independents operate on a level playing field. An advantage for one may be a disadvantage for the other, and vice versa.

It's also my feeling that advantages and disadvantages are a little subjective. What one prospect wants from an insurer will differ from another. This is good news! It allows both types of agents to stay competitive and gives consumers multiple options to consider. So in the end, everyone really does win.

I'll wrap up today with a golden nugget from Ryan's email, where he suggested combining the strengths of both types of agents to create what I like to call the Super Hybrid Agent:

[...] I am tempted to muse that if I were able to give personal attention to my clients—the philosophy that I borrow from captive agency, while giving them the benefits of independent agency, don't you think my clients will get the best of both worlds?

While this may seem obvious to some, I appreciate Ryan's innovative spirit and non-linear thinking. This is the stuff great agents are made of.

My apologies for any confusion caused by my post yesterday. Please feel free to keep the comments coming, via email or here on the blog. I've enjoyed reading everyone's responses and would love to see the dialogue continue!

Posted by Megan Mahan at 03:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
 

As I mentioned in yesterday's quickie post, last week we received a comment from one of our readers, Ryan, asking about the future of captive insurance agencies. Namely, would they be able to compete against independent agents offering a range of products and services from different companies?

While I covered the basics of captive and non-captive agents in an article for the InsureMe Agent Resource Center, let's quickly recap:

Captive insurance agents: work exclusively for one insurance carrier and are obliged to give business to that company only. While some captive agents belong to affiliated groups of their parent company, a captive agent's priority lies in developing and business for the parent company.

Independent (non-captive) insurance agents: represent multiple insurance companies and work on behalf of the client to find them a policy. The majority of an independent agent's earnings come by way of commission of policies sold (as opposed to the predominately salary-based captive agent).

At first blush, it may seem as if independent agents have the advantage when it comes to clientele, as they're able to offer an array of products and services from various companies—while captive agents tend to be restricted with their offerings and may not be able to cross-sell into other areas.

The truth is that there are advantages and disadvantages to both. I chatted with InsureMe CEO and president (and licensed insurance agent), Tim McTavish this afternoon and he pointed out that one major advantage of captive agencies lies in customer service.

"Say you purchased insurance through an independent agent, and you got into an accident," suggested Tim. "Chances are you'd be calling an 800 number and talking to a rep from who knows where, who isn't really invested in your best interests. You may run into the same thing with a claims adjuster—an independent adjuster probably wouldn't go to bat like a personal insurance agent would."

So while not all independent agents are located five states away from the policyholder—and to be sure, there are many independent agents who have their client's best interests at heart—it seems that captive agencies pull ahead when it comes to customer service. And, while captive agents have been more restricted with products and cross-selling in the past, Tim pointed out that more carriers are becoming more lax when it comes to letting their agents go outside. As long as the captive agency can stay competitive, Tim said, they should be able to stay in the game.

Does that mean independent agents will one day become obsolete? Don't count on it, said Tim. "Both captive and independent agents will be around for a long time."

I agree with Tim. As outlined in my article, there are great benefits—and equally as challenging obstacles to overcome—for captive and non-captive agents. At the end of the day, it's up to the agent to weigh the advantages and disadvantages and determine which sales path best suits them.

Thanks so much to Ryan for suggesting a blog topic. If there's something you'd like to see us discuss here at the Agent Blog, feel free to leave suggestions via comments, or email me.

Posted by Megan Mahan at 03:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
 

Today has slipped right out from under me!

I'm back and ready to blog, however time has been hard to come by today. While I was gone last week, we received a comment on the blog from Ryan who was curious to know the advantages and disadvantages of captive and independent agents.

I'll be formulating a longer post on the subject tomorrow, but wanted to let Agent Blog readers weigh in ahead of time: Are captive agencies becoming a thing of the past?

Leave your thoughts via comments and let's discuss this more in depth tomorrow.

[Related article]: Captive Agents versus Non-Captive Agents: Finding Your Niche

Posted by Megan Mahan at 04:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Dear InsureMe Agent Blog Reader:

In lieu of our normal weekly Wrap Up, the InsureMe A/V Squad is offering a Thanksgiving Day special.

The video features InsureMe employees giving thanks for many things, from family and friends to bushy beards and the Geneva Conventions.

It’s heartwarming, funny, and because of the royalty-free soundtrack, a little cheesy. (We couldn’t get the rights to any Vince Guaraldi songs.)

Anyway, we hope you enjoy the video, and from the InsureMe team, we wish you a happy and safe Thanksgiving.

Cheers,
The InsureMe Team

Posted by Jeb Foster at 01:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving always gives me the rush of the oncoming swirl of activities. I can handle the earlier sunsets and colder weather during this coming season of good cheer. (January and February are a bit tougher.)

So, today I feel really thankful that InsureMe has such good bloggers, normally.
And such creative employees. Work is so much fun here.

But back to marketing for a bit.

I started a thread yesterday about how insurance agents get their information. And ended saying that is was not through advertising. We have really learned that at InsureMe. The response we get from ads or email campaigns is pretty slight. We truly have found word of mouth to be the best marketing 'campaign'.

But aside from having a great product and making it easy for people to spread the word, what else is happening in marketing? So on the day before a holiday, I thought I'd post a few interesting marketing Web sites for you to peruse.

I attended the Forrester Consumer Forum and heard from McDonald's, Neiman Marcus, the ad agency for Burger King (think Subservient Chicken or the King commercials), NASCAR, Discover Financial Services, as well as a host of interactive Web sites where consumers post their own content (travel, blogging, pictures ). The whole focus was on humanizing the digital experience. Sounds like a contradiction in terms, doesn't it? The marketing dollars going into those activities are being taken from more traditional commercials and ads. McDonald's is reducing their TV commerical ad funding by 15 percent and applying it to interactive 'fun things' on their Web site.

This is what the analysts and experts were saying about marketing:

• The future of advertising isn't. …
• It is no longer marketing interruptus; didn't we all learn that it is totally impolite to interrupt someone with your message when they are busy doing something they like to do?
• Marketing has to work on an invitation basis; what you are saying has to have enough value so that the audience asks to receive your message.
• Taking that a step further: the message should fall in the ranks of 'worthy of publishing' - like a song, a lyric, or at least a You Tube video. Check out this Microsoft Web site.
• And just in case you haven't seen the Diet Coke and Mento video, check this out. It was reportedly worth $10 Million in traditional advertising dollars, but didn't cost either company a dime.

Happy Thanksgiving and hurry home, Megan.

Posted by Lori Reed at 10:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
 

Megan is off galivanting and celebrating turkey time so I thought I'd take this chance to share what I've been hearing about insurance and marketing.

I just returned from the very first AM Best Insurance Marketing Summit In addition to the fun of it being held in the tony University Club in NYC, the content was also quite interesting. I listened to how the professionals plan to market to insurance agents. And I thought you might be interested as well.

The speakers were stalwarts of the insurance marketing industry and were more than willing to share their great marketing research.

I loved hearing that the number one way agents get information is from their peers. And that is the information they trust the most. You can call it what you want - word of mouth, viral marketing or WOM - they are just references, plain and simple. That being the case, the best way to market is still to have the best product around. Given the ease of passing along a reference with the click of a mouse, information can and does spread like wild fire.

News? Probably not to you. But expect marketing dollars to shift in that direction. Commercials should become much more entertaining; between Google and YouTube, who knows what to expect. I, for one, am still waiting for my Yellow Ball time. And we are all hopeful it means advertising dollars will move into making product improvements, rather than perfecting a pithy phrase to make a product seem more desirable.

Just in case you're interested, the other ways insurance agents glean information is through:
1) Trade publications
2) Industry conferences
3) Newsletters

....but NOT advertising.

Given the lack of trust people have in some of the larger American corporations today, I guess that is not surprising.

Posted by Lori Reed at 03:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Insurance isn't terribly exciting. Or sexy. Or cool. But we've discussed all that before. And because it's not exciting, sexy or cool, people don't really spend much time learning about it. Even though they'd be much better off (financially, healthfully, etc.) if they did.

But I happen to be of the opinion that the insurance industry, as a whole (there are most certainly exceptions), could do a little bit better when it comes to teaching consumers about insurance—or more importantly—why they should care about it.

I must have cited this article a hundred times by now, but it proves my point that the insurance industry is not exactly the most innovative out there. It's a bit stodgy, a bit conservative by nature, and hasn't exactly gotten the best rep from the media in recent years (no thanks to those few insurance professionals who, for some reason, decided to check their scruples at the door).

Taking these things into consideration, it’s not a huge surprise that people have a bit of an aversion to the insurance industry. I was surprised, however, by a fellow insurance blogger's post, which regaled in the ignorance of insurance prospects and policyholders everywhere.

A woman calls looking for health insurance with an immediate maternity benefit.

How immediate? Most policies have a 9 - 12 month wait but I do have one policy with no waiting period.

That's the one she wants. The one with no waiting period.

Fine. You can get this as long as you are not pregnant now. If we apply now you can have coverage in place by the first of next month.

Oh, well. That won't work.

Why not?

I am due next month.

Click!

Now, I understand—and our InsureMe customer relations managers understand—that it doesn't always take much to get frustrated with someone's lack of knowledge in the area of insurance. That's because we're so close to it. We know what factors affect someone’s ability to get insurance, what factors affect rates, how many miles (on average) one drives every year…and after awhile the intricacies of insurance seem like common knowledge to us.

Thing is though, it's not common knowledge. And while I, for the most part, agree that folks are responsible for finding educational sustenance, I also think that we could do a better job of enunciating the importance of insurance education. I think we’re getting there (and the recent catastrophic events have sure underscored the dire importance of a good insurance policy), but can do better.

Beefing up websites and adding valuable content to those websites (which means talking like humans—and cutting out all the corporate and industry jargon) is a great way to start. And by adding valuable content—which is searchable by the millions of Americans using the Web to shop—you reap the benefits of helping someone out and establishing yourself as a credible and reliable insurance source.

As I said in the comment I left over at InsureBlog, for the average Joe, insurance will never be exciting to learn about. It's not likely to garner praise by MTV or Paris Hilton. But like Paris Hilton, there are reasons some people are turned off by the insurance industry. And the general "Man, people are stupid" attitude doesn't help the situation. Especially when you poke fun at them in a public forum. Not hot. Not hot at all.

So, don’t kick those know-nothing consumers when they’re down. Take the opportunity to teach them what they need to know in order to navigate in the complex world of insurance. Give them resources to use. Make it easy for them. Encourage them. Maybe even get them to smile (dare I say laugh). In the process, you’ll cultivate a relationship and build the kind of trust you need to turn that prospect into a client.

Posted by Megan Mahan at 02:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
 

Busy day at InsureMe today. We received yet another best place to work award (we were recognized as the number two best place to work by the Denver Business Journal!), gave thanks with a company Thanksgiving potluck, and debuted out new mascot in the InsureMe Insurance Blog Wrap-Up.

I'll be out most of next week (making the insanely long drive back to Iowa), but that doesn't mean the Agent Blog is going on hiatus. Our Director of Marketing, Lori Reed, will pop in with a couple of juicy tidbits. Lori's been on the marketing scene for a long time (but not before dabbling in geology) and she's done great things for InsureMe's agent base. (Check out her bio to learn more.)

So check in with us next week and keep an eye out for Lori's posts. Should be good stuff.

And now, to help you slide into the weekend, I present you with this week's InsureMe Insurance Blog Wrap-Up. Enjoy. :)

[Bonus link]: Check out some extra footage of our dancing mascot. You won't be disappointed!

Posted by Megan Mahan at 04:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Good post today from Stephanie Diamond over at the Marketing Message Blog, where she talks about the revenue-driving importance of a strong website. This subject isn't exactly new here at the Agent Blog, but it bears repeating.

People are not only looking at your website, they're depending on it. They're counting on the fact that it's functional, answers their questions, and can put them in touch with a human if necessary. And the presentation matters.

So yes. Be proud if you have a website (that's half the battle!). But keep in mind that a site is not like a book, presentation, or film. There is no definitive ending; it needs continual work and improvement.

Take a look at Stephanie's post to see why your site is the "welcome mat" of your business.

[Related posts]:

Insurance Industry Lags in Website Performance, Says New Study

Increasing Your Web Presence: Distinguishing Right from Wrong

Web Writing Blunders: Megan's Top Five

Posted by Megan Mahan at 03:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Marketing Profs Daily Fix blogger, CK has a mantra: May all leads be inbound. Simple, yet prophetic, as her post proves.

Honestly, I don't understand the value of cold calls when hot opportunities are what I seek (which means they're calling me). And when the phone rings, I'm intent on that conversation being a negotiation, not a pitch.

CK goes onto say that when a prospect calls her, she can skip the "who we are" and focus on "what we'll do for you". And that means you spend more time having a conversation with the prospect...which builds a relationship and increases the chance of landing them as a client.

So what you should probably start doing, she says, is focus less on selling (seeing how many prospects and clients you can find) and focus more on marketing (finding programs that help people find you and your product).

Sales is reactive, marketing is proactive. [...] With sales you're centered on volume, with marketing you're centered on value. Sales is short-term thinking since it focuses on how to move the most merchandise in the shortest timeframe, whereas marketing is long-term thinking centered on engaging a lifetime of brand loyalists.

It's so basic, so elementary, and yet it seems completely revolutionary! Especially in context of the insurance industry where most insurance professionals do all they can to find new clients but spend, by comparison, far less time trying to set themselves apart from the rest of the pack and earn brand loyalty.

At the end of the day, CK puts her proverbial eggs in the basket of lead generating programs. And I have to agree with her. Focusing your efforts on avenues that bring interested people to you—rather than vying for the attention of countless folks who could really care less about what you've got going on—will help you develop lasting relationships with people rather than exhausting yourself with a sales pitch.

Translation: less effort, more reward.

Take a look at CK's full post here and learn how putting marketing in the driver's seat can increase your sales.

[Related posts]:

Direct Mail: 0, Insurance Leads: 1
Why I Think Teleprospecting Is Mostly Fooey

[Shamless plug]:
All about InsureMe leads!

Posted by Megan Mahan at 01:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
 

Another on-the-money post from Creating Passionate Users! This time it involves using visuals to help capture the attention of your audience and get them to respond to your book, blog, presentation, etc.

CPU is pretty famous (I think) for their custom-made visuals, but blogger Kathy Sierra points out that, while it's easier than you think to make these graphics, you don't have to be a designer to use great visuals in your pieces.

Though we have a designer here at InsureMe, we also use stock photo sites like Photos.com; for a yearly fee we can use the royalty-free photos at will. New sites like Veer and Getty Images also make it easy to find more cutting-edge photos, type and illustrations.

Many Creative Commons licenses are cropping up on Flickr.com as well, which means you can search for photos on Flickr to use on blog posts, presentations, etc. for non-monetary gain, while giving due credit to the owner.

I have to tell you, at the Future of Web Apps in San Francisco this past September, the presenters did an amazing job of creating aesthetically pleasing presentations for the audience. Not only did this hold our interest (which can be tough with 900-odd people), but it got us to respond to the presenter and their topic. And that's really want you want, right? You want people to listen, respond, and talk about you to somebody else. Because, you know, that's where the money is. :)

The power of imagery is a strong one. Take a look at the Creating Passionate Users post for more image tricks and ideas.

[Photo from Flickr under Creative Commons license: http://www.flickr.com/photos/whatknot/13912531/]

Posted by Megan Mahan at 05:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

[image courtesy of gapingvoid.com]

Nice story in the Chicago Tribune (featured today by INN) as the president of Allstate looks to reinvent the insurance industry.

Thomas Wilson, who will take over as Allstate's CEO in January, spoke to a group of Allstate agents last month and spoke of innovation, research and development, and product differentiation—all aimed at his goal of reinventing the insurance industry and setting Allstate apart from its competitors.

While Wilson spoke about new product innovations (namely identity theft insurance and pet insurance—neither of which is anything to brag about in my opinion), I was impressed to read that Wilson is focusing his efforts on new products, testing their effectiveness (they're currently selling pet insurance in Canada to see if there's a viable market for it in the U.S.), and working with a design consultant to change the insurer's workspace.

From large glass walls ("meant to evoke openness and transparency), to paint, new electronics and extensive play areas for children (see ya fire safety coloring books!), Wilson recognizes and values the importance of an innovative work environment, and the positive effects it has on employees, prospects and clients.

And speaking of clients, Wilson is also passionate about making improvements in the claims service arena. His sister, who became a quadriplegic after a serious car accident seven years ago, had “incredibly bad claim service,” according to the Tribune piece.

“[…] We have a good review processes around timeliness, and [are] complying with the laws and making sure we’re in contact with people,” said Wilson. But sometimes you need to stand back and say from a customer perspective, should we settle this thing?”

And while some of you may criticize this post for being too centered on one particular insurer (which we don't normally do), I have to tell you that this piece was one of the most refreshing industry-related articles I’ve read in a good long while. And although I think there’s huge difference between “evoking openness and transparency” and actually being open and transparent, Wilson is spot on with his goals.

Reinventing insurance is not some pie in the sky idea. It’s plausible, important, and I’m willing to bet that the insurers that put forth the time and effort to turn the industry around will stand out from the rest—becoming the proverbial purple cow in a field of brown cows—and reduce slow-to-change insurers to grazing on the icky brown grass on the outskirts of the pasture.

(That’s a fancy way of saying those who fear change will most likely perish.)

So thumbs up, Tom Wilson. Thumbs up for being a trailblazer in one stodgy industry. Check out the the full article courtesy of INN here, and until next time...how will you work to advance positive change in the insurance industry?

Posted by Megan Mahan at 01:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
 

I've spent far longer than is desired trying to find something remarkable to blog about today. And because I'm overcome with anxiety whenever I have nothing to blog about (a horrible, intense feeling that feels like an elephant is standing on my chest), I thought it would behoove all of us if I pointed you to our latest Insurance Blog Wrap-Up for today's post.

Check it out here to see my special investigative report on identity fraud, as well as the coolest car theft quiz on the planet. And, if you enjoyed the video, we'd appreciate if you passed it on to your friends and colleagues!

Of course, if you want to view more InsureMe videos (and who wouldn't, really), you can watch all of our Wrap-Ups by clicking here.

Take a look and enjoy the weekend!

Posted by Megan Mahan at 02:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

I'm a little pressed for time today, but I've been thinking a lot about one of Seth Godin's posts from a week or so back, called It's Just Business. It really resonated with me so I thought I'd share:

"It's just business."

Nope, actually...

"It's just life."

Anyone who is willing to lie to you, cheat you or treat you with disrespect because it's just business is doing more damage to herself than to you.

Work takes too much time and too much emotion for it to be just work. As far as I'm concerned, I don't want to spend time or money with anyone who has this particular attitude disfunction.

Pretty astute, wouldn't you say? For more words of great sales, marketing and life wisdom, check out Seth’s blog. You’ll add it to your list of favorites in no time.

Posted by Megan Mahan at 03:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Here at the InsureMe Agent Blog, we try to keep InsureMe news to a minimum, but we're holding our first ever job fair here at the InsureMe compound and thought we should pass the news along to all interested parties.

Here's the scoop:

We're looking for some fantastically fantastic people who are interested in helping us take InsureMe to the next level, which, ideally, is total sandbox domination. So, if you're in the Denver area on Wednesday, November 15, stop by the InsureMe office at 9800 S. Meridian Boulevard in Englewood [click the link for a map] with copies of your resumes and your personality ablaze.

Of course, it might interest you to see what we're hiring for, so please stop by the Jobs@InsureMe page to see if the career of your dreams is waiting for you here at InsureMe.

I could go on from here and tell you how great it is to work for InsureMe, but that might be annoying. So we'll just let our best place to work awards speak for themselves.

And if that still doesn't convince you to stop by, well...maybe this old Halloween photo of Eric, our staff accountant, will make the difference. :)

Hope to see you next Wednesday!

Posted by Megan Mahan at 03:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

I've said before that I think identity theft insurance is a waste of money. But a recent study by J.D. Power and Associates shows a growing concern amongst Americans when it comes to identity theft, and they want their home insurance companies to do something about it.

According to the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Homeowners Insurance Study (see here), over 40 percent of homeowners said they'd like their home insurance company to offer ID theft protection. The study also found that ID theft protection was one of the most common types of protection consumers want from their home insurers, second only to auto insurance. (Sidebar: are there really home insurance companies that don't sell home/auto combo policies? Wow.)

Jeremy Bowler, senior director of the insurance practice at J.D. Power and Associates said that consumers increasingly feel compelled to protect themselves from ID theft, especially as breaches of personal information by large corporations and government agents continue to surface.

This makes sense to me...sort of. Obviously, as consumers, we're all checking for secure internet connections and shredding our mail before tossing it out with the garbage. But if home insurers decide to meet the demand of the public (and I imagine many of them will...hello, market share), I'd work up front to make sure that the coverage:

1. Actually helped the victim repair his or her credit standing and clear the victim of any illegal activity that happened under his or her name
2. Was a [much] better deal than what credit card companies currently offer cardholders in the event of ID and/or card theft

Otherwise we're just luring folks into a false sense of security, don't you think?

Of course, I think education, as is per usual, is definitely key when it comes to identity theft and insurance. To that end, I'd encourage everyone to talk to their prospects and clients about ID theft...and hey, you can always direct them to our Insurance Blog to learn more! :)

[Hat tip to the Specialty Insurance Blog for the fodder!]

Posted by Megan Mahan at 01:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Here at InsureMe, our leaders encourage and practice a healthy work/life balance. This balance, in part, is what keeps us coming back to InsureMe headquarters every morning.

Check out this recent post from Marketing Profs: Daily Fix to see why goofing off for a few minutes here and there is good for your career—and how to goof off in a way that augments your career rather than ruining it.

Enjoy the post, enjoy a few minutes of down time here and there, and enjoy your job.

It's a beautiful thing.

Posted by Megan Mahan at 04:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Springwise, one of my favorite innovation entrepreneurial blogs recently posted about Ecoinsurance, which is now available in the UK.

Ecoinsurance is the country's first 'eco-friendly insurance' and helps policyholders maintain good green karma while actually doing something to help keep the planet clean. As Springwise explains, each policy "comes with carbon offsets for 20 percent of the customer's car's CO2 emissions, based on an average passenger car with average annual mileage." At no extra charge!

Policyholders whose vehicles emit less than 100 grams of CO2 per kilometer (where's Peter D. with the conversion mole problems when you need him?) receive a 10 percent discount on their policy premium. Nice.

What's more, Ecoinsurance works with fellow earth-friendly auto mechanics and repair shops to make sure car parts and motor oil are properly recycled. Not only is the company talking the eco-friendly talk; they're walking the walk, too. Springwise reports that Ecoinsurance's parent company (Co-Operative Insurance) is the first insurer in the world to commit to an ethical engagement policy.

Springwise also acknowledged Travelers Insurance here in the states, for giving hybrid-driving policyholders a 10 percent discount on their insurance premiums (The only caveat: "[The discount] is only fair -- hybrid drivers are classified as lower than average risk, and are preferred customers: middle-aged, responsible and financially stable (source: USA Today).")

This is all very encouraging to me as it's important to help people be earth-friendly and make eco-friendly decisions. I hope to see American insurers following in the footsteps of Ecoinsurance. And I have a feeling the first couple of insurers who adapt this kind of business model will reap the benefits for decades to come.

(Also, I have to say, that in addition to a stellar business model, Ecoinsurance has an awesome website. It's visually joyful to look at, and it's easy to navigate. All insurers should take notice.)

Well, that's all for this week. Have a great weekend, everyone. And don't forget to check out this week's InsureMe Insurance Blog Wrap-Up, complete with great [faux] campaign ads and a special investigation by InsureMe's own Jeb Foster.

See you Monday!

Posted by Megan Mahan at 03:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
 

Apparently so.

Last night around 8PM I had a knock at my door. I eeny meeny miney moe'd to decide whether to, A. open the door or B. ignore it. Eeny Meeny said to go with A.

When I opened the door there was a rather unassuming guy standing in my hallway, dressed in what appeared to be the garb of an auto mechanic. He kept his distance from me, which, as a female, I appreciated immensely. Then he told me that he worked at a local mechanic shop and that each year they run oil change specials for the tenants in my complex.

I told him my automaker took care of my oil changes and he tried to sell me a bit more on a set of new tires (Zzzz) and after a few awkward moments he bid me goodnight.

I was pretty dumbfounded that these folks were prospecting door-to-door. This isn't 1950; it's 2006 and the creep factor has escalated immeasurably in the last half century.

And while it's probably one of the most archaic traditional forms of prospecting, in my mind, door-to-door sales takes a marketing backseat along with direct mail, telemarketing, and flyers stuck underneath windshields: a lot of effort with little ROI. And then there's the fact that people just don't appreciate it.

My experience last night underscored the fact that permission marketing matters. Don't interrupt folks with phone calls, door knocks or bland flyers that fill up their mailboxes. An annoyed (or frightened) person will seldom become your customer.

Posted by Megan Mahan at 04:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
 

The results are in, says the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), and the 1991 Honda Accord is officially the most stolen vehicle of 2005. Number two, incidentally, is the 1995 Honda Civic. Which is interesting because a friend of mine had a '94 Civic stolen from him not long ago.

The good news is that car theft seems to be on the decline. Over 1.2 million cars were stolen in 2005, but that figure is down 2,625 from 2004. Seems incremental, but hey, I'm looking at the glass half full today.

NICB reports are always pretty fascinating to me. Take for example, the fact that just over 62 percent of stolen cars were recovered in 2005. Then consider that the 450,000 remaining vehicles left outstanding are probably scattered throughout chop-shops, are exported to other countries or sitting at the bottom of a pond. Pretty interesting stuff. But depressing, sure, when you consider the inflation of insurance premiums on account of auto fraud. I'm thinking Dateline NBC should take this story and run with it.

Anyway, head over to the Insurance Journal for a shortened report, or read the whole thing over at the NICB web site. I'll call Dateline with the news tip. :)

[Bonus link]: Check out this awesome video on global warming by the World Wildlife Foundation.

Posted by Megan Mahan at 01:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)