How is Your Relationship?

Not your personal relationship but the relationship your agency has with your clients and prospects. The most important reason to get your insurance protection from an independent agent or broker is the strong, trusting relationship you develop with your agent and the agency staff.^P What’s it like to be a customer or prospect of your agency? When they call in or visit the agency are they greeted warmly or do they feel like an annoyance that has to be dealt with? Are their phone calls returned in a timely manner or do they have to call back several times to actually speak with the right person or get an answer?

Customer retention and agency growth rely on quality customer service. Clients and prospects want an agency that makes it easy for them to handle their insurance needs. They may very well want service when it fits their schedule and you have to work to meet that need. They want service from a knowledgeable and well-trained staff that can give them exceptional advice and handle their needs. As we all know it isn’t always possible to meet every client’s need and when you can’t you should be upfront with them and let them know as soon as possible.

When you wrote their protection did you promise to review it regularly and communicate suggestions that would protect them as their lives changed? Those regular communications were meant to make sure they always had the broadest protection at a competitive premium from a company that best fit their needs. I can’t tell you how many people I talk to who tell me they haven’t heard from their agent for several years and many say not since they first bought their coverage. Strong relationships are built on communication and it’s no different when you’re talking about your clients. When a client has a claim do you stay on top of the claims handling? Even if you choose to have the client report the claim direct to the carrier you should note it in your system. That should trigger a letter letting them know you are sorry they have experienced a loss and are available should they feel there are issues with the handling of their claim. A quick follow-up communication in an appropriate amount of time checking with the client to make sure they are satisfied with the progress of the claim is important. Remember, if the client wanted to handle the claim themselves, without any help or follow-up, they would have purchased their protection directly from the insurance company.

Is your staff overwhelmed with work or lacking training that would allow them to provide the service a client or prospect is looking to receive? Agency staff with more work than they can handle or who don’t have the knowledge base to handle a customer’s need are frustrated and that frustration is manifested in poor customer service. These agency shortcomings need to be immediately addressed and corrected or they will grow into a culture of frustration and poor service.

Is part of your agency growth based on client referrals? Have referrals been steady, are they growing or do you notice them dropping off? Reduced referrals could indicate an issue with service. What about your retention? Is it steady, growing or declining? Don’t be so quick to blame it on a lack of competitiveness. It may very well be an indicator of declining customer service. Many agencies reach out to customers that are leaving the agency to determine the real reason and to make sure it is not because of something related to the agency’s service or staff.

Don’t wait until a client has left to find out how your agency’s service has been. It’s a good practice to routinely reach out to clients and ask how they would rate the agency’s service in several areas. You can do this as a general inquiry, possibly at the halfway point of their coverage so you can make corrections before they renew. You can also consider doing it as a follow-up to some service recently done by the agency.

Do you offer your clients and prospects useful information that will help them to better protect themselves against financial loss? An Agency can use its website, blog and social media to provide clients and prospects with this information. This relatively easy, value added service will further solidify your relationship by keeping clients informed as well as showing the agency’s breadth of knowledge and professionalism.

Excellent customer service, that helps retain existing clients and bring on new customers, doesn’t happen by accident. It’s a culture built on a foundation of commitment that starts with the owners of an agency and is exhibited by every member of the staff. They never make promises of service they don’t intend to keep and they regularly check the satisfaction of their clients. Customer satisfaction doesn’t occur by accident: it’s created by hard work and commitment.