Telling the Real Story

There is so much misleading and incorrect information circulating in today’s world. You would think that wouldn’t be the case as the general population has gotten better educated and society has progressed from the days of the snake oil salesman.

The truth is, the people who choose to manipulate and deceive have become much smarter and sophisticated in how they operate. The significant amount of data they now have at their disposal has given them the tools to take advantage of the average consumer, appealing to their psychological triggers.

Their advertising is meant to be humorous and entertain, very rarely drawing attention to the serious nature of insurance protection. No one really gives a damn about Cheryl’s she shed or wants an emu to help them decide on insurance protection. There is nothing funny about someone having a serious loss especially if the proper insurance protection wasn’t in place.

No longer are products and services sold on the merits of quality, honesty and commitment. Instead, many companies are spending enormous amounts of time and money focusing consumers on how their product is less intrusive in consumer’s lives by eliminating the time and energy of consumer decision-making. In response to consumers stressed by rising costs and shrinking free time, they encourage buyers to buy online at their leisure choosing the lowest cost product.

THIS IS A RECIPE FOR DISASTER WHEN IT COMES TO PURCHASING INSURANCE PROTECTION!!!!

The response by independent insurance agents should be significant, consistently warning consumers to the dangers of purchasing protection in this manner. Unfortunately, I see very few warnings from agents of the danger.

There needs to be a compelling counterbalance of information warning consumers of the potential financial risk they may subject themselves, their families and their business to in following this advice.  Choosing protection without professional advice based on the uninformed suggestions of the protection provider and focusing primarily on cost could be disastrous when there is a serious loss.

I’ve had some agents tell me they feel like these type pf warnings will be negatively perceived as scare tactics by consumers. My answer is good they should be scared!! As insurance agents we see every day the human and financial suffering that results from uninsured and underinsured events. We have an obligation to educate consumers to the risk they take in not properly and adequately protecting themselves.

When natural disasters strike (hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes & major forest fires) consumers see the devastation in the news and are saddened and moved by what they see. What doesn’t hit home is that there are many other types of significant events that very negatively impact average people physically, emotionally and financially. Not planning wisely to protect themselves against potential loss puts everybody and everything important to them at risk.

YOU’RE PROBABLY THINKING “SO WHAT’S THE POINT”

The point is as independent agents we all need to take every opportunity to educate consumers on the dangers of buying coverage without professional advice and using price as the primary deciding factor. Tell the stories of people who didn’t buy the proper protection or reduced their protection amount because they were told “that’s the average amount most people carry” all in the name of saving some money and ultimately suffering physically and financially. It should be on your website, in your blog, in your advertising and part of every conversation you have with a client or prospect. I believe it should actually be a part of your mission statement.

Our responsibility as professionals is to make sure consumers understand the importance of properly protecting themselves and not be put at risk by those who would take advantage of them.