Who Is Your Customer?

How well do you know and understand your customer? Not only your current customer but the customer you are looking to add in the future. Are they similar in their wants, needs and motivations? What are their expectations? Meeting and exceeding customer expectations is the key to growing a successful agency today and going forward.

Do you ask your current customers what motivated them to allow you and your staff to handle their insurance protection? The reasons that motivated them are critical for you to know and understand. I think all of us would like to believe that it was our knowledge and professionalism that secured their business, but many experts tell us that it’s liking someone and trusting them that may be the prime motivator.

If you haven’t been reaching out to your customers I suggest you seriously consider starting. You can’t make someone happy and satisfied if you don’t know what makes them feel that way. You should ask when they first come to you, when they buy their first policy from you and along the way, as they go from being just a customer to being a loyal client. You might be surprised with their answers.

All customers aren’t alike. You need to keep that in mind because your current clients may have very different expectations and motivations than the new customers you are trying to attract. That means what is and was attractive today might not meet the needs of the future clients you are looking to attract. Simply put, your Baby Boomer clients may have very different expectations than the Millennials you are looking to attract. That means you have to make sure that both groups’ expectations are met.

Our business is getting very competitive. The new competition coming into the marketplace are all about using technology to speed up service times and allow customers to access services whenever it is convenient for them. Having and using today’s technology to better provide for your customers is important, but I also believe it has to be tempered with the personal touch or you run the risk of making customers frustrated and unhappy.

They say today’s consumer is more educated in general and specifically about the products they buy. That may be true; however, because of the complicated nature of insurance protection, I don’t believe it can ever be sold in a self-service fashion. Insurance policies hold too many slight variations of coverage that can mean the difference between having a good claims experience and a bad one. Unfortunately, that bad claim experience could actually be financially devastating if someone doesn’t know how to select the right protection.

Engaging customers and finding out what motivated them to buy from you and keeps them as a client is important. It’s too easy to believe you know what the answers are without actually checking. You may be surprised by some of the responses you get.

Even without asking clients about their experience and whether you are meeting and exceeding their expectations, there are some simple common sense follow-ups you can do to make sure you have the best chance of pleasing your clients.

When people call your agency are they greeted in a happy and professional manner? Do they get the feeling your staff truly wants to help them and make their experience a positive one? If they leave a message or voice mail does everyone return those messages promptly? Does your customer know what to do in the event of an accident or loss? Does that include even when the office isn’t open? Is your website easy to reach and does it contain useful information that is easily found? Can your website be read on a mobile device? Do you have a mobile app for customers who want that capability? Do you take the time to adequately explain to customers the protection they are buying and why it is important?

Knowing your customer requires a dialogue and a clear understanding of what makes them happy and keeps them as a customer. Every agency should have in place a procedure for reaching out to customers at different times to find out how your agency is performing and what you could do better.

Even without the feedback of your customers, every agency knows and should take the time to make sure that the way the staff handles customers meets the standards of care the agency insists on. Quality customer service is not a mystery; we all know what goes into it. As our business progresses, changes will occur that make handling customers’ needs quicker and more convenient. To be successful it’s important to know your customers and their expectations. It’s also important to make sure your agency is providing the level of customer service you want and expect. Failure to do so could result in a serious loss of business.