Service Tips

SERVICE TIPS

• Rusty Claton of Whillis-Harding Insurance in Kewlona, BC, has a poster in her office that reads: 'You don't have to be a millionaire to be sued like one.' It is effective in generating conversation about increased and excess liability.
• Nancy Hiller of GHA Insurance in Traverse City, Michigan, saves all her copying for the end of the day. Then she makes only one trip to the copier. She says, 'It really cuts down on disturbance of co-workers.'
• Deborah Miller Of State Auto Insurance Cos., Columbus, Ohio, identified two major tasks each day. This way, if her day gets really busy, she keeps her attention on at least two priority items.
• Tina Roberts of Cosmo Conte's State Farm office in La Jolla, California, offers this service tip: Send a handwritten thank-you note to prospects you quote, as well as to the persons who referred them.
• Cindy Twidwell, Management Analyst at Russell Miller, Inc. in San Francisco, California, suggests arriving at work early-say, a half-hour or an hour-to plan, sort, and set priorities.
• Eliminate Excess: If an item or form hasn't been used for two months or more, remove it from the work unit.

Vincent Alfieri, author of The Best Book of Wordperfect Version 5.0, said it best: 'In a nutshell, word processing means you never have to retype.'

Although that statement is a broad generalization, it does get to the heart of what word processing can do for you. If you've had any kind of experience using a typewriter, you know how much time can be spent on a single document. One rule of thumb: Anything that has been retyped (or rewritten) three times should be word processed.

For the next week or so, have everyone in your agency keep an extra copy of an correspondence that's generated. After you've collected an ample sampling assign one person the task of sorting the memos, letters, and other documents into piles. Once sorted, master 'shell' documents for each basic type of correspondence can be created in the word processor.

The powers of the word processing not only eliminate the need for retyping, but but also provide amazing capabilities for written communication. And just think-the time saved by using word processing can be devoted completely to servicing your clients!