https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/2000/AGENCY-TEAM-BUILDING/
Agency Team Building
AGENCY TEAM BUILDING by Eric Moberg The internal workings of every agency depend on the employees interacting effectively on a daily basis. Cooperation and communication among employees is necessary for them to do their jobs and for the agency to prosper. None of them can work in a vacuum. The exchange of information regarding changes in the marketplace, new policy provisions, and new underwriting guidelines-not to mention the communication of agency procedures, successes, and failures-is essential for people to perform their jobs. As we gain information, it's very important to communicate it to our co-workers. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION The exchange of information within the agency occurs in numerous ways. One of the most common is through employees' informal conversation; one employee may become aware of some important information and relays it to another employee in normal conversation. Although this can be an effective method of communication between two people, it doesn't pass the information on to all who may need to know it. To make sure that information is properly communicated to everyone who needs to know it, a more formal method should be used. Communication between departments is essential to serving the insured effectively. In many cases, an agency's departments don't effectively communicate with one another. They need to, because Commercial accounts can become Personal accounts, and vice versa. Almost all accounts have the potential to become Life, Health, or Group accounts. Opportunities exist to benefit the agency as well as the insured, but only if departments cooperate. If an opportunity exists with another department, take the initiative and tell the people in it. There should be cross-selling between all departments. If you think improvements can be made in this area, bring it up at your next departmental staff meeting. AGENCY MEETINGS Regularly scheduled meetings-for departments and for the entire agency-provide the most effective way to communicate important information to all those who need to know it. This method not only passes new information to those who will use it the most, but provides an opportunity to discuss all of its applications. How will the new information affect the way your agency does business? What will be the effect on customers? Will the information require a change in the way you do business? All these questions and more should be addressed during the agency meetings. If new procedures are required by the change or new information, discuss them during the meeting. All those in attendance should have the opportunity to ask questions and clarify issues. This forum also gives the attendees a chance to discuss how the department or agency can function better, given the information being presented. Discussion may lead to a decision to try something unique and better suited to specific agency operations. Here are guidelines for meetings, both departmental and agency-wide: Departmental Meeting Agenda (scheduled weekly or monthly) Review of discussions from prior meeting Questions/discussion about prior meeting's topics Discussion of any problems resulting from actions taken after prior meetings Update on current status of agency/department goals and objectives Future goals and objectives New items for discussion: Market conditions Changes in agency marketing direction (such as new programs) Changes in carriers, programs, underwriting, rules New markets or opportunities New business issues (new sales in process) Upcoming new accounts (type, size, work required) Marketing issues affecting new business activity Renewals to be handled (90 to 120 days in the future) Potential account problems (market, competition pricing) Strategy by account (who will handle and how to be handled) Personnel issues Scheduling (vacations, education, leaves, and so on) Personnel awards/recognition General Agency Meeting Agenda-All Employees (scheduled quarterly or semiannually) Current status of agency's performance vs. objectives New business sales Renewals, premium, and retention Business and market conditions affecting the agency General insurance and economic conditions New opportunities or changes in programs and markets New or changed agency marketing strategies Agency procedures Changes or additions to current procedures Discussion of current procedures Personnel issues Additions, departures, changes Personnel awards/recognition How does communication impact teamwork? Webster's defines teamwork as "Work done by several associates with each doing a part but all subordinating personal prominence to the efficiency of the whole." In other words, several people working together to accomplish a task, with no one person necessarily being more important to the task than the others. Communication is the cornerstone of teamwork. For people to work together, they must let each other know what they're doing and how they're doing it, and pass this information on to the entire team. Meetings and formal communications provide the means for this information to pass from one manager, supervisor, or employee to a group of employees. Participation with the team is the responsibility of all those involved. Anyone who decides not to hold up their part of the work will have a negative impact on the rest. Everyone is a necessary link in the chain. In an agency, customer service may involve a number of people: The Agency Principal/Manager who oversees all operations The Producer who originally writes the account The Department Manager/Supervisor who manages the overall process The Marketing Representative who markets the account The Customer Service Representative (CSR) who services the account The Processor who sets up the account on the computer The Accounting Representative who manages the ongoing billing The Claims Representative who handles losses Think about how your agency is structured. Who's responsible for the tasks just listed? Do you have regular communication with them? Can you work together more effectively to meet the needs of the insured and the agency? Your agency may have separate people handling each of these functions or, as is commonly the case, the CSR handling several functions. Regardless of how your agency is staffed, cooperative interaction between staff members is essential for the business to be handled properly. Each person has a role, and all must perform their part of the process. Remember, documentation and communication go hand in hand. Effective workflow involves equal parts of communication and documentation! Don't allow verbal communication to be your only means of ensuring effective workflow; make sure you take the time to write down the information that needs conveying. Document your conversations, follow up conversations with memos or notes, and take minutes from your meetings for distribution afterwards.
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/357/Marketing-With-Newsletters/
Marketing With Newsletters
Newsletters. We see them every day. We subscribe to them, get them for free, market with them. We learn from them.
But how much do we really know about newsletters?
The First Benefit-Retention
Rare is the agency that wouldn't like to see higher retention rates, which results from relationship-building and account-rounding. Good relationships stay with you. Plus, the more policies you deliver to an individual client, the greater the retention rate.
Newsletters tell your clients that, as their expert, you keep on top of things and you care enough to communicate the information to them. Newsletters, along with telephone and personal visits, provide a communications continuity that keeps clients happy with you and your services. A great example comes from SAFECO agents Russ and Alice Neville. When a string of arson fires broke out in Lynnwood, WA, they published a special Arson Alert newsletter for 5,000 of their clients and prospects.
The same goes for account-rounding: Newsletters are the perfect medium to let clients know about the services you provide. Moreover, your services can be described in newsy, informational articles that provide them with solid reasons for considering your agency for their other needs.
The Second Benefit-Prospecting
How much follow-up is right for a prospect? Do you call once a week, a month, a quarter, or just when the x-date is due? Developing the parameters of effective follow-up is an individual matter to both the agent and the prospect. Everyone works it a bit differently.
Newsletters are ideal for follow-up. They keep your name in front of the client, do not cost the client productive time, and establish your expertise and value as an agent. Just as they build relationships with your existing book of business, so too do they build relationships with prospects.
Another area of newsletter effectiveness lies in target or niche marketing. Let's say you want to go after widget manufacturers. Consider a newsletter that deals with the specific needs of those who manufacture widgets. Immediately, they will perceive you as an agency with expertise in their field. You talk their language.
The Third Benefit-Meeting The Competition
A consumer's memory is relatively short. When faced with a renewal decision or the need to change coverage, the most recently seen name generally leaps to mind. Industry figures show that the average agency is in touch with its customers only once or twice a year. On the other hand, the alphabet houses and large direct writers continually bombard consumers with advertising that builds credibility and name recognition. And the competition is going after every segment of the marketplace, large and small.
Newsletters counteract the competition with a cost-effective method of keeping your name and your services at the forefront of the consumer's mind. Compared with the cost of other advertising methods, newsletters are ideal for battling the competition.
The Fourth Benefit-E&O Risk Management
We've all heard the E&O horror story of the P/C agent who was sued by a widow for failing to advise her then-living husband that the agency also offered Life insurance. To defend against an E&O claim or any type of litigation, the rule is document, document, document.
Regularly sent newsletters that advise clients of all your services and provide risk management information provide valid documents of defense against such claims. 'Mr. Jones, you admit receiving the various newsletters we've sent to you during the year. . . .'
Newsletters are an ongoing, non-threatening method of informing clients about changes in state and federal regulations, policies and coverages, and areas of exposure. Clients eventually come to expect such information. Although some might argue that a business letter can accomplish the same, business letters don't carry the visual impact of a newsletter.
Providers of E&O coverage are currently looking at assisting agencies with newsletter expense, either through cooperative funding or rate reduction. Already many carriers will share the costs of a newsletter program if it features their product lines. This approach is more targeted and less costly than regular print advertising and direct response. Business reply cards can be included.
The Fifth Benefit-Dividends
When you give clients and prospects information that protects their lives and property, they will remember you. Alerting them to the danger of arson or explaining how to protect their property from a natural disaster helps foster trust, and is sure to pay dividends.
Cutting Through The Clutter
We're all deluged with mail, much of it junk, to the point of information overload. Once you agree on the benefits of a newsletter, you need to overcome this clutter. Your newsletter must reach out and beckon to them!
Above all, do not waste clients' time with a less-than-desirable message. A good newsletter conveys timely and pertinent information to the reader. Appealing art and catchy headlines are critical to draw them into reading. Most of all, a good newsletter has a cohesive look and presents a variety of material in a balanced fashion. Hodgepodge won't cut it!
The first step to any direct-mail program is to analyze and determine the needs of your reader. An ongoing research effort must then be continually pursued to gather the facts, figures, quotes, statistics, and stories essential to good editorial content. The writing must be clear and simple to interest the reader.
Other considerations require that the copy be reviewed for legality and accuracy. Insurance is complex, and there must be E&O protection. After layout and typesetting: proof, proof, and proof again before printing and distribution.
The Sixth Benefit: The 'Do It Yourself' Syndrome
Everyone is watching pennies these days. As a result, your first reaction upon hearing of a good idea like a newsletter may be to save money by doing it yourself. Before undertaking such a project, however, some comments-
IMMS account executive William Wood's and mine-might prove to be of value.
From personal experience, as a writer and as president of both Sound Marketing and Compliance Publishing, I fell into the do-it-yourself trap a few years ago. What began as a shining star of an idea quickly turned into a burden, and the publishing dates soon stretched further and further apart to the point of nonexistence. Something else always took precedence.
According to Wood, 'Agencies that attempt their own newsletters often don't realize how much is involved. From the research and writing through the review and proofing, a lot of time and expense is involved.' In addition, an agency could end up spending more for the printing alone than an entire full-service program would cost. Depending on the frequency, such full-service programs usually cost only $1 to $5 per client every year.
Additional Benefits
Ever the marketer, IMMS' Michy Greenberg points out, 'Even the stuffing, addressing, and mailing can be beneficial to an agency's community relations. We've found that virtually every city or county in the United States has a nonprofit group, shelter society, fundraising effort, or senior center that can provide the logistical support for newsletter mailings. In some cases, this is the only source of support for their organization. When using such services, an agency is truly helping the community and has a tremendous opportunity for positive public relations.'
Author's note: Attesting to Greenberg's comment, our company has very successfully used the members of the local high school band to perform mailing services. The students donate their time, and we donate their 'earnings' to the Band Booster Fund.
Summing It All Up
A newsletter is not a great treatise or novel, but it serves an extremely useful purpose for insurance agents. Customers are demanding more and more education about their insurance purchases because insurance has a tremendous impact on the quality of their lives-health care, automobiles, homes, and their ability to cope with disasters and deaths. Insurance consumers, commercial and personal alike, rely on their agent for guidance and security. They need and benefit from your product.
A newsletter program establishes a one-to-one connection between customers and you, which results in more calls, more interest, more business, and greater profits. Can an agency afford not to have a newsletter program?
For information on the various newsletter programs offered by IMMS, call William Wood at (800) 753-4467.