https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/1025/HOW-TO-AVOID-THE-12-MOST-COMMON-CAUSES-OF-BROADCAST-TOWER-LOSS/
... ) use a grid review to obtain power from another direction. Have a reciprocal arrangement to share towers with another station. 9. LEASING TOO MUCH TOWER SPACE. With increasing regularity, towers are being used to generate additional income. Tower space is being rented for microwaves dishes and cellular telephones, police, utility company, signal relay, local business antennas, as well as even to competitors looking for an antenna location. Each addition to a tower affects the ability of the structure to withstand the adverse weather conditions for which it was designed. A structural engineer should be engaged to inspect the tower every three years or when adding additional equipment. 10. INADEQUATE SECURITY. Security is becoming more of an issue, particularly in certain areas where towers and studios are located. The property should be fenced in, or at the least the road or walkways should have locked gates. Depending where the facilities are located, floodlighting roads, walks, and gates is essential, as well as the building, parking areas, and entrances. Lighting is a major factor in deterring vandalism and other types of crime and reducing the possibility of injury. The transmission building, the tower base, and guy anchors should all be fenced-if not the entire property. Along with minimizing the possibility of vandalism, fencing provides protection for these key areas from being struck by trash removers or farm equipment. Barbed wire should be added to the fencing around these facilities. AM towers can cause electrical injury to animals or people, so it is prudent to erect fencing. Also, the effects of RF radiation emphasize the ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/2024/HOW-TO-BUY-SELL-MERGE-OR-PERPETUATE-AN-AGENCY-%E2%80%93-PART-V/
...t a win/win level. Swing for the fences? Some people always want to swing for the fences. In agency sale terms, that means ins...er, people who want to swing for the fences should realize that they’ll ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/285/The-Value-Of-A-Satisfied-Customer/
... x No Thanks Loading.. The Value Of A Satisfied Customer 4/30/2013 by CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand This content has not been rated yet. Every agency has three types of customers. First are those who will leave for a lower price. Second are those on the fence; they're not true price shoppers, but they don't have strong ties to an agency, either. Third are those willing to pay more just to maintain a relationship. If you treat the customers in this third group well, they'll stay with your agency even if they have to pay a little more. Your time and energy are limited. Do you want to spend time on customers who'll stay or the ones who'll leave? Many agents spend precious time on those who'll go. For example, the same clients create late payment problems month after month, year after year. The agency derives no benefit from rewriting, reinstating, collecting, and following up on these policies. Yet every time I've suggested that an agency not rewrite such customers more than once, the agency always protests that it doesn't want to lose the accounts. But these clients cost the agency money. On the other hand, your agency can significantly increase its profits by concentrating on profitable accounts. The average agency has a 7% profit margin. If 50% of your customers are already satisfied and your agency increases its percentage of satisfied customers by 25%, you could ostensibly have prices 10% higher than the market on 75% of your book with no extra cost. On a book of $100, ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/2296/Producer-Success-Lesson-21-You-Gotta-Have-A-System/
... your results? The system has five steps: Qualify for pain. Qualify for money. Qualify for decision-making ability. Obtain a verbal contract. Present. QUALIFY FOR Pain Previously I talked about finding pain. I'll also go into it in more depth in lesson 23. The easiest way to uncover pain is to tell stories, ask questions, then clarify the answers. Here's an example: The Story Salesperson: I had a neighbor with a trampoline in his backyard. One of the kids from down the street came over for a quick jump, fell off, and broke his arm. His dad was an attorney, and he sued my neighbor. It cost the guy about $20,000. I noticed you have a trampoline. The Questions Of course, you've got that six-foot fence, and kids can't climb them, can they? Executive: Shoot, my kids don't even slow down when they come to one of those. Do you think that's a problem? Clarification Salesperson: What do you mean by problem? Executive: Well, I'm afraid that stupid trampoline could cost me a lot of money. Salesperson: Well, get rid of it. The kids wouldn't miss it that much, would they? Executive: No way - my kids would kill me. Salesperson: Hmm, could be a problem. So what would you like to happen? ' Executive: Does my Homeowner's insurance cover me if somebody gets hurt on it? You take it from here. The pain you uncover at this stage is the basis for the sale. I've said it ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/1029/TORNADOES-AND-THUNDERSTORMS/
... farm equipment, golf clubs, wire fences, etc. Stay away from beaches an...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/1322/DWELLING-REPLACEMENT-COST-FORM/
... Open Porch Additional Cars per Garage (over two) Note: For Finished & Partially Finished Basements: 1. Finished basements: count only the finished rooms. 2. Partially finished basements: if the total unit count of the finished area in the basement exceeds Additional Information: Year House Built Square Footage: Year of last updating on: Roof Wiring Plumbing Heating Heat Type: Woodstove (if yes, is it used often?) Large Detached Building Smoke Alarm Deadbolt Locks Non-Smoker Central Station Reporting Burglar Alarm Police Station Reporting Burglar Alarm Central Station Reporting Fire Alarm Fire Department Reporting Fire Alarm Automatic Sprinkler System Central Vacuum System Domestic Solar Hot Water Heater Hot Tub Sauna Balconies (if yes, approximate size) Decks (if yes, approximate size) Swimming Pool (if yes, is it fenced in?) Electronic Garage Door Opener (how many) Wet Bar Air Conditioning (Central or through the wall unit(s ) - how many) Skylights (if yes, how many) Trash Compactor Whole House Fan Countertop Range Intercom System Garbage Disposal&l Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory of carriers, wholesalers and service providers. Negotiate lucrative contracts with carriers and wholesalers. Net result. More revenue for your agency! Clients & Prospects will research you, your co-workers and your agency here. The most comprehensive online insurance industry reference library ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/495/Eight-Ways-To-Make-Direct-Marketing-Copy-Work-Harder/
... gain opportunity) Call for action Offer description and benefit(s ) Call to action (Note: repeat steps D and E until you're out of compelling benefits or space) Mention product, brief benefits Add a "sweetener" (a reason to respond now, such as a giveaway or limited-time discount) Summarize benefits of responding (keep it punchy) Restate call to action 7. MAKE EVERY WORD COUNT- BUT DON'T COUNT WORDS In direct marketing we can't afford to waste words, but we shouldn't unnecessarily withhold them, either. Stop writing when you've exhausted all the most compelling reasons to respond without being repetitive- and no earlier. If you hold back a few key benefits just to satisfy someone's idea of ideal copy length, you risk losing the reader who might have been on the fence and needed just a little more convincing. 8. TAKE THE SKIMMER TEST Finally, go back to the top and read only the headlines, subheads, and underlined or bolded phrases. These words alone should tell your story. If they don't, adjust as necessary. CONCLUSION We already admitted that the audience, lists, media, and offer make the greatest impact on response. So why bother with all of this? The best reason: money. You'll spend a sizeable chunk on media, design, and production. Why wouldn't you want to maximize the return on your investment? Patricia A.Czech can be reached at Ultimate Insurance Resource Inc., 8353 Sagebrush Road, North Platte, NE 69101, Phone (308) 532-5577, e-mail [email protected] , Web site http: ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/2562/14-TIPS-FOR-SELLING-IN-A-HARD-MARKET/
... . Strong relationships based on genuine interest, empathy, and compassion create fierce, almost fanatical, loyalty. If you treat your customers like family and go beyond the call of duty when needed, no coverage perks or pricing discounts can approach the effectiveness of such relationships. Sales Tip #9 : Use testimonials Include testimonials of long-term clients in your marketing materials. Every time you're involved in a claim "victory" for an insured, ask for a testimonial. Every time you exceed the service expectations of a customer, seek a testimonial. If possible, target these statements so that recipients of your materials know the claimants. Flaunt the fact that so-and-so chose your agency or company rather than a competitor. If needed, ask a respected client to make a personal visit to a customer on the fence. Prospects will appreciate your personal interest and value the opinions of a peer. Sales Tip #10: Utilize multiple closes An effective sales training program can teach dozens of proven techniques that you can use to close the account. For example: Direct close. Simply ask for the check. Time-driven close. "Because rates are going up next week, buy now" Relationship close. If applicable, this is a foolproof method. Deal/concession close. If the prospect balks, up the ante by adding such benefits as discounted seminars or loss control services. Sales Tip #11: Provide world class service Offer consistent, personalized, responsive, reliable, accurate, and professional customer service. Do the unexpected to dazzle customers with your commitment to service excellence. Sales Tip #12 ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/2291/Producer-Success-Lesson-16-Telling-Isnt-Selling/
... by helping them recall a painful experience. Now you're ready to work on solutions. Tell Stories Instead of asking your client if they'd like to increase their liability limits to $100,000, try storytelling. Help the client construct a situation in which they feel they need more coverage, such as this: I knew a family that had a trampoline in their back yard. The neighborhood kids liked to use it, too. Well, when the family went on vacation, one of the kids next door came over for a few quick jumps. Of course, he fell off and broke something, and of course, his dad was an attorney. You have a trampoline, too, don't you? Of course, this would never happen to you. You've got that six-foot privacy fence, right? Kids can't climb those things. This isn't a terribly far-fetched story, by the way. Things like this happen all the time. Have you ever heard of a child drowning in a neighbor's pool? Some producers clip newspaper stories like these and take them on interviews. The Formula Keep in mind the formula I described earlier: Say the opposite of what you think. The prospect will disagree with you. Make the prospect repeat their statement. Continue to focus on the prospect's problem. Remember, the task is to let the client discover their pain. We can't tell them what it is; you have to ask focused questions that help the client (or the Commercial producer or the Risk Manager) uncover the source of their pain. EXERCISE List all the stories you can ...
https://completemarkets.com/Article/article-post/1337/RESERVATION-OF-RIGHTS-LETTERS-A-RISK-MANAGERS-GUIDE/
... to the claims rep via certified mail return receipt requested, and set a deadline for a response. This turns up the heat on an insurer to reassess its position, or provide further insight as to whether you are on solid footing. Press for specifics. Some insurers believe that reservation-of-rights letters should be vague. The rationale is that this leaves the insurer with more options. Policyholders and risk managers should counterattack vaguely worded reservation-of-rights letters. Do not tolerate fuzzy letters that do not specifically refer to policy language and policy provisions, chapter and verse. Press for particulars. Start your stopwatch. Once an insurer has reserved its rights, it must eventually declare whether or not it is covering the claim. In other words, reservation-of-rights letters have limited shelf lives. An insurer must eventually get off the fence. If not, a court may decide the issue or an insurer may be estopped (through inaction) from using its coverage defenses, notwithstanding its reservation. Moral to risk managers: after receiving a reservation of rights, keep after the insurer periodically to either disclaim or accept coverage. Seize the initiative. Advise the insurer that after a reasonable amount of time you are entitled to a definitive stance as to coverage, or else the carrier is estopped. Be a nag! Recognize what new doors and options this opens. If the insurer reserves its rights, you may be entitled to hire a lawyer of your choice-not the insurer's-at the insurer's expense. When an insurer hires the lawyer and reserves rights, it creates a potential conflict of interest: the lawyer hired by the insurer may uncover ...