How To Be A Successful Insurance Agent: Give, Don't Sell

I believe the new generation of insurance agents are strategically shifting from order-takers to value-givers. Instead of collecting information and spitting out figures, they are adding value beyond price to the insurance seeking and buying process. 

With the increasing commoditization of insurance (shocker I know, but the public actually believes those TV ads) and the changes in distribution methods (such as direct to customer via Internet or phone), insurance professionals have a choice to make:

Make yourself memorable and valuable or be forever rendered irrelevant

I'm lucky to have surrounded myself recently with several agents (both virtual and in real life) that are bucking the trend and establishing themselves as value-givers. Little by little, I'm adopting some of their methods. I like it. And it's working.   

Be warned- these are not what I call the “bare minimum” levels of customer service- such as returning a call when promised, being flexible and offering multiple communication channels. If you're not reaching at least the bare minimum, you're not ready for what I'm going to say. Stop reading and go back to square one. NOW. Then come back and read. I'll still be here. :)  

Here are some ideas to provide value to your customers

Most of these ideas can be done at little to no cost. The real cost here is your time.  

• Send a handwritten thank you note to a new customer. I'm not saying you have to MAKE the card, just jot down a message in your own handwriting and sign it. We have some humorous insurance-themed cards we bought from Harrison Greetings. (Type “insurance” in the search box.) They have several to choose from.
• Include a gift card to a local business. I've partnered with a retailer across the street from my office and he provides $10 gift cards for my agency to include in the card (you can read the details here). My customers are excited and he gets business. Win-win.
• *Really creative idea alert* Instead of a traditional card, buy those photo cards where you can slide in your own picture. Snap a photo of the business or house you're insuring and on the inside write: “Thanks for allowing us to be in this picture.” You will have already taken pictures for your underwriter, so it’s no big leap to print off one for the card. 
• If you have an agency blog, choose one of your commercial customers to make the “Spotlight Partner of the Month”. Interview them about their business, and then write a post, complete with pics. Or you could elect to do as a video post, if the business agrees. This gives the business a great chance to market itself at virtually no expense and shows the customer you want to be partners in the truest sense. 
• Send a newsletter full of helpful information on a regular basis. Do NOT send a promotional piece that proclaims how great the agency is. That's crap. The customer doesn't care. They just want to know how you can help them. And no, you don't have to write it from scratch. PIA of Ohio offers a pre-done newsletter every quarter- all I have to do is put the agency information on it. It’s a great publication, with lots of good info for consumers. Perhaps your state association or another industry group offers something similar. You can get an idea of the quality of their newsletters by checking out the past few quarters on my agency website.
• Send interesting and personalized information. When you read something that would be of value to your customers, whether in print or online, send it to them. Include a message that says: “Thought of you when I saw this. Hope it's helpful.” 
• Establish yourself as a go-to resource in your community for all things insurance. Yes, even if those in your community have insurance at a different agency. In the past week, I've had two phone calls- one from a realtor, the other from a governmental organization. They wanted my input and said specifically, “I didn't know the answer, but knew that you were the person I should call.” THAT is the biggest professional compliment I could ever receive.

These are just a few ideas- I hope the industry has many more.  

How about you? What's working at your agency? Let's share and help each other out. Better yet, let's rock the industry. It's about time.