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May 23, 2006 – a member benefit of the AIMS Society – PO Box 35718, Richmond, VA 23235 – phone: 804-674-6466

It’s All About Communicating Expectations By Kitty Ambers, CPIA, CIC, CISR, CPIW, CRMCS

Luck is when preparation meets opportunity! GET PREPARED by participating in the Insurance Success Have you ever been aggravated or disappointed by a customer service interaction because your expectations about what you purchased were different from those of the seller? For example, you didn’t Seminars! know the store’s return policy because no one bothered to mention it to you and you didn’t read the fine print on your receipt. Or, maybe the information you received from the seller was just wrong? Ever Upcoming 2006 Seminars been sitting at home waiting for that furniture delivery that was supposed to happen between 10 a.m. – (Call our Sponsors directly to register) 2 p.m. and they finally showed up at 6 p.m.? Frustrating, huh? How many times do we, unintentionally, aggravate or disappoint a client because expectations regarding an insurance policy we sold were not made clear? May 23 – CPIA 1 – Pittsburg, PA May 24 – CPIA 2 – Pittsburg, PA One of the largest causes of fear and frustration is dealing in the unknown. By effectively outlining May 25 – CPIA 3 – Pittsburg, PA expectations to basically explain what happens next, we can allay fears and create strong relationships with our clients. But, in our world of “processing”, how do we make communicating expectations a (Sponsored by Insurance Agents & Brokers – hallmark of outstanding service? www.iabgroup.com – 717-795-9100) Here are a few ideas that may help: May 23 – CPIA 1 – Fort Myers, FL  Provide a Customer Service Agreement – From the moment a prospect buys from you, clear customer service expectations should be outlined. The customer service agreement June 20 – CPIA 2 – Fort Myers, FL may contain: July 25 – CPIA 3 – Fort Myers, FL o A timeline for policy delivery and review (Sponsored by Insurance Education Corp. – o An installment schedule for billing 239-450-0668) o Loss Control visits or inspections that may occur o Who to call for questions, policy changes, claims, etc. June 20 – CPIA 1 – Baltimore, MD o Type of contact desired by the new client (personal visit, email, phone, fax, snail- mail) June 21 – CPIA 2 – Baltimore, MD o Instructions for any type of automated, self-service that a client may be able to June 22 – CPIA 3 – Baltimore, MD access (Sponsored by Insurance Agents & Brokers – o A schedule of check-up visits to be conducted by the producer www.iabgroup.com – 717-795-9100) o An outline of what happens as the renewal date draws near o TIP: Set reminders for any agreed to dates in your agency management system so that all who work on the account can readily see what the expectations are. More dates available…visit www.aimssociety.com for a complete  Outline expectations with every customer service transaction – Each time a client makes a policy change or files a claim, be sure to let the client know what should happen next. For schedule. example, let the client know that an adjuster should be contacting them within X number of days and have them let you know if this doesn’t occur.

Save the Date…. Review and renegotiate the Customer Service Agreement regularly – During renewal time is a great opportunity to review all of the customer service transactions that you performed for a client according to the Customer Service Agreement. Use your automated transaction log to monitor and 20th Annual PRO-to-PRO track this. During this review is a perfect time to seek client satisfaction with your agency’s performance. Fix what needs fixing, reiterate the terms or outline any revisions to the agreement, and & Producer Idea Exchange agree upon expectations for the renewal term.

March 1 - 3, 2007  Deliver a Claims Kit that outlines what to do in the event of a loss or claim. This kit should ideally be customized by coverage type and may include: Radisson Suites o any special reporting forms that may be necessary Tucson, AZ o agency and company contact names and phone numbers o a camera o instructions on securing any undamaged property o NOTE: check with your insurance companies to see what they offer that could be included in your agency-branded “kit”

A sample “Customer Service Agreement” can be found online in AIMS Society Members-Only library. Feel free to use it as a starting point for developing your own document.

Please share results of implementing any Quik Sales Tip along with any other ideas you have used to enhance marketing and sales! We’d love to feature you and your agency’s ideas in future articles!