Relationships are vital to any industry. How important is the 'relationship' today in insurance? With social media tools like Twitter, Facebook and yes, blogging, is the relationship really important? Do we follow companies or people? Or is it a little of both?
At Jimcor we believe it is both. Relationships are first about people. You develop a relationship with the person you feel most comfortable with and that is who you will continue to do business with over time. You want to know that if you call five years from know that person will be there to help you - you want that stability.
However, that same person must also have the tools available to them (the markets for example) to provide you with the service you need to write the account. Without those tools the best relationship cannot succeed no matter how much you like the person.
So to the agent it is about both the person and the company.
At Jimcor we strive to be the best when it comes to customer service. We want to be the first and the last call our agents make and we want them to know they can contact us with questions regarding coverage, markets, etc.
Each year we continue to improve our customer service standards - whether that means quicker quotes or more online programs - either way we give the clients what they want, when they want it and make sure we are there when they need us.
Exceptional customer service can be achieved very simply if your business consistently does the following things:
Be accessible. Answer your phone before the third ring. Have a means for the customer to reach someone immediately without having to leave a voicemail message. People want to talk to a live person.
Listen to complaints or mistakes and fix them. Thank your customer for making you aware of any issues they are having and get them fixed. Chances are there are 24 others with a similar problem.
Provide options. Give your customer choices on how they can do business with you. Make it as easy as possible for them to place their business with you.
Be honest. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Reliability is the key to a great relationship.
Be helpful and courteous. Go the extra mile, offer more and ask if there is anything else you can do for your customer.
Be accessible. Answer your phone before the third ring. Have a means for the customer to reach someone immediately without having to leave a voicemail message. People want to talk to a live person.
Listen to complaints or mistakes and fix them. Thank your customer for making you aware of any issues they are having and get them fixed. Chances are there are 24 others with a similar problem.
Provide options. Give your customer choices on how they can do business with you. Make it as easy as possible for them to place their business with you.
Be honest. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Reliability is the key to a great relationship.
Be helpful and courteous. Go the extra mile, offer more and ask if there is anything else you can do for your customer.
These tips, though simple, might take time. Post them in your office. Talk to your staff. Think of ways to make implementation fun.
USLI, one of our over 50 companies, was kind enough to let us copy these customer service points from their newsletter. Companies, vendors, and associations in our industry have tools available that can help make your agency stronger and improve your service standards. Reach out to your business partners to find out what free tools are available to you ... we did!
Relationships and customer service. Business may be conducted online and people may tweet and blog, but it seems the more things change the more they stay the same... our industry is still all about the people at the end of the day.
At Jimcor we pride ourselves on great people, great companies and great clients.
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