Relying on your Sales and Marketing Representatives

According to Insurance Journal, in the second quarter of 2020, the global average of commercial insurance prices increased by 19%. The eleventh straight quarter that prices have risen and a certain tell-tale sign that a hard market is on the horizon. While I’m not going to delve into the specifics of what a hard market is, I do want to discuss how relying on your sales and marketing rep can be crucial in writing that piece of business that puts you over your production goals for the month.
 

As prices start to rise, the need to offer the most competitive quote does as well. Communication in these situations is key; by letting your sales rep know that you are facing tough competition, we can make sure we are offering our best price in the quickest manner possible. Along with the price, the speed of quoting also increases the chance of writing the business.

With the market turning, look at getting an updated appetite guide to find out what the most popular classes are. Certain classes of business that you are used to targeting may be tougher to write, however that can present opportunities for other lines of business that you can go after. The key here is being flexible and progressive when it comes to prospecting. Consider jumping on a phone call with your sales rep to discuss ways to approach a different industry that you’re not as familiar with. 

While being flexible and using great communication are important, we also need to be creative when it comes to offering coverage to your client. As the market hardens, the best price and coverage may not be provided by a package policy. That is when we can come into play and offer creative solutions by piecing together the best proposal. Although a package policy may be more desirable, coverage and price will take precedence when presenting to the client.
 

The market is ever-changing and can differ from month to month. As much as we like to provide you with updates on what we are noticing in the marketplace, your feedback is also vital for us to understand what you are seeing when working with that potential client. By providing insight on pricing and coverages, we’re able to take that feedback and improve our quotes. Often, the feedback that we receive from our agents regarding the marketplace presents opportunities for us to be competitive and help you write business. 

Your sales and marketing reps are there to help you write business, and our goal is to be a resource and provide added value throughout the entire process. By keeping an open dialog and communication on target pricing and coverage, having conversations to discuss our most popular classes, being creative and flexible, and offering feedback on what you are seeing on the front lines, we are able to add value to the entire sales process and increase the business we write together.