Delivering Value and Individualized Customer Service
By: Ray Whitehouse, Co-Owner & Agent at Johnson-Pohlmann Insurance
When it comes to delivering the best customer service and value for your customers, you always want to put your best foot forward. Every interaction you have with a customer gives them an impression of your company. Are your customers happy with their decision to give you their business? Are they having some regrets? Check in from time to time to see how clients are doing and gauge how satisfied they are with your agency.
At Johnson Pohlmann, we try to ensure that our customer service representatives know as much information as possible about the customers that are calling to ask about their policy. Many of our local Kentucky residents will call in with questions about their policy. We believe that our CSRs should be able to answer any questions our clients may have regarding their Kentucky auto insurance, home owners, boat, life or any other policy that a customer may have.
If you are not already, you should be using these tactics to improve the service you are offering your customers.
Take the Temperature of Your Customers:
Say Ahh! When you have established a relationship with your customers ask them to fill out a customer survey to give you direct feedback on how they perceive their individual level of customer service. Take the information and find out where you can improve. As an independent insurance agency, your customers do business with you because you can offer them a better customer service experience than large carriers. Make sure you are delivering what your customers are looking for on your end. A short survey with numerical values rating your performance is a simple way to get some informative feedback.
Use Metrics to Drive Your Service:
You are spending time gathering information from your customers so why not use it to improve your overall customer service strategies? Collecting data is an aimless task if you do not ultimately apply it to improving your business. Keep statistical data on everything from the average time spent with a customer on the phone, common questions and concerns, and the overall customer satisfaction numbers. How many customers gave you high service ratings?
Try Harder to Understand Your Customers:
Many times it can be easy to forget where a customer is coming from when they call you to ask a question regarding their policy. Typically when someone calls customer service they are looking for a brief to the point answer to their question. The last thing they want to do is sit on hold for 10 minutes to get a simple answer to their question. Ask yourself, how can you streamline this process? Do you notice any bottlenecks in the process? If several customers contact your CSRs with very similar questions, maybe you should add something to your Facebook page, or website answering the question on a Frequently Asked Questions page.
Some Tips for Choosing the Best Inexpensive Auto Insurance Policy
As a consumer, the wide selection of insurance products available today may seem wonderful, but the wide selection can make it very difficult for consumers to find outstanding deals and proper coverage. If you are having a hard time sniffing out inexpensive auto insurance, or you are having a hard time finding the right policy for you, you should read the following tips.
Tip 1 – Talk about insurance with your family and friends. Your friends and family can relate a great deal of information about the insurance industry to you if you consult with them before making a purchase. The information your friends and family provide you with will also help you find the best companies available in the industry too.
If your friends and family love the services of a specific company, you can be fairly certain that you will love that company’s services too. Also, your loved ones can guide you towards the most affordable companies too. If your friend has recently searched for the cheapest policies available in the industry, you can use their research to uncover the most affordable policy available to you today.
Tip 2 – Seek out professional advice. Many people rush into buying insurance policies just to find out that they did not purchase enough coverage. If you want to avoid exposing yourself to the risks of being underinsured, or you want to avoid spending too much on your policy, professional advice can give you the guidance you need.
Not only will professionals like insurance brokers and financial planners be able to estimate how much insurance you need, but they can also help you find affordable policies too. If you are working with an extremely limited budget, an insurance broker can look through the offerings of multiple companies and show you what you can afford.
Tip 3 – Work with companies to lower the cost of your insurance. Many companies are willing to drastically reduce the cost of their policies if the policies are tweaked in various ways. If you are willing to accept a smaller amount of coverage from the company you are working with, they will likely be more than willing to accept smaller monthly payments from you.
Many companies also offer special discounts to their customers too. If you qualify for these discounts, you may be able to save hundreds of dollars on your policy every single year. You can save money by purchasing multiple policies from one company. You can also obtain deep discounts if you are a good driver and a good student. These special discounts will certainly help you find a very inexpensive auto insurance policy.
How to Compare Car Insurance Effectively?
There are different ways to make car insurance compare in terms of the different contributions we can get on the Internet. Here are some advice to make decision.
1) Make a list.
Ask all family members, friends and even co-workers, who are drivers and have a car on the various insurance companies that have and have had and the advantages and disadvantages of each. Take note of all the data that interest you and try to make a little diagram with the worst and best companies.
2) Check with the best companies in its list of discounts or special promotions.
Once you have your list of best car insurance companies call each and ask about possible discounts and new members. Many auto insurance companies offer discounts for those who already have a policy in another company and for those few bad driving history or fines. Compare the discounts offered by each, but not only this, but especially the scope and exclusions of coverage.
3) Compare prices versus benefits.
When comparing car insurance, we must not only be interested in the price but also in coverage. It is a big mistake to decide only on the basis of price and coverage. Always compare the price versus the scope of coverage.
