Job Satisfaction Seen As Key In Serving Clients
Independent agents say they understand the importance of customer service, but few say they understand how to deliver it.
Seventy-eight percent of agents agree that an agency's success depends upon providing excellent customer service, according to a recent survey by the Independent Insurance Agents of America, headquartered in Alexandria, Va. In that same survey, however, only 23 percent said they felt that they were actually reaching this critical goal.
So how do agencies go about achieving this goal? How do they best deliver the one thing that differentiates them from most other insurance distribution channels?
It should not be a surprise that the answers to these questions are not based on the bottom line, productivity, or happy customers. They ultimately come from the people providing the service.
Those who provide this service have to find joy in helping others, even when they do not feel like it or when the customer does not deserve it. It just makes sense.
Who gets to experience fun when making a customer laugh? Who gets to feel that his or her job is more meaningful after they have helped a customer understand a difficult claim situation or grasp the concept of a premium audit?
Simply, its the provider of the service. When the provider of customer service is happy with their job, and how they do it, ultimately, the customer wins.
So how does a producer cultivate the attitude of superior service in an agency, empowering both the employee and their customer to get what they want?
The answer lies in eight key elements to delivering great customer service:
Know your customer.
Understand and care about the "human" elements in each customer, from teen driver to chief executive officer. Establishing this connection provides the opportunity to take their problems "personally" and provide them with the solution that an agency representative would want should the same issues arise in his or her life.
Communication.
Clear and concise information delivered in a simple format is a powerful tool. The representative has the power to make customers feel good or bad just by the way he or she communicates. Because information is power, there may be a tendency to give too much information incorporating technical terms that may confuse clients. Keep it simple and keep your customers.
Sell yourself.
A positive, upbeat view of the agency and all the products and services it provides is a very strong enticement to new and old customers alike. If the agent can bring energy and enthusiasm into each customer encounter, he or she will be rewarded with customers that stay and a more meaningful and productive work environment.
Knowledge.
The basic difference between knowledge and information is that information can be put down on paper, while knowledge is inherent to people and best transferred through relationships. When the agent or representative explains to a customer simply how, when, where and why their needs will be met by the agency, the customer feels in control.
Deal with dissatisfaction directly.
It really does not matter whether the customer is wrong or right. The agent or representative has to let the customer vent and they have to listen, or risk losing them forever.
Remember that the customer may not be in control at the moment, but the agent or representative needs to remain calm. A professional demeanor should quickly alleviate the outburst. Be a true sounding board, accept responsibility for the problem and take every action possible to remedy the situation quickly. The ability to solve problems can turn service into opportunities.
Ask for and accept customer insight.
Many clients have a great amount of creativity and they do not mind sharing it with you. If a client is asked what would make them happy, most would love to tell. And even if they do not express it outright, the agent should be on the lookout for happy customers and investigate the source of their happiness.
Cultivate an environment in the agency where positive customer experiences are replicated often, thus making them the norm and not the exception.
Understand that every day is not a good day.
We all have stress from many factors in our lives, both personal and business-related. Recognize that stress can affect the customer service being provided by the agency and look for ways to help each other through a difficult day.
A helpful piece of advise may be to recognize that the best solution is to let go of the problems that cannot be addressed in the workplace. Serve the customer first. At the end of the day, take time to revisit any issues that may be causing stress in the workplace and find ways to diminish their effects on employees attitude.
Service from the top down.
Do you walk the walk and talk the talk? If not, how can you, the producer, expect your employees to find pleasure in serving customers. An agent who provides great service can reap the benefits in many ways, both with happy customers and pleasant employees. Remember, one small step for you may be a giant step for your business.
While finding and promoting joy in the customer service program might not be in the agencys business plan, it should be the philosophy, principle and attitude of the whole organization. It must be shared by all to work effectively, and when it works, your agency wins.
Madelyn H. Flannagan is vice president of research and education for the Independent Insurance Agents of America in Alexandria, Va.
Reproduced from National Underwriter Property & Casualty/Risk & Benefits Management Edition, October 29, 2001. Copyright 2001 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.
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