St. Paul Introduces MainStreet New York
The head of The St. Paul Companies marked the occasion of his companys 150th birthday recently by introducing a new small commercial product that underscores what he said is the company's re-focused positioning for success.
Jay Fishman, chairman and chief executive officer of the St. Paul, Minn.-based company, introduced the companys new offering of small commercial coverage to more than 200 independent agents from the New York area.
The introduction is part of a multistate tour that he said is designed to introduce what he felt had been "a big gap" in the companys offerings–small commercial insurance.
Mr. Fishman said the company's latest venture is part of the repositioning the company has been going through since he took over 18 months ago. When he came on board, he said, The St. Paul was viewed as a niche player "not properly focused on success."
To be successful, he said, the company had to become more mainstream and needed to exit businesses that "threatened its future."
One of those exits was medical malpractice, which Mr. Fishman said he felt if the company had not exited, "would have sunk the company."
Aiming to become a "key trading partner" with agents, The St. Paul has transformed its attitude and focus, working to provide products that agents need for their clients.
The new offering, called "St. Paul MainStreet," is designed for commercial small-business clients with revenues of less than $15 million and less than 100 employees, the company said.
The strategy, said Marita Zuraitis, president and chief executive officer, commercial lines, is to have insurance products for agents that allow them to "grow with the customer"–as their customers businesses grows.
The St. Paul is looking to become one of the top three markets agents go to for their clients, Ms. Zuraitis added.
Marc Schmittlein, president, small commercial, said the company asked agents what they need and expect for a successful small commercial lines practice. The St. Paul responded by adding new regional sales directors and state account executives to help agents develop their new accounts with the carrier.
The companys "Main Street" coverage is designed to be competitive with other companies' commercial lines insurance products throughout the country, said Mr. Schmittlein.
St. Pauls new product line has been approved in 24 states, with approval for rate and coverage in New York expected in April.
Mr. Schmittlein noted that small commercial insurance makes up a large amount of an agencys business, but only a small proportion of its profit. He suggested that it follows "the 80-20 rule," with 80 percent of the business accounting for only 20 percent of profits.
Agents, he reported, said they wanted a more cost-effective line. The company responded by setting up a customer service center in Atlanta for commercial clients. Mr. Schmittlein is looking at setting up a second facility on the West Coast.
The last leg to providing a small commercial product line that agents will want to use involves technology, Mr. Schmittlein explained. He said SPCXpress is the company's online application process that can simplify applying for coverage online.
The software allows agents to fill out an application online. With simple risks, a policy can be quoted and purchased in a matter of minutes, the company said. More complicated applications will receive an answer within 24 hours.
"After you've spent a whole day getting a lead, we'd better be able to respond quickly to you," observed Mr. Fishman. "There is nothing worse than a slow no."
In summary, Mr. Fishman said, "We are not looking to push our product on you. Our goal is to respond to your needs."
Reproduced from National Underwriter Edition, March 17, 2003. Copyright 2003 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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