Don't Gag Your Ambassadors!

When I suggested during a recent speech on how to improve the industry's lousy image that insurers make use of their army of employees as good-will ambassadors, I was pigeonholed afterwards by a few very nervous executives who complained that their legal departments would never allow such an initiative to be launched. If that's true, the industry is cutting off its nose to spite its face.

My speech before the Society of Insurance Financial Management down in Boca Raton was headlined: “The Industry's Image and Its Impact on the Bottom Line.”

One of the ideas I put forth was that when the hundreds of thousands of people who work in this industry return to live among the “civilians” who know nothing about the insurance business, they should be encouraged (and prepared) to defend themselves and their profession whenever someone bashes carriers at PTA meetings, family barbecues, bowling leagues, etc.

After my speech, a number of folks came by shaking their heads. One said his carrier not only specifically forbids employees from speaking about the company outside the office, but they go so far as to make their people sign an agreement to that effect, with termination an option for violators.

That's just great. So when some blowhard at a neighborhood event starts taking shots at the business, the person who knows better has a gag slapped on them by their own company!

I realize there are legal implications here, but there is also a risk-reward equation to take into account. I believe that by silencing those who make their living in the insurance business when they have a chance to defend the industry's honor and integrity, carriers are losing a golden opportunity to counter a lot of the disinformation and misconceptions floating around.

Of course, to make this work, people need to be trained on how to respond when the industry comes under fire in their presence. In addition, it should be made clear that talking with your friend or neighbor is a lot different than being interviewed on the record by a member of the media.

I also understand that making this work will take regular communication, so that people are up to speed on controversies tarnishing the industry's image, and are armed with counterarguments to uninformed criticism.

The fear of being sued isn't the only hurdle this idea will have to clear. While speaking last year before the Insurance Marketing Communications Association, the idea was raised of enlisting the support of the industry's entire workforce. The problem the PR people in attendance brought up was budgetary, rather than legal. None believed their carriers would ever put up the funds necessary to brief employees and keep them up-to-speed.

If true, this would demonstrate the old refrain about being penny wise and pound foolish. A modest investment could pay big dividends if an informed and motivated workforce helped turn around the industry's poor reputation.

What do you folks think?