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T H U R S D A Y , J U N E 1 1 , 2 0 0 9 Industry News
IIABA News
Producer Groups Join Forces on Health Care Reform Legislative Fly-In
The Big “I,” together with AHIA-NAIFA Health and Employee Benefits (AHIA), The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB), the National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) and the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) recently announced they will host a special joint health care reform Capitol Hill fly-in July 14-15.
Collectively, these groups represent more than 500,000 professional health insurance advisors, agents, brokers, consultants and employee benefit specialists.
With both the U.S. House and Senate poised to consider health care reform legislation in late July, this event is a tremendous opportunity for the health insurance producer community to send a loud message to Congress about preserving the private delivery of health insurance and to voice opposition to the creation of a public plan that would unfairly compete against private insurance companies in the health insurance marketplace.
Participants will lobby their representatives in Congress about the important role professional health insurance advisors, agents, brokers, consultants and employee benefit specialists play in providing health care to millions of Americans.
Click here to register for the fly-in and click here for more information on the event, as detailed in last week’s Insurance News & Views.
ACT
Big “I” to Host Second Webinar on Transport Layer Security
The Big “I” Agents Council for Technology (ACT) will host another free webinar, “Protecting Independent Agent Clients with Secure E-mail Using TLS (Transport Layer Security),” on June 23 from 1:30-2:30 p.m. EST.
ACT Executive Director Jeff Yates will moderate the discussion, which will feature panelists Jim Rogers, director of distribution technology at The Hartford, and Tim Woodcock, president of Courtesy Computers. Click here to register for the webinar.
“Regular unsecured e-mail is like sending a postcard through the mail,” says Yates. “Confidential consumer information must be protected when sending e-mails to carriers, such as those where commercial lines applications are attached. How to protect such sensitive data through the Internet is an important topic that has generated a lot of interest. We had 334 agents and carrier representatives attend the last showing of this webinar and received an incredible amount of positive follow-up interest.”
The first half hour of the webinar will explain the risks of unsecured e-mail and how TLS works. The second half hour will include a more technical discussion onthe implementation of TLS on Microsoft Exchange servers.
“ACT encourages independent agents and carriers to implement TLS e-mail encryption wherever possible to protect the sensitive client information being sent between carriers and clients,” Yates adds. “Taking these measures positions the agency well with regard to the various federal and state privacy, security and data breach laws.”
TLS is available on most up-to-date in-house e-mail servers (such as Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes). It is not currently available on hosted e-mail such as Hotmail, Gmail or Yahoo. Once implemented by the agency’s technology professional, TLS is transparent to the user and the only cost is for the security certificate. It provides a better agent workflow than proprietary e-mail solutions imposed by the carrier. Many carriers are already enabled with TLS.
ACT has also produced the article “Protect Your Clients with Secure Email using TLS,” as well as agents’ frequently asked questions about TLS, which can be found at www.independentagent.com/act at the “Agency Security/Customer Privacy” link. A recording of the webinar will be available on the Web site as well.
Education
To Close or Not to Close? Webinar Series Offers Sales Training
The Elite Force sales training program provides steps to make selling easier and more effective by developing skills in prospecting, presenting and closing. Program participants can explore the two steps in closing a sale: summarizing all benefits previously accepted and requesting a commitment on the sales call objective.
Summarizing the benefits at the end of the sales call reminds the customer of the needs and problems that have been uncovered and resolved. This makes customers more receptive to making a commitment and minimizes stalling in most customers, as there are strong positive reasons to accept your proposal. The summary should include all benefits previously accepted by the customer, but should never include those not accepted or those not previously mentioned during the sales call. Any number of opening phrases will serve to begin the summary, such as, “Let’s review all the things we’ve agreed to so far” or “Let’s review the advantages of us handling your insurance.” In requesting a commitment, attitude and phraseology are very important. The agent’s positive attitude must be evident, both in tone and in words. Of course, if important customer needs and concerns have been identified and addressed, the agent has every reason to be positive and upbeat.
Learn more about closing a sale as s part of the Big “I” insurance sales model webinar series, with “How Objections Help You Close the Deal,” scheduled for June 24 at 2 p.m. EST. The final session in the series focuses on “The Closing Toolkit” and is scheduled for July 22 at 2 p.m. EST. Click here for more information, registration links and information on other webinars. Click here to download the insurance sales model webinar flyer.
The Elite Force Sales Training program is a 12-day program covering everything from prospecting to data gathering and closing, and teaches the full psychology of the sale, not just tricks or gimmicks. The course also coverspersonality traits, negotiation skills, time management, consultative relationship building, building credibility and more. To see whether Elite Force Sales Training is available in your state, click here to request more information.
InVEST
Increase Agency Perpetuation, Attend InVEST’s State Champions Workshop
For the third straight year, InVEST will host the State Champions Workshop on June 29-July 1 in Westfield Center, Ohio. The workshop is dedicated to educating insurance professionals on how to build, implement and grow an InVEST program in their states to increase agency perpetuation.
“InVEST is my top priority and key to attracting new talent to our industry,” says Big “I” Chairman Brett Nilsson. “With the average age of an insurance professional at 54, the industry will soon see the drastic effects of not bringing in fresh talent as baby boomers begin to retire.”
The workshop will begin with an introduction entitled, “InVEST 101,” which provides an overview of InVEST for those unfamiliar with the program. Tuesday’s agenda includes presentations by InVEST teachers and liaisons who will provide insights on how to build and implement InVEST high school and community college programs. Workshop attendees will learn how to improve or start their own programs in their respective states. The program will conclude on Wednesday with presentations by InVEST staff on the many free resources available through the program, and the importance of social networking in the insurance industry to attract the millennial generation.
Space is limited and is filling fast! Register today and secure your opportunity to train talented recruits to fill the ranks.
Click here to register. For more information, contact Jennifer Robinson at 1-800-221-7917; jennifer.robinson@iiaba.net.
Young Agents
2009 Young Agents Leadership Institute Events Set
Join fellow Young Agents at the 2009 Young Agents Leadership Institute being held September 11-13 at Hilton New Orleans Riverside in New Orleans. This exciting event features:
Friday, Sept. 11:
- ACT special joint event – “Best Practices Workflows to Enhance Agency Productivity & Sales”
- Big “I” leadership community project
- Young Agents awards reception with Big “I” leadership
- Young Agents welcome reception Saturday, Sept. 12:
- Young Agents breakfast and motivational keynotes speaker
- Young Agents speed session
- Big “I” installation of officers luncheon
- Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Louisiana dessert reception in honor of David Daniel
- The Magnificent Seven
- Young Agents New Orleans dinner cruise Sunday, Sept. 13:
- Young Agents staff liaison and state committee chairs roundtable discussion The feature segment of this event is the Magnificent Seven, an interactive panel featuring the 2009 Young Agents Committee award winners. Attendees will learn from Young Agents who will offer insight into how they achieved award-winning results.
Don’t let this opportunity pass you by – visit www.independentagent.com/events for more details. For more information, contact Katie Cosgrove at 800-221-7917; katie.cosgrove@iiaba.net.
Trusted Choice®
Follow the Rules and Reap the Rewards
The Trusted Choice® Marketing Reimbursement Program is well underway as agencies across the country are applying for a maximum of $500 to offset the cost of advertising collateral. If you are a Trusted Choice® agent, you can also benefit from this offer if you use the Trusted Choice® logo correctly and provide proper documentation.
For any brand to be successful, the logo must maintain its integrity. Trusted Choice®‘s easy to use signature guide illustrates how to use the logo. To maximize your Trusted Choice® reimbursement, do an inventory of your materials. Do you have the Trusted Choice® logo on your business cards? Does your stationary include the Trusted Choice® logo? To update your materials, check out the preferred vendor list. If you choose to use a vendor not on the preferred vendor list, simply e-mail a proof of the materials before printing and we’ll make sure it’s in compliance with the logo rules. At least 1,500 agencies will benefit from the program and reimbursements are available on a first-come, first-served basis. So, if you're considering applying for MRP dollars, now is the time! Visit www.TrustedChoice.com/mrp to apply today.
Big I AdvantageSM
Introducing MMAC: The Member Marketing Activity Center
Big I AdvantageSM has introduced the Member Marketing Activity Center (MMAC), a new marketing tool for Big “I” member agents. MMAC provides Big “I” members with tools and services to help them grow their agencies. MMAC helps agents implement a proactive marketing process and manage it with discipline.
Use the MMAC to access powerful prospecting databases that identify potential new customers and utilize the customized direct mail campaign service to reach those prospects. Take advantage of a referral-based marketing system. MMAC is designed with one purpose in mind: to help Big “I” member agents increase their marketing effectiveness while saving money! The program features: • Personal and commercial lines prospect lists (ProspectNow)
• Marketing materials (DirectMailNow)
• Client referrals (LeadsNow)
• Tips and materials to help cross-sell current books of business (Cross-sellNow)
• Client newsletters designed to help retain accounts (RetainNow)
• Agency management tools (ManageNow) MMAC access is being offered at an introductory annual rate of $18.96. Why $18.96? The Big “I” was founded at the turn of the century (1896 to be exact) and we are celebrating how far we have come together by offering this great new service to our members. You can learn more about MMAC by watching a webinar. Just visit the www.bigimarkets.com homepage and click on the MMAC banner. To learn about how MMAC can help you with prospecting, leads, printing and cross-selling, visit www.bigimarkets.com today.
Big “I” Professional Liability
Free Webinar Download Available: Avoid the E&O Pitfalls in E&S Business
A recording of the May 15 webinar “How to Avoid the E&O Pitfalls in E&S Business,” hosted by the Big “I” Professional Liability Program, has been posted to www.independentagent.com/EO for members to access. Excess and Surplus lines markets serve a valuable need for insurance agents and the public in general, but like when working with admitted carriers, placing business with E&S markets can expose the agency to E&O claims if not done properly. This webinar explores the E&O issues of placing insurance in the excess & surplus lines market and working with E&S brokers. Highly knowledgeable panelists discuss the following: where E&O claims occur with the placement of E&S risks; why and when to use the E&S market; laws affecting E&S markets; considerations for selecting an E&S broker; duties of the producing agent or broker, and more. Click here to listen to the webinar.
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