Buying insurance is a major decision everyone must face.
Your clients need insurance to protect themselves and their loved ones, so they look for insurance brokers who have a certain set of skills that make them feel at ease when searching for coverage that meets their individual needs.
Of course, your clients are looking for an insurance broker who is licensed in their state, but being qualified isn’t enough. The best insurance brokers are smart and friendly, and they make it known to their clients and prospects that they are available to answer questions.
The insurance business is incredibly competitive. To stand out and grow your client base, you need to meet your clients’ expectations. Here are four things your clients are expecting from you, and tips on how to outperform your competition by providing a better client experience.
1. Customers expect compassion from their insurance broker
The best insurance brokers have high emotional intelligence and are empathetic. They see things from their clients’ perspectives, and they understand their pain points.
What are you doing to assuage concerns and make clients feel comfortable talking to you about their needs? It’s important to remember that even though you are comfortable talking about health, life, and other ancillary coverage, many clients consider these intimate topics to discuss.
Put yourself in your clients’ shoes and imagine the kind of broker you’d like to be working with. Do your best to be that person, and you’ll do well, making your clients feel right at home.
For example, sending a welcome kit that includes everything the client needs to know is a great way to ensure a smooth onboarding process. Learn more about building the perfect welcome kit for new insurance clients here.
2. Customers expect their insurance broker to be knowledgeable
From your clients’ perspective, shopping for insurance can be an incredibly complex process. In fact, a recent study showed 78 percent of Americans can’t identify the ACA’s essential health benefits. On top of that, Americans struggle with understanding their policy lingo. According to a report from UConn Health, 20 percent of respondents reported not understanding what the word “premium” means in relation to their coverage, and only 34 percent understood the word “formulary.”
Your clients may end up reading policy details over and over again without really being certain what they mean. Knowing this, imagine their confusion when they are comparing benefits and premiums, figuring out which doctors are in-network and which aren’t, looking at what’s covered and what isn’t, and—of course—seeing what fits within their budget.
The best insurance brokers know their clients’ options inside and out. They know the fine print and can explain everything in a way that’s easy to understand, especially in our ever-changing healthcare landscape.
If you want your insurance business to reach its full potential, you need to become an expert in the products you sell, and you also need to keep tabs on all developments in the industry to be able to relay pertinent information to your clients in a timely manner.
Worried you need to know the ins and outs of every plan off the top of your head? Don’t sweat it. Modern quote and enroll solutions put all that information at your fingertips so you can spend more time communicating with your clients rather than researching plans.
3. Customers expect their insurance broker to be trustworthy
Imagine that a client calls you and asks about coverage. You give them a quote, and it sounds great to the client. They agree and finish the conversation. An hour later, you have a eureka moment and realize you’ve made a mistake. You accidentally gave your client the wrong quote, and the price is actually 20 percent higher.
Do you think that client will ultimately do business with you?
The best insurance brokers position themselves as trusted advisers. They anticipate clients’ needs and offer a wide variety of potential solutions to their problems.
As Warren Buffett famously said, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” The more knowledgeable and honest you are, the better off you’ll be.
4. Customers expect their insurance broker to be responsive
It bears repeating: Customers may not like to buy insurance, but they need it to protect themselves and their families.
That being the case, when clients call insurance brokers, they expect someone to pick up the phone. When they shoot their broker an email, they expect a quick response.
The most successful insurance brokers are incredibly responsive. They don’t take days or weeks to get back to high-priority inquiries because—thanks to their compassion—they understand how important the concerns are to their clients.
Of course, this is not to say you need to respond to your clients instantaneously every time they reach out. But attentiveness should always be a top priority.
With the right set of skills in place, you’ll meet client expectations—making it that much easier to take your insurance agency or brokerage to the next level.
To learn more about how technology can help you deliver personalized services to your insurance clients, check this out.
