I wonder how many times each day this same story plays out. Someone goes online to shop for an insurance policy, finds one at a cheap rate and buys it without ever seeing or speaking to anyone. Although this process is quick and convenient, it has a significant drawback: The insured may get little help-if any-in the event of a claim. I don't mean to disparage the Internet's usefulness to commerce, but let's face it-people who buy insurance policies online don't always know exactly what they're getting.

You can set yourself apart by offering insureds a level off service they're unlikely to receive from an anonymous online vendor. It's an important factor that people might not know they want or need, but that they expect once they have a claim. When people say they shopped around and found a great price for insurance on the Internet, we need to remind them-and perhaps ourselves-that we offer not only a live, local presence, but also personal relationships, advice and recommendations, and confidence that coverage will respond at claim time. A company may offer direct billing and a toll-free telephone number for reporting claims, but that does not diminish the value of an independent agent when clients someone to hold their hand and guide them through the claim process.

Trust

To better serve our insureds, we must earn their trust and assure them that we will perform satisfactorily and reliably, keeping their best interests in mind. Doing so might mean stepping outside our comfort zone. Suppose one of your clients has a 15-year-old child who soon will start driving. You've offered personal umbrella coverage in the past, but the client has declined to buy it, telling you he or she doesn't want to spend any more on insurance. Therefore, you might be reluctant to explain that the client soon will face greater liability and that an umbrella policy can help cover it. But to look out for your client's best interests, you must provide this information and credit the insured for having the ability to make the right decision.

Don't assume an insured won't buy a product because the price is too high. When one has a covered claim, insurance is the best bargain in town! Arm yourself with examples and testimonials showing how all your coverages have performed for clients.

Selling the invisible

An excellent resource for insurance professionals is a book called “Selling the Invisible,” by Harry Beckwith. In it, Mr. Beckwith explains that professional services are invisible products and offers hundreds of tips for selling them. He states that lawyers, doctors, accountants (and I would add insurance professionals) tend to think clients are buying their expertise. However, most prospects for such complex services can't evaluate expertise. They can't tell if a tax return is accurate, a diagnosis is perceptive or an insurance policy is appropriate-but they do know if their relationship with you is good, if their phone calls are returned, and if they feel valued. According to Mr. Beckwith, we're not really selling expertise because prospects assume we have it, and they can't evaluate it anyway. If we're selling a service, we're selling a relationship and an experience.

Examples of companies that successfully sell the invisible include Walt Disney (think “magical vacation”), Federal Express (reliability, “absolutely, positively”) and Nike (personal empowerment, “Just do it”). A Starbucks patron might think the coffee is a bit overpriced, but it's consistently good. The shops are everywhere (convenience) and the company is innovative. Customers can customize their coffee with a variety of flavorings and toppings before downloading music clips onto their iPods using the Internet connections (and now Wi-fi) the stores offer. Similarly, if insurance agents provide an outstanding experience for their customers, they'll maintain relationships and create a buzz that will attract even more business.

Customer service moments of truth

Jan Carlson, former head of Braniff Airlines, used to travel around the country teaching sales professionals how to improve customer service. He said the culture is built on positive moments of truth, and we can create such moments by making small changes in our daily interactions. Following are 10 practices that I recommend every agency implement.

1) CSRs should end every conversation with a client by saying, “Is there anything else I can help you with?” People don't want to be dismissed. They want to feel that they've been heard and that they decide when the conversation ends. CSRs who conclude conversations this way report that clients sometimes respond, “Now that you ask, I do have a question,” or, “As a matter of fact, my child is going away to college and buying a used car. What's the best way to insure it?”

2) Order business cards for all associates, including the receptionist and the summer intern. The cards don't cost much, but they show that the agency values its employees and wants them to represent the agency well. Although only a licensed agent can write insurance, a receptionist and a file clerk can hand out business cards. It's a marketing opportunity. Also, put a nameplate on the receptionist's desk with his or her name on it (not “receptionist”-that's obvious!) and a business card holder in plain view.

3) Buy notecards printed on nice, heavy card stock and featuring the agency's name and logo. Leave them blank on the inside. Provide some cards to every associate for sending thank-you notes, congratulations, announcements, birthday and anniversary wishes, etc. Some agencies award points, and ultimately prizes, for sending out notecards and generating referrals.

4) Require everyone in the agency to change his or her outgoing voice mail message daily. For example: “Hello. My name is Julie. Today is Friday, Oct. 8. I am out of the office but will call in for messages at noon and return phone calls later in the day.” Such a message increases the level of an employee's personal accountability, performance and professionalism. It prompts associates to check their voice mail daily and reassures callers that, if they leave a message, someone will hear it and respond. If employees object to changing their message daily, hold firm. Tell them you understand that it takes a minute or two each day, but it's the agency's standard, and the benefits are well worth the extra effort.

5) Ask CSRs to make two, three or four “I'm-thinking-about-you” phone calls each week to clients with whom they haven't had contact in awhile. If they reach an answering machine, then they can leave a message. “Hi, this is Emily of ABC Agency. I haven't talked with you for a long time, but I want to tell you that we appreciate your business. If there is anything we can do for you, please let us know.” The primary reason insureds let another agent in the door is because they haven't heard from their own agent lately. If a CSR makes three calls each week-one every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday-that's 156 contacts each year that improve client retention and perhaps generate a few more sales. It's a proactive approach to customer service, and the cost is minimal.

6) Be aware of recent claims. Most clients expect their agents-whom they trust to handle their insurance needs-to know about any activity regarding their account. If an agent or CSR bumps into an insured who recently had to replace a window in a vehicle or file a homeowners claim, you can bet it's going to come up in the conversation. Even if the claim was handled properly and the client was taken care of, it's better for the agent or CSR to know about it than to be caught off guard. That happened to one agency owner I know. Before long, he instituted a new practice. Now, every Friday at noon, everyone in the office receives an e-mail message with a list of claims reported by the agency's clients. It's easy to run such a report from most agency management systems-and the account you save may be your own.

7) Mirror client communication. People often ask me, “If someone leaves me a voice message, is it OK for me to respond by e-mail?” The answer is no. If someone calls you, return their call. If you get an e-mail message, reply to it. Clients will contact you using the method that works best for them, and they'll have a better experience if you respect their communication choice.

8) Establish e-mail standards and communicate them to your entire staff. It's professional and legally prudent to end all your e-mail messages with a signature that includes the same contact information that appears on your letterhead-your name, title, address, phone number and fax number. Corporate attorneys have told me most people don't realize that every business-related e-mail message they send is a legal document that can be saved, printed or forwarded by the recipient. Expressing your creativity by selecting colorful “stationery” or festooning notes with smiley faces, daisies, footballs or whatever suits your fancy may be fine for personal correspondence, but it's not appropriate for business communication-electronic or otherwise. I also highly recommend that employees refrain from checking their personal e-mail at work because doing so exposes the agency's e-mail system to possible virus or worm infection. (I have no objection to employees visiting commercial Web sites during their lunch hour, so long as the same standard applies to everyone.)

9) Survey your customers. It's important to obtain feedback from the people with whom you conduct business. Surveys can help us adapt how we do business to better serve our clients. One of the things I offer on my Web site (www.sellingstrategies.com) is a free client-satisfaction survey that asks such questions as: Are you happy with our hours of operation? Is our location convenient for you? Are your claims handled to your satisfaction? Send notes to former clients expressing your regret for losing their business, and include a survey asking them why they went away and if you may call on them again. If prospects choose another agency, use a survey to ask them why.

An agency owner in Illinois called me one day and excitedly informed me that his agency had just expanded its business to Saturday mornings in response to a customer survey finding. Some of the CSRs said they would be happy to work a few hours on Saturday in exchange for an afternoon off during the week. They even worked out a schedule for keeping the office open until 6 p.m. on certain weekdays. So, customers got the extended hours of operation they had requested, CSRs got to enjoy the flex time they wanted, and everyone was happy.

10) Be accessible and responsive. Some offices have re-instituted formal break times to manage the time employees spend away from their desks. Employees may insist that they don't need breaks-”We just do our work and leave our desks only when it's necessary”-but if you spend a day in their offices, you'll see them taking plenty of unofficial breaks. Establish office standards for taking breaks, for using telephone “do not disturb” buttons and for anything else that makes staff members unavailable to clients.

Some of the changes I've discussed may seem a bit radical, but if you slowly integrate and enforce them, they become tipping points-little things that make a big difference and increase the level of trust both within the organization and between client-service personnel and your customers.

Advice and recommendations

One of the best ways independent agents can demonstrate their value to customers is by offering advice and recommendations. Here are a few ways you can become an indispensable resource for your clients:

? Develop a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) and give it to every CSR in your agency. In theory, a customer could ask three people in an office the same question and get three different answers, which does not help build trust. We need to equip our inside agents with tools that help them correctly and consistently answer clients' questions. Ask each of your producers to write down the 10 questions they're asked most often, and determine the top 15 questions in each department. Then assign someone to research the answers and get a consensus of what the answer to each question should be.

Every agency needs an intranet, where it can post its personnel manual, workflow charts, procedures, vacation schedule, continuing education class information, employee birthdays, etc. If your agency doesn't have an intranet, create one and use it to post the FAQs and official answers for each department.

? Use a “coverage of the month” for seasonal selling. Every month, choose a coverage to feature for each department. For instance, you can tell clients, “In January, we're reminding everyone of the limitations on a homeowners policy. Jewelry is covered only for so much and for certain types of losses.” Explain a bit more about the topic, but be brief enough that people are likely to listen to and remember the information. In February, you could discuss flood insurance; in March, talk about coverage for recreational vehicles, second homes, umbrella policies or whatever you think best.

Also, assign someone at your agency to develop a roster of stories explaining the benefits of various coverages that might be unfamiliar to clients. Have them include examples of when they might apply. Post the coverages of the month and story rosters on your intranet and make sure everyone on your staff knows how to access them. Often, CSRs don't recommend certain policies because they don't fully understand them and don't feel comfortable explaining them. A story roster may educate your CSRs and help them overcome their reluctance to recommend certain coverages. It also can ward off E&O woes, build self-esteem and confidence among CSRs, and help create standards that you can use when appraising job performance.

? Use a personal-risk questionnaire. Every couple of years, meet with clients to analyze their risks and update their information. Ask if they need to add any drivers to their auto policies, if they want to insure any recreational vehicles, whether they've bought or sold any businesses, etc. Price is not the most important factor in the buying decision. The No. 1 reason you lose clients is because they haven't heard from you. In a sales relationship, the seller, not the buyer, should take the initiative to maintain contact. You need to get in front of your clients and prospects; conducting a risk analysis is a great way to do so.

We now have four generations buying insurance-the Matures, the Boomers, the Generation Xers and the Millenials-and we must adapt our delivery methods accordingly. Younger insureds might be more comfortable with electronic communication, while senior citizens may prefer face-to-face contact and a chance to show you pictures of the grandchildren. Regardless of age or circumstances, however, we all want the same things from insurance professionals-personalized service, sound advice, and assurance that they care about us and will pay our claims.

The head of Macy's department store once advised “be everywhere, do everything, and never fail to astonish the customer.” That might sound impossible, but you don't need a magic wand to meet your clients' needs. You do, however, need to establish and adhere to standards, create positive moments of truth, equip staff members to offer advice and recommendations, and provide tools for delivering them. Follow that advice and more of your own insurance stories will have happy endings.

(This article is based on Ms. Huling's presentation at the ASCnet TENconference held in October in Orlando, Fla.)