The other day, a producer sent me an email. In part, he said, “I've been selling workers' comp for years, but I really don't know very much about it. I now realize how critical it is to be an expert. Workers' comp is the linchpin to an employer's entire insurance account.”
Truer words were never spoken. Workers' comp is complex on the one hand, but perhaps more significant is the fact that its tentacles reach into the cracks and crevices of a company's entire insurance program.
Here's just one example that makes the point. Knowing what is happening with your clients' open claims is critical to keeping an employer's Experience Modification Factor (MOD) as low as possible, something that is not often given the serious attention that it deserves.
I'm sure you can see why this work is important to your clients, and therefore to you: it reduces their costs, and, in some cases, might even keep their MOD low enough so they can continue or become eligible to bid on jobs. In the current economy, we are talking about major issues.
What we're talking about is work. So, why should you make the effort to follow up with adjusters and maybe even contact doctors to help adjust reserves to the correct level?
Some would answer that it's part of the “great service” that every agency on earth claims they provide, which, in most cases, is true. The question is how often are you communicating what you do for a client, which is the same as taking credit for how that service benefits your clients?
Workers' compensation, like no other insurance coverage, provides agents with the unique opportunity to monetize their value. Here's how it can work:
You can show your clients the actual amount each of the claims on their MOD costs them in premium. You can do the same with reserve reduction. If you are able to reduce the value of a claim from $4,500 to $3,500, you can show your clients exactly how many dollars that reduction saved them.
You have now placed a measurable value on your work for a client. In effect, this is showing your clients the value of doing business with you and bulletproofs them against attacks by your competitors. It makes it very difficult for your client to be interested in a conversation with the agent who calls and offers to put their workers' compensation out to bid.
There's no reason to wait until the valuation date to monetize your value to a client. When you can help your client build a relationship with local medical providers and stay involved when employees are injured, you can measure the impact of that work and present it to your client.
Help your client prepare prior to the arrival of the premium auditor to ensure that the check they write is for the correct amount and you can monetize that work.
When you meet with your clients prior to the renewal, it is extremely powerful to show them the work you have done and what it meant to them. Show them that you put performance into your promises, and you'll have a client for life.
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