Customer Service Considerations
Competing on price isn’t
really an option for most independent agents or small agencies. So the question
is how can you compete with the big dogs—customer service.
The easiest way to define customer service
may be by what it’s not.
-It’s not getting transferred multiple
times, only to repeat your issue with each new rep.
- It’s not dealing with smugness or ignorance.
- And it’s definitely not being treated like a pest instead of a customer.
Good customer service is hard to come by,
maybe because it is hard to provide. Dealing with people is no easy task, but
is a large part of your job as an agent.
Technology might be the culprit making it
harder to satisfy customers because the internet has taught us to demand
everything immediately and cheaply.
Here are some tips to satisfy the most demanding prospects.
Fix their problems…with a smile.
Through your customer service efforts, you
can make your customers into fans and receive such rave reviews that
prospecting becomes obsolete. They will do the work for you.
The best time to really wow a prospect is
when they’re unhappy. Although, it’s unfortunate when a customer becomes upset
with something you’ve done, you can use the situation to you advantage. When
you fix a customer’s problem quickly, efficiently, and amiably you have the
opportunity to earn something no amount of advertising or cold-calling can
beget—their loyalty.
Don’t take it personally.
Sometimes if you step outside yourself,
serving your customers becomes easier. Basically, if you don’t take anything
personally, you will likely remain calm, which in turn diffuses the customer’s
anger or frustration. Even if you are dealing with an annoying customer,
employing this strategy might help you keep your cool.
Make them feel special.
Show your customer’s tricks to save a little
cash on their premiums. Even if the savings don’t amount to much, you let them
behind the curtain or past that velvet rope and made them feel special,
something many people rarely experience. Maybe you can’t offer any savings, but
remembering their name, their kids’ hobbies or the fact that they recently took
a vacation has the same effect.
Remember
the smallest things can make the biggest difference.
Fresh coffee in the waiting room, a note
saying thanks after a meeting or a Starbucks gift card on their birthday are
all pretty effortless things you can do that will make a big difference when a
customer is deciding between you and your competitor.
Customer service is perhaps the simplest,
albeit most difficult, way to stand apart from the rest. So rethink how you are
treating your customers and come up with ways you can improve and watch your
sales book grow.
