Consultative Broker Briefing - V. IV, No. 5

The Consultative Broker™ Briefing
Volume IV, Number 5
A Free Publication of C.R. Ekern & Company
888.670.1177
www.crekern.com
Copyright, C. R. Ekern & Company, 2002

"Take Clients Backstage"

We are nearing the first anniversary of the Consultative Broker Briefing. C.R. Ekern & Company started producing the Briefing as a way to share our experience with agents and brokers across North America. It has, and will continue to contain, real world production techniques. Our goal is to help you retain and grow your middle and upper-middle market accounts.

One of the joys of producing the Briefing is that we get a chance to hear from a number of you. Many of you have sent us your comments, and we really appreciate your thoughts. Some of them are better than I could do myself! For instance, here are some recent comments from Bob Sturtevant of Gibson Insurance in South Bend, Indiana, in response to our most recent Briefing entitled, "Hold Your Margins:"

“Think about all the additional effort and time we as producers are spending to provide our clients with protection that is difficult to find. If we counted up our hours the way attorneys do, our rate per hour would be a bargain to our clients!

The clients need to be educated on the work involved, not only the work by the producer, but by the entire sales organization. The client is getting a bigger bang for the buck than ever before! I am convinced that clients will pay for all types of services (fee based or not) as long as they understand what they are getting and paying for.”

Thanks Bob, I’ll take it from here!

Consultative Brokers know the importance of creating client knowledge and appreciation of their efforts. In these turbulent times, it is more important than ever that you create value in the minds of your buyers. Here are some things you should consider doing:

Take them behind the curtain. Let them see all the effort and activity that go into a well-placed insurance renewal by a well-run organization like yours.

Don’t just talk to them about the insurance marketplace. Let them meet the insurance carriers.

Keep track of the hours you spend on their account. Not just by you, but by all of the members of your firm. You may find that the hourly rate you are receiving is actually lower than in past years!

Remember, a renewal is simply a project. Treat it that way by establishing timelines with expectations.

Thanks again for all the great comments we have received over the course of the Consultative Brokerage Briefing’s first year. Let’s all keep moving ahead in 2002 and beyond!

Best regards to all Consultative Brokers,

Rob Ekern
President
C.R. Ekern & Company

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Consultative Brokerage® Techniques are utilized by agents and brokers across North America in the development and retention of upper middle market revenues. The Consultative Broker Briefing is delivered electronically free of charge to selected agents, brokers, and other insurance professionals across North America. To subscribe to The Consultative Broker Briefing, please click here.

Thank you.
C.R. Ekern & Company