The coronavirus pandemic has impacted every facet of our daily lives. From how we shop to how we eat to how we work, the impacts of COVID-19 are substantial. While some industries have suffered more than others, insurance agents have had the difficult job of navigating claims related to the pandemic. In addition, this has changed the way agents in the industry are Selling Insurance Post-COVID and navigating new claims, especially business interruption.
For agents, it’s still important to stay focused on their mission of connecting with clients and ensuring they are aware of their policy limits in this stressful time. These economic challenges brought on by COVID-19 are presenting insurance agents, brokers, and other distributors with a chance to demonstrate the critical value and overall importance they bring to their customers.
With that in mind, here are some tips on how insurance agents in the industry can continue to help clients contend in this challenging market.
Risk Management is Your Top Priority
The most important financial planning priority to any operation is protecting it from major losses and exposures with insurance coverage. Loss exposures come in many forms including financial, natural disasters, and reputational. Business objectives, like expanding into a new market, can be imperiled, prevented, or disrupted by an unexpected event, like the pandemic.
Risk management is an investment that clients need to make. Employees might refuse to work for any company that is unsafe to work in due to COVID-19, and customers will refuse to do business with companies that refuse to take the pandemic seriously. Risk management and insurance planning work is the most important piece of guidance customers receive.
Be Honest and Open in Conversation
Currently, the insurance market is a hard market. This means that capacity is still limited due to the pandemic and rates are rising. Plus, insurance carriers know that the risk profiles and exposure bases of current clients are likely different now and will require more examination.
Insurance agents need to anticipate that underwriters will start to ask harder questions and try to get more information. Agents and brokers need to be honest with their customers and let them know what to expect from an underwriting, rating, and coverage viewpoint.
Lean Into Innovation
As agencies adapt and implement different processes in response to COVID-19, agencies should be using all tools at their disposal. Technological solutions that help with daily routines and time-consuming tasks can have a long-term effect on not only aiding agents through a crisis but better serving clients in the future. For instance, some agencies are hosting online Q&A sessions with clients to open more communication and honesty in the market. This is a powerful tool for creating and sustaining powerful client-carrier relationships.
Many of the improvements that agencies are currently making in real-time can have benefits to efficiency and growth when business and life returns to normal, hopefully, sooner rather than later.
About Irving Weber Associates
At Irving Weber Associates, Inc., we work with agents and brokers to access quality programs for various industries across the country. Our programs include specialty coverages that cater to those in the dry cleaning, laundry, restaurant, and grocery industries. For a detailed look at how we can safeguard your insurance services with a custom-tailored package, please contact our specialists today at (855) 764-7406.