Today, the IMHQ is taking a look around the country to see what independent insurance agents have been blogging about in the first month of 2010.
Rodent Insurance – If you think falling icicles and slick roads are the only threats to your car this winter, think again. Westchester Insurance in Texas reminds us of the grave threat small mammals pose to our automobiles when cold is in the air in this highlighted insurance blog post.

“… to a rodent your car provides an excellent temporary home.  And while they are there, they tend to make quite the mess, especially when they get into the engine compartment.  Rodents have a tendency for chewing certain types of plastic, wiring and rubber, which is commonly found under most hoods. The damage they cause can be quite expensive.  Luckily, if you have comprehensive coverage on your vehicle, it will be covered under your auto insurance policy.  This is just something to keep in mind while the weather is cold.”
Healthy Lifestyle Not a Reason to Cancel Life Insurance – From the west coast, Calabasas, California’s own Lifenet Insurance offers a compelling case study showing why it’s never a good idea to cancel a life insurance policy, even for a small window of time.

“Craig T. wanted to apply for a new life insurance policy to replace his current policy that has 7 years of level premiums left.  The face amount would be the same, but he wanted to extend the term for another 15 years.  When we wrote Craig’s new application, we strongly advised him not to cancel his current policy. Craig insisted he hadn’t had any health or lifestyle changes.  We asked him to keep the old policy until we had the new one in force.  Well, good thing Craig listened to us, because his lab results weren’t as good as last time and he wasn’t able to get his new policy at a price that made sense. 

Now, if Craig had gotten ahead of himself and cancelled his current policy before underwriting was complete, he would have no coverage now and no chance of getting coverage at a reasonable rate today.  Fortunately, Craig still has his policy, and we will work with him to replace it as soon as he clears up the health issues.”

Security Systems Protect Your Home and Reduce Premiums – Even if you don’t feel at risk for a home invasion, simple security choices can reduce insurance costs while increasing peace of mind. Encharter Insurance, with offices in Massachusetts and Connecticut, is happy to help you apply insurance savings by offering this nugget:

“You can receive between a 5% and 10% home (or renters or condo) insurance credit depending on the type of protection device you have. Even if you cannot afford a central station security system, having deadbolt locks, fire extinguishers and smoke detectors will reduce your home insurance premium.”

Facebook Fun Facts – Still up in the air about dabbling in Facebook? A savvy agent in the north, Michigan’s Rick Young Insurance, shares some compelling statistics that demonstrate just how much the social network is used. So, what are you waiting for?

“More than 350 million active users, 50% of active users log on to Facebook each day. More than 35 million users update their status each day. More than 55 million updates posted each day. More than 2.5 million photos uploaded to the site each month. More than 700,000 local businesses have active Pages on Facebook. Pages have created more than 5.3 billion fans.”

Despite the stodgy reputation, insurance agents are full of creativity and proving it every day. Blogs and other forms of social media are a critical part of any insurance web strategy since effective use humanizes your agency and provides clients a genuine connection beyond the policy you write.

If you have an interesting blog post or topic you’d like to share, let the IMHQ know.

Follow IMHQ: @InsuranceMHQ

Terminating a worker is one of the toughest tasks an employer is forced to do but can be absolutely necessary for sustained success in today’s competitive insurance marketplace. You just can’t afford to have dead weight draining resources and/or morale. With unemployment as high it’s been in decades, there are plenty of qualified candidates seeking work, so if you’re looking to replace stale experience with invigorating enthusiasm, now is a good time.

Nothing about the firing process is pleasant. How you arrive at the decision and best practices during the actual process are where many employers, insurance industry and otherwise, fall short.

THE WARNING: Before the decision is even made, the most important part of the process is giving the employee a window to change their ways. Lack of performance is a much less tangible offense than stealing, workplace harassment or extended absences, and letting someone go for performance often results in hard feelings (or lawsuits). Have you given this person radiant reviews and generous raises in the past? If yes, they might be completely shocked to learn of their termination and react accordingly. Make sure you’ve sent clear warnings, even a written memo, to ensure they understand failure to meet expectations will result in termination.

THE TIMING: Despite popular thought, Friday is the WORST day to fire an employee. Entrepreneur.com explains the reasoning this way, “Never fire someone on a Friday, because then they can “stew about it” over the weekend and come into work the following Monday ready for a fight, or even worse.” If you do fire on a Friday, get keys, credit card and any other company property and make sure the employee understands; once they leave for the weekend, they are not permitted on the premises without consent.

THE ENCOUNTER: When the face-to-face finally occurs, don’t get bogged down in long-winded explanations about failed objectives or allow yourself to get emotional. Discuss the situation from a business and logistical standpoint focusing on severance pay (if any), when they’re expected to leave the office and any benefits-related matters. It’s best to have them leave the office immediately after gathering personal belongings.

THE LEVERAGE: Getting a signed release of liability (drafted by a lawyer) can be vital if you’re worried about a discrimination claim. Since the person doesn’t have to sign it, adding an incentive for signing, like an extra week of severance pay, can be worth it in the face of a lawsuit. Liability form or not, it’s rarely a good idea to contest unemployment benefits. The resulting court encounter can benefit potential wrongful termination suits and you’re more than likely going to be paying the benefits anyways. Riskvue provides a comprehensive article on creating an airtight Employee Termination Agreement.

THE AFTER-EFFECTS: Eliminate the chance of a co-worker mutiny by immediately alerting all other employees of the termination and letting them know what to do should someone call or email the ex-worker. Dole out new responsibilities and use the time to emphasize how much the company and each individual’s success means to you personally and that it’s a move for the betterment of the agency.

No matter how much you prepare, there’s no predicting how an employee will react to termination, so it’s best to keep the entire process as concise and professional as possible. It can be the most stressful part of managing an agency but there’s simply too much competition  to let dead weight bring your business down.

Independent insurance agents no longer need to be convinced that integrating technology is a good idea. Choosing which technologies to integrate and how to leverage them to achieve insurance marketing objectives are definite challenges.   In conjunction with the Agents Council for Technology (ACT), the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (IIABA) recently posted an article on this topic recommending technology solutions agents can use to streamline businesses practices.

The article, written by insurance technology luminary Steve Anderson and aptly titled, Technology Tips to Boost Agency Productivity, “…provides independent agencies with practical guidance on ten tools that could boost their productivity and marketing effectiveness in 2010.”

The Insurance Marketing HQ whittled Steve’s list down to three, but depending on an agencies needs, any of the choices could be valuable additions.

Voice Recognition
“People have always talked to their computers — using four-letter words in many cases — and until recently, computers didn’t listen very well. Affordable, usable, and reliable voice recognition software has been an ‘any day now’ technology for at least a decade. If you tried it in the past and gave up you should give it a fresh look. I use and recommend Dragon NaturallySpeaking (version 10 preferred). The software works seamlessly with Microsoft Word, Excel, Internet Explorer, and Outlook. It is available at many retail stores and through www.nuance.com.”

Send & Receive Large Files
“Being able to attach large files to an e-mail to send to someone else is becoming more difficult as organizations place limits on the size of received e-mails. This problem can arise when trying to send a submission to an underwriter or with a client who needs to send you a picture or large spreadsheet. www.SendThisFile.com and www.YouSendIt.com are Web-based services that streamline the process of sending and receiving large files.”

Outlook (Email) Rules
“Outlook rules will help you flag a particular e-mail so that you can respond appropriately. For example, you might want to set up a rule that whenever an e-mail is received from one of your top ten clients, Outlook will notify you of the received e-mail. Fortunately, Outlook provides a step-by-step process that allows you to create a rule easily.”

IMHQ Tech Tip:
Digsby.com – IM, Email and social networks in one, easy-to-use application. If your agency is involved with different communities on the social web, Digsby organizes them all together providing a dashboard-column driving experience and real-time alerts (that can be turned off) anytime someone comments, tweets, becomes a fan, etc. It’s also great for inter-office communication as it integrates IM services like AIM and Google Talk.

(IMHQ strongly recommends agencies draft a social media policy so employees understand how to use without abuse.)

Viewed by some as lunatics who needlessly put their bodies in harm’s way for a thrill, realistically, storm and tornado chasers provide valuable, ground level data about the force and course of devastating storms. Information is relayed to a radio or weather update station and the public is warned, possibly saving lives.

Tornado chasing doesn’t pay well (at all?) and is more like a skydiving-type hobby, but anyone willing to confront a column of wind and debris swirling at hundreds of miles an hour would be wise to insure their body and car. Beyond insurance coverage, a customer like the storm chaser requires a local insurance agent who understands the perils of their hobby and the effect the storm has on the local community. 

An independent agents can explain liability and what’s at stake for the individuals auto, life and health should the worst occur.  Storm chasers are an extreme example but any profession or hobby that puts a person and their property in danger requires considerations when it comes to choosing insurance.