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Industry News

IIABA News
We Need Your Feedback

This week, you will receive an invitation via e-mail to participate in a survey evaluating the national Big “I.” with the subject line “National Big "I" voice of the member study: Your invitation.” This is the first time in more than a decade the national association has done a comprehensive member survey, and we need your input! Please take the time to tell us what Big “I” benefits you value most and what else the association can do to better serve your agency. The association has hired Vincent Mcabe, a third-party research firm, to ensure all results are confidential. For every survey response received, Trusted Choice® will donate $10 to the association’s Disaster Relief Fund, which provides assistance to those who have suffered losses due to natural or man-made disasters. If you have questions regarding the survey, contact Katie Butler at 800-221-7917; katie.butler@iiaba.net.


Agents Council for Technology

New Guide to Agency Business Processes Released

The latest agency improvement tool from the Big “I” helps agencies move to advanced workflows and eliminate paper in order to free up staff time for sales and pro-active customer service.  The new “Best Practices Guide to Agency Business Processes and Information Management” replaces two earlier guides and incorporates the latest in agency workflows, such as Real-Time.  Like the earlier guides, it is a collaboration between the Big “I” Agents Council for Technology (ACT) and Council for Best Practices working with noted agency workflow consultant Laura Nettles.

The 155 page resource is available at www.independentagent.com/act  and is designed to be used electronically because it contains numerous links for easy navigation.  The guide enables agencies to conduct a self-assessment in technology, management support, workflows, agency/carrier interfaces, Real-Time utilization and client focus, and then provides step-by step guidance on how to move to the next level of agency workflow.  It also provides steps to implement a comprehensive information storage plan for all forms of media and documentation, including paper, scanned documents, e-mails, voice mails, notes, faxes and pictures.

“Our agency used the guide when it was first developed, and we recognized tremendous improvement in our agency processes,” says Angelyn Treutel, Chair of ACT, Vice President of Treutel Insurance Agency in Bay Saint Louis, Miss. and a Trusted Choice® and a Best Practices agency.  “The guide contains a wealth of practical information and model workflows that agencies can use to continue to improve their operations.”

Numerous agents and carrier representatives participating in ACT and the Council for Best Practices, including several Best Practices agencies, also contributed their expertise to help produce the best possible resource for the industry.  The guide outlines detailed, practical information for agency improvement, including detailed property-casualty and benefits workflows and a quick reference guide for categorizing and retrieving electronic documents.

To use the guide, go to www.independentagent.com/act.


Trusted Choice^®
Trusted Choice^® Roots for the Tribe

Trusted Choice^® has a new advertisement at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio, home to the Cleveland Indians baseball team. (Click here to see the ad.) This ad runs during every Indians home game for half an inning on three LED scoreboards that encircle the stadium on the mezzanine level and on the large scoreboard on the outfield wall. It is frozen on the end card during play, but runs through the animation at the beginning of the inning and during any stoppage in play. So far this season, the average attendance at Indians games is 27,402 – which means just about 1.5 million baseball fans have already seen the Trusted Choice^® ad this year! Thanks to Progressive for really living the brand. 


InVEST
InVEST in Search for the Best Internship Model

Have interns left your agency with beneficial and valuable workforce experience? Are you regularly hiring interns after they’ve completed your program?

Let us know your secrets! As InVEST revamps its materials, we are in search of the most influential and productive internship model. Share your success stories with InVEST and assist in compiling an effective internship model. Contact Jennifer Robinson at 703-706-5437 or Jennifer.robinson@iiaba.net.

Virtual University
Sound Off on Certificates of Insurance

Need to learn more about certificates of insurance? The Big “I” Virtual University has a certificates of insurance resource center that is available to the general public—to access it, click here.

In an effort to reach out to other industries, association staff will be making presentations at conferences around the country. For example, in October the VU will be co-presenting a session at IRMI’s Annual Construction Conference (visit www.irmi.com/Conferences/Crc/ for more information). Bill Wilson from the national association will be presenting the insurance industry perspective on certificate issues and an attorney and risk manager from a large construction company will be presenting the construction industry side of the issues. This is where you come in.

Do you have examples of outrageous certificate requests? Have you ever been asked to provide a coverage summary or “agent affidavit” attesting that a certificate or insurance program complies with a contract that an insured has signed? Are demands made on you for coverages or services that you cannot comply with? Are any of your carriers providing notice of cancellation to certificate holders? Have you ever done any internal studies of certificates as to time and cost to issue? We’re interested in sharing your thoughts and experiences with this large group of construction industry professionals. If you have information or even war stories to share, please email Bill Wilson at bill.wilson@iiaba.net.

Young Agents
Keynote Speaker Named for Leadership Institute

Don’t miss out on THE event for Young Agents at the 2008 Young Agents Leadership Institute being held September 12-13, 2008 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nev. Jumpstart your success with networking events, educational sessions, and keynote speaker, Jeff Tobe. On Saturday, Sept. 13, Tobe will speak about coloring outside the lines in a stay-in-the-lines world. Known as the “guru of creatively thriving from change,” Tobe is sure to have Young Agent attendees geared up to take action in your personal and professional life.

Other highlights of the Young Agents Leadership Institute include meeting the Magnificent Seven and learning how they achieved award winning results, discussing the changing insurance customer, previewing new technology technology, networking with industry leaders and unwinding with fellow Young Agents at Margaritaville.

Don’t let this opportunity pass you by – visit www.independentagent.com and click on Young Agents for updates on the event and for online registration. For more information, contact Katie Cosgrove at 800-221-7917 or katie.cosgrove@iiaba.net.

Big "I" Flood Program
Got Flood?

"Got flood?" is Micheline Patterson’s mantra. She is doing whatever it takes - even rowing in the Red Green River Regatta with co-workers to promote flood awareness and insurance for Ken Murray Insurance, Fairbanks, Ala.. She’s serious about writing more flood insurance for the agency and she is serious about working with local communities to keep Elevation Certificate records and also for them to take advantage of the Community Rating System. She wanted to learn all she could about the product, NFIP and the marketing of flood insurance. So here’s what she did!

Patterson got the required continuing education course out of the way and signed up for the Big “I” Flood Program. Knowing that she would have the backing of a market and a trade association that would help her through the entire process, she made a commitment to roll over her existing flood book. “During the rollover process, we discovered that we needed to offer flood coverage to all our property clients and flood contents coverage to our existing flood customers. We are accomplishing this by a mailing to our clients,” says Patterson. Postcards were also sent out to 1,000 homes located in the special flood hazard zone.

She also participated in the “By the Way Flood Sale” webinar to learn more on the sales and marketing of flood insurance – about talking flood, the FloodSmart Agent Referral Program and the Agent Coop Advertising Program (which she immediately signed up for). Patterson is using Selective’s Flood Online® Internet access to instantly quote primary flood new business and keep track of the rollovers, working closely with Selective’s assigned Red Underwriting Team and Phyllis Helt, Territory Manager who offered her training on the company system and assistance with the rollovers. She knows and trusts that her territory manager and underwriting team are available when she needs help.

A river regatta might be an unusual way to promote flood insurance and might not work in your community, but what fun! If you’re not up to riding the rapids, how about getting a supply of stickers, stuffers, brochures and fact sheets to provide to clients or prospects? They are available in bulk from FEMA/NFIP using the order form. You can view forms in the FEMA Library. Here are a  few recommendations:

F-057 – NFIP Public Awareness Materials Order Form
F-683 – Why You Need Flood Insurance
F-436 – The Preferred Risk Policy For Homeowners
F-437 – The Preferred Risk Policy For Business Owners
(And with these PRP brochures, you also need F-687 with the new PRP rates)
F-001 – What You Need to Know About Federal Disaster Assistance and Federal Flood Insurance
F-002 – Myths and Facts about the NFIP