Any reader who has been following us for a while knows to expect two disclaimers when it comes to objections and rounding out accounts:
Firstly, they aren’t really objections; they are concerns to resolve. This may be semantics versus reality, but shifting from trying to “overcome objections” to “resolving concerns” can have a dramatic effect on your approach. Instead of trying to “win” the business, we are trying to alleviate concerns for the client. This doesn’t work in all sales scenarios, but it does in many, and specifically works well when it comes to account rounding.
The second disclaimer is that the easiest way to create an account round opportunity is on a proactive review call and not on a reactive service call. When a client calls in with an issue, it is certainly time to mention missing coverages and policies, but typically, the client is on a mission to solve their issue. When we reach out to them proactively, we are implementing a much more impressive customer experience, which impresses the clients into listening to us a little more around this subject.
Having given both of those disclaimers, no matter how well we position ourselves for success when driving additional policies for existing clients, we will run into concerns the client has with moving forward. Here are the top 3 objections we see and how to overcome them when faced with them:
Time
Most people have a lot on their “To Do Lists” and the thought of adding something to that list (especially when it was someone else’s idea) typically isn’t immediately met well. We must work to reduce the time spent on the issue. This isn’t to say we should take all effort off of the client’s plate. In fact, when we get them to invest a little bit of effort, the time issue actually is removed as they look to get a return on their investment of time.
So firstly, be sure to clearly set expectations on time. Do you need 30 minutes of their time now or 3 different 10-minute calls? What steps need to be taken if they decide to move forward? Who is going to call their old agent? How much paperwork needs to get done? You want them to understand this isn’t a 5-minute item, but also that the effort isn’t overwhelming and you will walk them through it.
Secondly, you want them to invest time in the process. As much as we don’t like when we quote a piece of business that we don’t write, the client also feels like they wasted time. If we can get them to invest a little bit of time, they will be more likely to want to move forward. If all they need to do is fill out a form or email you a dec page, they haven’t invested any time and it makes it easier to walk away.
Desire
The truth is most people just don’t care that much about their insurance and certainly don’t understand the value of having everything with one agency. Very likely the reason why they have more than one agent is the value of having one agency has never been discussed with them or has never been discussed in a way they believe.
We need to have a clear statement on why all clients should only have one agency AND why that agency should be yours. Take some time to list each of these out. While there are some generic items (eliminate gaps in coverage, package discounts, one point of contact), you also want to make sure to build in some specific items on your agency. All independent agencies can say they write with multiple carriers, have great service, and are invested in the community. You need to specifically identify what about your agency is great in those areas (we write with the top 8 carriers in the state, we proactively review every account with our clients every year, you will have an assigned rep whom you will call for any issue that arises).
Price
As with any sales, price may become an issue, but we need to make sure we are focusing on value when it comes to price. Typically because of the bundling and multiple carriers, we are saving people money when we round accounts. However, due to markets or, more likely, when we find low coverages on the new policies, we can end up with a higher premium. Let’s look at the two scenarios where you may hear the price objection:
Firstly, this may come up when trying to drive the opportunity (pre-quote). While it can be easy to jump into the savings they will see, be sure to identify the other values (benefits of your agency and you’ll be reviewing their coverages). You don’t want them to get so focused on price they miss out on the rest of the value.
Secondly, you may end up with a higher price or a price that isn’t low enough for them to want to go through the effort. If we have done a good job up until this point of getting them to understand our value, we can push those ideas. Also, one of the values of account rounding, as compared to a new client sale, is that there is some history to lean on. Use your relationship (both as an individual as well as the agency) as an additional reason for the client to move forward.
Conclusion
The truth is that when it comes to account rounding, while we run into objections after we have done the quote, the biggest issue we have are concerns around starting the process at all. This starts with clearly defining your value and actually asking for the business. Once you have that piece of the process in place, you can see where you are being successful and where you may have to tweak your process or your scripts to drive more account round quotes and sales.
If rounding out accounts, cross-selling, and other techniques for improving sales and customer retention are throwing your team for a loop, be sure to ask us about our 6-month AppX Retention Program!
