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THE WEDGE REPORT
JULY 2018
THE OLDWORLD VERSUS THE NEW
IS IT TIME TO CHANGE YOUR LINE OF THINKING?
There are two very different worlds among insurance agencies across the country. There’s a battle between the old world and the new — between two lines of thinking that can define the success of an agency. Traditionally, agencies hire people, train them, and then often leave these employees to their own devices. There is a lack of coaching from upper management, and a lack of motivation for employees to become the best versions of themselves. This old-world line of thinking shaped and supported the insurance industry. People would get jobs with the insurance carriers and be indoctrinated into this system. It’s what shaped their perception and understanding of the industry as a whole. It’s a lot like being born and raised in a walled-off part of the world. Your entire belief system is developed as a result of what is right in front of you and what you’re taught and told. There is little room for personal development. You simply aren’t aware of the greater world beyond that wall.
Over time, those folks who joined the insurance carriers will sometimes make a shift in their careers to start up their own agencies. When they do that, they often bring the traditional ideology with them, continuing the cycle. They hire new producers according to the standards they learned over the course of their career, and eventually they realize their agency isn’t what it could be. In the new world, there is a process. Agencies are run like small businesses, where every producer is an asset. Think of it like you would an investment portfolio. When you have poorly performing assets, you remove them from your portfolio and trade up to something better. When you’re willing to identify what isn’t working and make the necessary changes, you improve the health of your agency, just as you would improve the health of your portfolio. You become more profitable. On the part of the agency owner, making this kind of change — any kind of change — requires an investment of time and money. It isn’t easy. It’s hard work, but the rewards speak for themselves. Part of that
investment is hiring people with intent. When you hire someone, you should know where they will fit into your organization on day one. Then, you develop these employees’ skills. Part of the new-world line of thinking is to foster growth within your producers. You want them to work to become the best versions of themselves. You want to look at your sales team as if they were your own children. You want to be engaged in their lives, help them set goals, and be a motivating force in their lives. The Wedge Group is all about changing the old way of thinking and helping agencies realize a new, better way of thinking. It’s about breaking the cycle for something better and challenging traditional beliefs. Agencies need a concrete training process that they can implement rather than just abstract ideas they don’t know what to do with. They need support to grow and coaching that helps them become a better version of what they are today.
– Randy Schwantz
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4 CUSTOMER SERVICE MISTAKES THAT WILL RUIN RELATIONSHIPS AND REPEAT BUSINESS
ONLY BEING REACTIVE
In any given agency, you’re faced with three primary groups of producers: The top 20 percent, the middle 60 percent, and the bottom 20 percent. As discussed in "Agency Growth Machine" (which you can learn more about at TheWedge.net/books), the bottom 20 percent are a mix of people. Some are new to your agency, while others aren’t producers at all. These are people who are essentially in the wrong role within your agency (or, more broadly, in sales). those in the bottom 20. They may lack the drive required to be in the top 20 percent or even the middle 60. What can agency owners do to fix this issue? One possible solution is to help the lowest performing employees develop a plan to move forward, which often boils down to According to entrepreneur and “Shark Tank” investor Daymond John, “Customer service is more important than anything else in your business.” Without high-level customer service, you can kiss repeat business goodbye. Here are some of the most common customer service killers and advice on how to avoid them. POOR LISTENING SKILLS There is nothing more frustrating for a customer than feeling like they’re talking to a brick wall. Having a system for customer complaints and feedback isn’t a bad idea, but being inflexible is. Remember that you’re talking to a person. The more closely you listen, the better you’ll be able to address their concerns. Rob Pace, CEO of feedback software company HundredX, says, “The ultimate goal is for the customer to feel they are heard.”
Customer service doesn’t just happen on the back end. Working to create a great experience on the front end will impress customers and cut
down on those after-purchase calls. To quote Jeff Bezos, “The best customer service is if the customer doesn’t need to call
you.” Focus on customer service every step of the way rather than only using it as damage control, and you’ll start getting those five-star reviews. FORGETTING YOUR MANNERS This might sound basic, but you’d be shocked by how often politeness gets overlooked. The most important phrases a customer service rep can learn are “thank you” and “I’m sorry.” Practicing good
manners goes a long way in building trust and ensuring customers feel cared for. REPETITION, REPETITION, REPETITION If you have a customer on the phone, you should never make them tell you the same thing twice. Information should be recorded and easy to hand off in the event of an escalation. You can bet that the third time you ask for a customer’s email, they’ll respond with a mountain of irritation.
THE BOTTOM 20
HOW YOU CAN HELP UNDERPERFORMERS ACHIEVE MORE
an ultimatum: They can grow as a producer or leave the agency. The details of the plan should be straightforward, with little room for misinterpretation. Should they want to continue as a producer, the next steps need to be clear. The plan should include a timeframe to meet certain goals (such as hitting specific numbers). You should make the time to serve as their coach and help them hone their skills as producers. You don’t want to just give up or leave them to figure it out on their own. It’s important to invest in all of your producers and ensure that everyone gets the support they need to grow and prosper. Be mindful, however, that when a nonproducer overstays their welcome, it can cause issues within the rest of your agency. Everyone else takes note of it, and it erodes the goodwill you have with the rest of your producers and staff. It makes you look bad. If
the underperformer/nonproducer does not hit their numbers within a reasonable timeframe, it’s time to say goodbye. This isn’t about burning bridges but rather opening the door for new opportunities. On the other hand, if the plan you put together with your underperformer works and they hit the goals you laid out, make a point to recognize the achievement. Congratulate them and let them know the bar has been set. Want more great content right now ? Be sure to tune into the Agency Growth Machine podcast. You’ll find topics like “Tools to Gain Massive Leverage and Grow your Agency” and “Why You Need a Bad Cop to Improve Hiring Success” — and so much more. Find the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, and other popular podcast apps.
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iWIN AT A GLANCE A TRANSFORMATIVE AGENCY GROWTH SYSTEM
Have you heard of the iWin Agency Growth System? It’s been implemented by agency owners across the country — agency owners who wanted to grow their business but had experienced roadblocks on the way to that growth. You may be facing your own set of roadblocks right now. You may have tried all of the traditional methods of being a growth-centric agency. You have pipeline management in place, you conduct goal-setting and sales training, and you have mountains of information at your disposal, yet those roadblocks remain.
a process to achieve the growth you’ve wanted. iWin is a 5-step process:
1. We help you build an
implementation team so you don’t have to do it all yourself.
What happens when you put iWin to work for your agency? Call it a remarkable transformation. If you’ve experienced anxiety in the past, prepare to experience relief. You and your agency will be rejuvenated, and you’ll start attracting a new set of producers who will sell to that new set of standards. That’s when your agency will really grow. iWin is about taking control of your agency and achieving a new level of results. Want to learn more? All you have to do is call (214) 446-3209 or visit TheWedge.net and we’ll do the rest. Let’s work together to break through those roadblocks.
2. We help you motivate your producers.
3. We install organic growth technology.
4. We train your producers to beat the competition.
As they say, “There has to be a better way.”
5. We set new standards and create accountability.
There is. We’ve all been there, and we understand the feeling of wanting to grow and being unable to. That’s why we developed a system to break through the roadblocks and to give your agency
Bring each step together and you get growth!
SUDO K U
UPCOMING E V E N T S
3-in-1 Workshop August 7–9, 2018, Cary, NC October 23–25, 2018 San Francisco, CA TheWedge.net/btsb CRISP Sales Meeting Training September 18–19, 2018 Raleigh, NC TheWedge.net/crisp iWin Nation Forum – Hiring Producers October 3–4, 2018 Plano, Texas TheWedge.net/forum
Subscribe to Agency Growth Machine podcasts on iTunes or Stitcher today!
• Failure — A Stupid Concept • Overcoming Fear in 18 Minutes or Less • Superman Syndrome • 3 Struggles of Agency Principals ... and more!
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INSIDE
Is It Time to Change Your Line of Thinking for the Better?
4 Customer Experience Killers
Put Together a Plan to Boost the Bottom 20
Are You Ready for Growth?
Upcoming Events
Kim Scott’s ‘Radical Candor’
HOW ‘RADICAL CANDOR’ CAN GUIDE YOUR TEAM TO SUCCESS LEADERSHIP EXPERT KIM SCOTT’S FANTASTIC NEW BOOK
At the outset of our careers, when we’re learning to jockey for a position in the workforce and master the concepts that will carry us to success, many of us immediately begin to absorb the wrong kind of thinking. In the midst of youth, when our egos are paper-thin and we haven’t yet fully developed our personalities, business culture comes along and tells us to “be professional.” “For an awful lot of people, that gets translated to mean ‘leave your emotions, leave your true identity, leave everything that is best about you … and come to work like some kind of robot,’” said Kim Scott, bestselling author of “Radical Candor: Be a Kickass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity,” at a recent Qualtrics X4 event. But to be the best possible asset to your team, she argues that you need to genuinely care about others — you need to “be able to bring your whole self to work and to create the kind of environment in which everyone around you can do the same.” This ability to “Care Personally,” writes Scott in her book, is the first key principle leaders need to understand in order to succeed as bosses. Though movies about Wall Street may suggest otherwise, it’s difficult to succeed in today’s collaborative business world without genuinely investing yourself in meaningful relationships.
But, as Scott is eager to point out, love alone won’t push your team to new heights. You also need to “Challenge Directly” — to be honest with those who depend on you by letting them know when they’re
leaving their potential untapped or shirking their responsibilities. This “brutal honesty” doesn’t have to be brutal at all; instead, it should be direct, clear, and compassionate.
At the intersection of “Care Personally” and “Challenge Directly” lies the concept of “Radical Candor,” a framework that allows bosses to build two things: an empowered culture of honest feedback around the office and a team that works well together and is eager to achieve fantastic results. If you’re interested in learning how to be a more effective leader but are uncomfortable with the manipulative strategies espoused in so much of business culture, you can’t do better than Kim Scott’s book. It’s chock- full of actionable advice on how to start treating your team not only as employees, but as people, with all the emotions, aspirations, challenges, and potential that they bring.
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