The commercial insurance buying experience is a mess. For too long agents, and in turn clients, have been making decisions based on a flawed process. The buyer determines it’s time to “shop” their insurance. They reach out to their current representative and maybe 1 or 2 more agents, “Bring me quotes,” they say. The agents jump, collecting current insurance information, determining what companies to get quotes from and finding the best, “can’t be beat” pricing. Because we as insurance professionals are willing to engage in this manner, the buying decisions are made based on price and a few ancillary “throw-in” features or benefits.

Price and coverage are critical items to consider, I’m not making light of that. Unfortunately the coverage is often outdated and thus the pricing isn’t accurate compared to risks of the business today. This old philosophy of “price and features/benefits” results in missed opportunities to recognize changes in the buyer’s business. We don’t engage our prospect on why they have insurance, what they need out of their insurance partner, or how we can help them improve their business. Through strategic planning, an insurance agent should be able to impact top and bottom line, help improve employee engagement and morale, and ensure that risk management is part of the culture of each business.

At Baer Insurance we are challenging our clients to think differently about their insurance experience. As businesses evolve it’s critical to consider how they partner with insurance providers to improve their overall business. Our approach helps firms to not only improve their insurance portfolio but also identify solutions to business needs that may never manifest themselves in insurance policies, coverages, or additional premium.

Please be on the lookout for regular blog posts from members of the Baer Commercial and Benefits Team throughout 2019. We will post a couple times each month with information that can help you to improve your business and rethink how you work with your business partners.