Monthly Archives: December 2013

12.28.13
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It is what it is they are what they are….

An awesome advertising company that happens to sell insurance.  Every week of the year your mailbox is likely infiltrated by a mailing from Geico.  Not always a letter, sometimes just an insert in something else but they are there.  The message is always the same ” How much could you save on your car insurance?”  They use that goofy gecko, a pig, a caveman, random “b list” celebrities, etc in order to try and get your attention in a crowded place and they do a really good job at it.  This is based on them recently being ranked the #2 car insurer in the United States.

So good for them!  They actually make it easier for me to stand out with a commoditized product.  The thing is they completely dumb down what is more often than not an important piece of a financial plan.  Let’s look at this weeks mail; 5 Important tips to help you save money on car insurance

1. Insure more than one car on  your policy;  Is that the best you can do for number 1?  Really, insure another car?  In many cases it is actually considered fraud to not disclose other vehicles in a household NEXT

2.Make sure your car is equipped with safety features:  Come on man(thanks CC)  you then point out Anti-lock brakes, air bags and anti theft systems.  2 of those three are basically standard features of any car 2000 and newer.  As far as anti-theft, the discount is so small since it is a percentage of comprehensive which is your least expensive coverage.

3. Find out if your alumni association, credit union or professional group partners with Geico.   Ok now you are offering something, nice play.  Enjoyed this for years at Liberty Mutual until I realized it was more of a marketing ploy than an actual discount.

4.Insure more than your car with Geico.  Great a multi-policy discount, how original.

5. Educate your young drivers, or encourage them to get their own policy.  Although I like this idea from an overall responsibility perspective there is a small chance of savings.  See do you think the 18-22ish year old can afford the rate?  If the parents still need to subsidize the cost where is the savings?  

My key take away on this and anything else Geico presents is this; They do what they say they are going to do.  They do not promise a solid policy, they do not promise great coverage they do not promise that this policy is a great piece of your financial plan.

Good for them, but most people want better value not better price.

Just some thoughts.

12.10.13
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Fear is a sales tactic for amateurs

Not to far removed from election season and now with other elections and votes pending soon I cannot help but think about how amateurish campaigns can be.  Reality is it is pretty sad.   Everyone operates from a reactive position and goes right for the “jugular” with something like public safety.  Rarely with any facts in hand.  Even rarer with actually actionable steps to fix the base of the problem from the past.  Instead they take the easy road, strike up some fear, attack an opponent and just like that you have some politics.

How about doing things a bit differently.  How about you live a life full of integrity and service.  Make lots of friends along the way, bring value when you do not need to and when you need to really bring it.  How about you connect your friends and community so you have and almost unbreakable web of support around you. How about you reach out to people when you are not in need of votes.  How about you present actual measurable, checkable facts rather than speculating and putting words in bold.

Mailing does work if done correctly.  There are quite a few professional resources that can show you how to do it if you do not know already.  You can actually mail less and get a big return because you are mailing to the most likely people to embrace your message.  Besides with voter turn out so low you are actually disrupting a landscape with your silly sign more than you are attracting votes.

Oh and for those wondering, here is an excerpt from the US Postal service manual;

The USPS Domestic Mail Manual; “no part of a mail receptacle may be used to deliver any matter not bearing postage, including items or matter placed upon, supported by, attached to, hung from, or inserted into a mail receptacle.”

Then there is this thing called Facebook.  If you have a core group of supporters there reach will likely be to people like them who in theory vote like them as well.  Put some resources there.

Bottom line, way better to be proactive then reactive.  Take on the mindset of a true sales professional and actually lay out a campaign.  The world is full of people disguising facts and using other agendas to mask underlying problems.  Please do not be one of them.

Just some thoughts.

12.07.13
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“He knows everybody” and more useless wrong uses of phrases

I get it I know they are expressions but please use some caution.  How about ” he/she knows a lot of people”?  Makes more sense than saying everybody from a grammatical standpoint it is also more more logical.

How about the word “know”  do you really know someone?  My guess is you maybe getting to know someone or have a good sense of who the person is.  When you know someone my guess is you need to think to yourself; Do I know them to the point that I will point my name next to theirs and refer them?  Not that you need to stand by their work, things happen.  But what I mean is if you really “know” someone you should be willing to share them with others and be willing to risk a piece of your reputation when referring them.

“But I heard from someone…”  Really, who?  Who is this somebody that you are not willing to share the name of?

Love– seriously, I appreciate you wanting to step up from like but only use this if you mean it.  Maybe there are different levels of love?  Maybe we should reserve love for things that are alive, specifically humans and pets?

CAN’T is worse than F$&* or S*$# or any other curse word you can think of.  How about how we use it so often.  So can it really not happen or do you just not know how to make it happen.  Can it really not happen or are you just unwilling to do what it takes to make it happen.  Things usually can’t happen right up until one person ignores everyone and does it.

“I’ve got a great idea…”   Great there are books full of them how about you make something happen instead.

Just some thoughts.

 

 

 

12.06.13
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Math and value and flood insurance

Woke up early and was immediately thinking about one of my last conversations yesterday.  Let’s start with some math;

If you spend $1000 and in return I lower the cost of something by about $3000 what could you consider your return on investment(roi)?  $2000 not bad.  Not bad at all.

So in the first year of this new product you saved $2000 by spending $1000.  Now in the second year(assuming current numbers stay the same) you actually save $3000 since you do not spend the $1000 again.  So you have now made $5000 by investing $1000.  500% return.

Now let’s say you need to keep that product for 10 years so $2000 the first year plus $3000 *12 = $36,000 for a total of $38,000 . **Average time in a home is 13 years** All because you invested $1000.

DISCLAIMER; This is math based on the current situation in flood insurance.  Where a provisional rate is approximately $6000 but if  you invest $1000 there is a very good chance you will see that reduced by about $3000.  With this being a brand new situation(roughly 4 months old) it is to early to make these figures more accurate.

**Real Estate version;

Is not spending $1000 worth losing a buyer?

Is not spending $1000 worth delaying a sale…and possibly losing the buyer?

Is not spending $1000 today worth saving maybe $38,000?

This is no different than upgrading your bathroom, lighting, landscape, paint, etc.

So at the present time here is my explanation as to why I will not guarantee the above; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MGTq0QHWCQ

Let’s look at it another way; DEDUCTIBLE math

So you are getting $250,000 in coverage and want the same $1000 deductible as your home.  Your rate is $6370 BUT factor in you think FEMA is nuts (they are) and you firmly believe there will be NO FLOOD at your home.  So you take a $5000 deductible.  New rate of  $4988 savings of $1382.  The math looks weird, you take on $4000 more in risk but this year you save $1382 plus year two $1382 plus year three and what do you know you are now in the clear (assuming you saved this savings)  risk averted.

Remember insurance is an exchange of risk.  Flood rates are nuts because people were not paying enough into the big pool of insurance.  The only act of government that I believe will fix this is when the government GETS OUT OF THE FLOOD INSURANCE BUSINESS.

When deciding on how to spend your insurance budget don’t just settle for what the crowd says is right.  Your willingness to take on more risk is rewarded with a savings which you should value.  Especially if you place no value on the flood insurance you have to buy.

Just some thoughts.  Please open your mind to some new ideas.

 

12.03.13
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Delusions in insurance

1. We want to be the largest in america…. WHO CARES my guess is your policyholders don’t.

2. We can save you $480 or 15% or an average of … WHO CARES reality is saving that amount of money just means something was wrong.

3. Rates go up due to inflation…MOSTLY CRAP rates go up to keep the bottom line healthy. If people knew how much money was floating around in insurance they would go bonkers

4. Discount double check, in good hands, join the nation, like a good neighbor…SLOGANS are for the company not for you.  Sooner the companies put more resources into helping their policyholders and less into marketing the sooner you will see insurance improve.

5. I’ve been with them for twenty years they are loyal to me…SURE AND I have a unicorn in my backyard and the Easter bunny lives next door.  Prove it, show me how they showed loyalty in return.**there are likely some exceptions to this but not many.**

just some thoughts.

12.02.13
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Seriously a pig in a blanket?

When will insurance companies actually step up and make a difference?

My guess is when the public steps up and demands it.  A pig in a blanket, the same pig using an app to do car changes when it should be engaging with the people around it.  A goofball called mayhem?  Jobu(major league reference) doing voice overs for people getting bonus checks.  Seriously would you cut a branch down over your neighbors car.  And it keeps going.

The one that will really win is the one that treats you as educated people who are interested in value with your insurance not comedy.  The only comical thing is that we allow goofy advertising to take the focus off of one of the most profitable business sectors in the world.  Ironically it would be even more profitable if it spent less on advertising to new customers and more on taking care of existing customers.

just some thoughts.

12.01.13
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Not so common courtesy

You would think it would still be common I mean we are all good solid, human beings right?  Well of course we are, except from time to time we just do not act like it.  Call it whatever you want;

The Golden rule; treat others the way you want to be treated

I’ve also heard of the

Platinum rule; Treat others the way they want to be treated

Either way just be nice.

Share good feedback as often or preferably more often than you provide bad.

If someone just did something good for you, let them know.  If they could have done better it is ok to let them know in a nice way.  Then again if someone just spent a bunch of time to help you  show some appreciation.

Losing customers is unfortunately a part of business.  It is almost inevitable and sometimes preventable.  Bottom line is there is a nice way to leave, no sense in burning a bridge you may need to walk back over some day.