The insurance provider, who has reported some of their highest ever sales figures in the past year, is keen to encourage brokers to register and start making the most of GI sales without delay.
With the current economic climate showing a few signs of improvement but still a long way to growth, coupled with continued job losses and cash flow difficulties, many brokers are struggling from a double-edged sword of a declining market yet increased competition for customer footfall.
Select & Protect research has shown that overall business income for brokers in the last year has dropped by an average of 63% compared to the previous 12 months but General Insurance, Protection and Investment business was up 5%. Some brokers are clearly beginning to dip their toe in the water of business diversification to reduce current and future reliance on residential mortgages by offering their customers a more complete financial services solution. However, there still remains a significant amount who need further persuasion.
Bruce Reid, Select & Protect Managing Director commented; “I’m delighted many brokers have begun looking at general insurance as one of a number of products to generate new revenue streams but I’m equally surprised by the numbers who haven’t. I fear that if these brokers continue to ignore the obvious opportunities open to them, they won’t be in the industry or amongst the audience this time next year.”
Select & Protect urges brokers to consider a wide range of alternative products that suit a brokers business, strategy and customer base; such as Buy to Let, Commercial properties and insurance, Protection, Equity Release, PMI, Wills, Cash Plans and Debt Management. One of the simplest and most profitable products for brokers to consider is General Insurance.
Reid continues; “A typical Select & Protect broker who sells 5 household policies a month will be earning nearly £20,000 per year after three years, growing this to a very healthy £43,000 in six years. The latter amount could help fund an employee to administer GI and improve the broker’s cash flow.”
Reid concludes; “The key to this all is for brokers to raise the awareness of their business, their products and extending the virtues of the specialist service they offer. Brokers should get in touch with their customers and be building two-way communication to develop relationships, word of mouth referrals and to research further customer needs. They need to think about innovative ways of marketing and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Don’t forget the web, just because they’ve traditionally traded on the high street it doesn’t mean that ‘e’ business is someone else’s channel, it’s the route customers increasingly using either for research or to purchase insurance. Finally, brokers should make the most of every customer touch point. One customer may have a number of financial product needs and they could be sourcing all of these through their broker. As much as possible, a more holistic service and solution, where a customer can go to get good advice and value on all their insurance and financial needs, as well as being educated on wider product choices for their benefit, is a service many consumers would value now and in the future.”
