It has produced a microsite (www.legalandgeneral-retention.com) with tips and best practice advice on the above issues, downloadable retention literature, sample letters to use with clients, retention case studies, and details of the Early Warning System (EWS). EWS is a system which automatically flags to an adviser at the earliest possible point when a client's direct debit lapses, therefore telling them of potential policy and commission losses. The site also features a calculator to demonstrate how much commission is currently being lost and how much could be saved if the adviser reduced the number of policies not proceeded with, cancelled from outset or lapsed.
Adrian Clark, operations director said: "Many advisers are finding it tough, or at the very least challenging, to generate new business, so there's never been a better time to make sure that existing clients remain on the books. In the past we have focussed primarily on helping advisers gain those new clients but now we are expanding the support we are giving on the retention side. This isn't just short-term tactical assistance, but also long-term strategic advice."
Legal & General has also launched a new Retention MI Toolbox (REMIT), an internal tool which allows Legal & General's protection sales consultants to help advisers improve their profitability. The system allows consultants to analyse overall sales volumes, proportion of applications converted into sales and rates of lapsed policies. They can then use that management information to propose a tailored strategy to the advisers for improving business performance. The upgraded toolbox now shows the actual financial gains that can be made by reducing the volume of ‘lost business' and therefore how an adviser can improve their profitability. It also now shows historic data on a quarterly basis to demonstrate performance over time and the ability to rank advisers against one another.
