Sales Quality
Emma Vaughan Head of Protection Services SimplyBiz
Mike Pritchard Commercial Manager Legal & General
One of my priorities since joining SimplyBiz is safeguarding our members ’ business from the pitfalls that can come with selling protection . Sales quality and retention not only keep your commission where it should be , but also provide better customer outcomes for your clients .
A key area to focus on is understanding your client a little bit better so you can add real value to the advice that you provide . This starts with a robust fact find that looks at all aspects of their life so you can formulate the best solutions for them and their circumstances .
I caught up with Mike Pritchard , Commercial Manager for Distribution Quality & Retention at Legal & General , to get his view on the importance of business retention :
“ It doesn ’ t need to be too heavily pointed out that the more clawbacks you suffer the more you are at danger of the business failing . Consistently high clawback rates impact cash flow , with lower margins and less reinvestment capital . The gap between income and expenditure is one of the key indicators on health of the business . I am constantly asked , from our experience , what can be done to improve a low margin – high clawback position .
And the answer is … there are many things that need to be considered and can depend on circumstances . Getting it right first time is important , not only for you but for the customer and the insurer . To avoid re-work or the loss of business , it is essential to prepare before each sale . This means giving the customer the opportunity , in advance , to gather key information that may be necessary to complete the application in the most comprehensive way possible ; with no guesses , omissions or inaccuracies . Where there is the slightest misalignment , for example , with the medical information required to underwrite the application , this can cause the heartache of a possible refused claim , if and when made . So , to avoid this , it is better to pause the process of completing the application and revisiting , when all the relevant evidence is available . In fact , expectation management throughout the customer relationship building process is one of the most important roles advisers have . This determines whether the customer engages and adheres to the requests to , for example , set up their MyAccount ( L & G ’ s online account or customer portal ) or respond to the request to check the CYD element of the application and either confirm , or amend and confirm .
At Legal & General , we find this is a key indicator of customer commitment to the policy paying premiums in the short , medium and long term . We see higher early
22 | THE PROTECTION ADVISER