ALISHA CERTAINLY GOES THE EXTRA MILE . EVEN THOUGH GARY LIVES TWO HOURS AWAY FROM WHERE HE USED TO LIVE , ALISHA DROVE THE DISTANCE TO VISIT THE SITE TO SEE WHAT IT WAS THAT SHE WAS ACTUALLY INSURING .
LOCAL FEATURE business , I did that with a number of local insurance agencies .”
Gary continued , “ I decided that even though it was two hours away and probably was not going to work , I thought I would get a quote from Saarela as well . I was at a point where I was either going to stay with Nesbit or I was going leave . The decision to leave would have been driven by the desire to integrate with the local community .”
Gary met with Alisha at Nesbit Agencies . He had never met her before because she works on the business side of the company . Alisha let him know that she believed they could compete for his business . At this point , Gary was getting into aspects of insurance that he ’ d never dealt with before . These included General Liability for the business , Workers ' Comp , and Floodplain insurance , which came as a surprise to him , but one of his outbuildings was actually situated on a floodplain . The building has little or no value , but as Gary tells it , “ I still have to insure it . It is for fish cleaning and bait . It takes quite a sizable insurance , even though I don ’ t insure anything inside the building . That is something Alisha helped me through .”
“ One of the things I learned about insurance at that time ,” Gary says , “ was that even though [ Alisha ] was quoting some of the same companies , she promised , ‘ I ’ ll be very honest with you , I will not be able to beat them on some things , but I can find you options for other things .’”
Gary provided the following example of Alisha ’ s efforts : “ I have auto owners for my General Liability , and I was shocked at the first quote I got because it was like 30 %– 35 % higher than the previous owner . I was really surprised , and she said ‘ Gary you need to understand , you ’ ve never run a business before , certainly nothing like this , and so they ’ re going to give you a very high rate , and I can ’ t do much about that . But stick with me , and over a couple of years , we ’ ll be able to get that down .’ I have to say that my rates now after two years are probably just slightly above where they were with the previous owner because we found ways of bringing it down . She kept her word , and that ’ s a very important aspect to me , delivering on what she said she would do .”
ALISHA CERTAINLY GOES THE EXTRA MILE . EVEN THOUGH GARY LIVES TWO HOURS AWAY FROM WHERE HE USED TO LIVE , ALISHA DROVE THE DISTANCE TO VISIT THE SITE TO SEE WHAT IT WAS THAT SHE WAS ACTUALLY INSURING .
As Gary says , “ She didn ’ t have to do that . She arrived on a Saturday with some friends and part of the family , and she walked around , saw the facility , and said she ’ d love to stay here .”
Gary pointed out that even his banker has only been to the property once , and Gary does a lot more business with him than he does with Alisha . He was very impressed with her attention to detail . She even created a notebook — complete with dividers — holding all of his policies . As a “ nut for paper and organization ,” Gary felt that Alisha speaks “ his language .”
Alisha has also impressed Gary with her responsiveness to any questions or concerns he may have , whether it be related to an audit that has come up or any other question he may have . The personal touch is what sets her apart .
When asked about the excitement of the upcoming season , Gary admitted that there is excitement : “ We have spent the winter months working on the cabins , reinvesting in the business , and preparing for summer . This time of year , we are usually pulling out the docks — 650 feet of them — and the 28 boat lifts and getting them from the property into the water . Right now , I have 8 to ten-foot snow drifts on the property , so it will be a late season this year .”
When asked what he would say to a fellow business owner who was asking if he knew of a “ great insurance person ,” Gary quickly replied , “ If you ’ re looking for somebody that ’ s going to look out for your interests , and be very responsive to your needs , you know , I ’ ve got to recommend Alisha Paradise . She took the time to learn my business , and once she got it , she responded , so what more can I ask for ?” +
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