Brokers feed the beating heart of the Canadian insurance industry. They’re the lifeblood that boosts local communities and underpin personal and commercial evolution.
While enabling individuals and commercial entities to progress, the broker community is also under immense pressure to evolve. As consumers embrace new technologies and tune into the 24/7 on-demand economy, they’re expecting different levels of service from insurance brokers.
So, what makes a blue-chip broker in today’s industry? Insurance Business caught up with Nick Wong, account manager at Calgary-based Sharp Insurance and winner of the Insurance Business Canada Broker of the Year 2017 award, to get his take on the matter.
“In today’s industry, a great broker will always provide exceptional customer service, be informative, and focus on being realistic,” Wong said. “I take the time to put myself in my client’s shoes and be as empathetic as possible. I always listen first before I make recommendations in order to get to the root of their needs. I also provide real-life, relatable examples because this builds trust and rapport.
“In order to further develop my relationship with clients, I use every opportunity to be as informative as possible. I use simple messaging with no jargon and provide alternative explanations or examples if needed. I provide advice on ways to reduce risk and keep my client’s premiums down.”
In essence, in a world full of noisy change, key value propositions of the insurance broker include empathy and the ability to translate risk and insurance into something relatable. It’s also important to keep the client front and centre, Wong added. It doesn’t matter how the client wants to engage, whether it’s in-person, by email, over the phone or via an app, brokers have to be flexible and match clients’ modern expectations.
“At the end of the day, it’s best to focus on being realistic,” Wong concluded. “I like to concentrate on what can be done versus what can’t. I will advocate for my client’s best interests 100% of the time.”
Do you want to know if you’re best-in-class and find out where you stand relative to your industry peers? Find out by nominating for an Insurance Business Canada award – but be quick because nominations close very soon.
