Publish Your Own Insurance Owner’s Manual

When one buys something tangible of any complexity, it usually comes complete with a hard-to-open box, endless packing materials, and an owner’s manual for handy set-up and reference. These helpful little booklets come with cars, cell phones, TVs, DVD players, iPods, and more.

Some people pour over them to learn all the ins and outs of their purchase. Others give the book a cursory look, but make sure that it’s put in a safe place in case it’s ever needed. Either way, the owner’s manual is a very reassuring publication. That’s why agents should consider developing one for their insureds.

Just as a car owner’s manual lets the driver in on the vehicle’s inside secrets, an agency-made Insurance Owner’s Manual helps personal and commercial lines clients gain full value from the policies. Most people are interested in their insurance agent and policies only when there’s a change in the status quo, such as a new car, a new employee, or a claim for damages.

A well-designed owner’s manual encourages interest when there are changes in the midst and at other times as well. Overall, it helps agency clients recognize that they receive far more from their insurance professional than a few sheets of paper and an invoice. The manual also puts an agent in a stronger position to compete with sellers who fail to provide this informative publication. Furthermore during the process of its creation, the agency must take careful inventory of the many services and valuable suggestions that it provides every day. When staffers are overwhelmed and overworked by their daily routine, it’s easy to forget about the value the agency office brings.

The act of creating this important booklet helps to remind agency personnel and clientele of the agency’s worth. [See the sidebar on page N34 for some suggestions on what to include.]

Benefits. An Insurance Owner’s Manual does more than inform clients. It helps an agency gain competitive service and sales advantages. For instance, by including answers in the manual to many of the frequently asked questions that are posed to service personnel, insureds won’t have to call in for every little thing. Plus the act of gathering all the facts needed to publish the booklet and to keep it up-to-date helps each manual-creating agency get their own house in order. Furthermore, the finished publication can be used as an internal resource for everyone on staff, particularly new CSRs and producers.

Another benefit is that the manual encourages cross-sales and policy upgrades. Certain insureds will notice that they are missing particular policies, coverage features, or popular add-on endorsements and will call or click for further facts. In turn, the agency benefits from less exposure to E&O losses as well as extra commissions from any resulting sales.

Plus, a well-crafted manual brings with it a broad selection of advertising and marketing possibilities. For instance, ads, e-mails, and postcards can feature a headline such as “Does your insurance policy come with an owner’s manual?” It also allows agency field personnel to enjoy a stronger marketing position compared to local rivals who focus on the traditionally undefined sales points of low premiums and good service, if they advertise at all.

The physical manual. The owner’s manual can be output as a print publication, a series of Web pages, a PDF file, or all three.

In terms of bulk, it can be as brief as eight pages or as hulking as 64 pages or more. Regardless of its bulk, it is best designed with Microsoft Publisher 2003 desktop publishing software. This easy-to-use, low-cost program allows users to design a print publication in 8.5″ x 5.5″ booklet form, suitable for self or commercial printing. It also makes it simple to convert this same multi-page manual into an online resource.

The third option is PDF. If you decide to go this route, you will need separate PDF-creation software, such as Adobe Acrobat, or one of its recent competitors, since it’s not included with Publisher. Another publishing consideration is whether to create a combination manual with distinct sections for personal and business insurance or to publish separate manuals for both major lines. The latter method is recommended because combining lines into a one-size-fits-all booklet dilutes the publication’s overall impact and unnecessarily increases postage and bandwidth costs. It’s fairly easy to create distinct personal and commercial lines editions, since the exact same format and general information can be used in both editions.

Distribution and updates.When considering print versus online distribution, keep in mind that all insureds do not have Internet access. A print publication, although far more costly, makes it possible to inform all agency clients equally. Plus if the agency elects to print the manuals in-house on a fast laser printer, the insured’s name can be printed on the cover. However when thousands of manuals are required, it’s advisable to use the services of a good commercial printer. Furthermore, Web and/or PDF versions of the print manual can still be posted online.

As for the physical distribution of the manuals, agents and CSRs can hand them to new insureds as they come on board, with current clients receiving their copies in the mail.

Ideally, an updated printed manual is provided to policyholders whenever there are major changes in its contents. However, under normal circumstances, the manual(s) might be updated and mailed out every other year. Minor interim updates can be distributed in memo form, cited in your agency newsletter, and posted on the agency’s Web site.

Conclusion. Creating, printing, distributing, and updating an Insurance Owner’s Manual is a serious undertaking. However, independent actions like this are often necessary to provide the top-level service that many agencies tout as their primary reason for being. This self-published guide helps to establish an agency identity and value that’s distinct from their insurance carriers. But most importantly, insureds will appreciate receiving this personable and informative approach to answering common questions far more than a cold FAQ Web page that’s posted once and forgotten.

Alan Shulman, CPCU, is the publisher of Agency Ideas, a subscription-only sales and marketing newsletter. He is also the author of the 1001 Agency Ideas book series and other popular P/C sales resources. He may be reached at (800) 724-1435 or by e-mail at:shulman@agencyideas.com. His Web site is www.agencyideas.com.

Topics Agencies