Giving Thanks is Good for Business!

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By Kitty Ambers, CIC, CPIA, CISR, CPIW, Chief Growth Officer at AVYST As insurance sales professionals, we have learned the impact of “The Loyalty Effect” on agency profitability. In his book, published by Harvard Business Review, author Fred Reichheld explains that generating new customers will cost your business five to 25 times the cost of…

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Customer Spotlight – Jon Black

Jon Black sign

Meet Jon Black, Owner of Curtis Black Insurance Associates in Danbury, CT! How long have you been with your firm and what’s your role there? I established the firm in 1995 with partner Wayne Curtis. I am the sole owner today, Wayne retired in 2017. We stressed quality, not quantity. There are 2 of us and…

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Customer Spotlight – Mike DeStasio

Mike DeStasio spotlight

Let’s get to know Mike DeStasio of AssuredPartners Cranford, NJ location! How long have you been with your firm and what’s your role there? I have been with Assured Partners since 1985. I am the Vice President and manage our Transportation Insurance segment.   What niche market are you involved with? I have been involved…

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In Case You Missed It – Technology Must Support Sales

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In the recent 2020 NUPC/PIA Independent Agent Survey, technology was a focal point.  There were several responses that caught our attention here at AVYST. One noted that the agency owner “has no time to look at new technologies.” But what happens to an agency when the owner doesn’t carve out time to deal with technology…

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Keeping it Conversational

Face it, doing a good job with front line underwriting requires agents and brokers to ask a ton of questions.  A significant amount of data is required by insurance carriers to accurately rate a risk.  Consumers, who aren’t really enamored with having to purchase insurance in the first place, get turned off when there is…

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3 Steps to Improve Your Own User Experience

Young woman at desk with computer

Our industry spends a lot of time discussing the customer experience, and rightfully so. But what about our own experiences as users? I’m convinced that if insurance professionals mindfully commit to improving their own user experience throughout the quoting-and-binding process, the industry itself would be transformed. But so often we push aside our long-term goals…

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